By Peter Lawrence Kane
Remember that mammoth development slated for 16th and Mission that was announced in late 2013? SocketSite reports that formal environmental review is about to commence, and 1979 Mission Street has the potential to be the ugliest flashpoint yet in the gentrification wars.
Whether you’re an SFBARF fan who wants greater density everywhere or you’re adamantly opposed to these radical redesigns, one thing’s for sure: Always be suspicious of renderings that include trees. The palm on the right doesn’t look happy at all.
Building it will require the demolition of Mission Hunan Restaurant, a Walgreen’s, and a Burger King, but this parcel will still be home to a whopper: With 30,000 square feet of retail and slots for 163 cars (including 22 for non-residents) and 158 bikes, the 10-story structure will be the tallest thing for blocks, although the fact that it’s set back 15 feet from the property line will probably integrate it into the surroundings. All of that traffic will be entering and exiting via a single curb on Capp Street, so that garage door better be whisper quiet.
SocketSite claims this new housing will include 331 units, but the building’s own site lists 345, of which only 42 are intended to be affordable. It’s too early for prices, but six blocks down Mission, units at VIDA started at $1,000 per square foot. As a peace offering to the neighborhood, architects Skidmore, Owings & Merrill will give the BART station the extreme makeover it desperately needs. They’ve also floated a proposal to add classroom space for the adjacent elementary school and turn the building’s roof into a playground since the existing monkey bars will no longer get much direct sunshine. The developers claim to have held more than 100 meetings, so there has been community input.
There’s no way around the fact that this one’s a biggie. Only one week ago, it seemed that installing slightly larger bus stops and red-striping the center lanes of Mission Street as transit-only were the thin edge of the wedge. Residents vociferously opposed even those minor improvements as “a thinly veiled effort to exploit the Mission into a theme park for Google.” There’s some truth to that hyperbole, and if this project opens as expected in late 2016, it’s going to transform 16th and Mission beyond recognition.
[Via SocketSite; Images courtesy of SocketSite]
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