TWG: We should take up at least the C3 legislation below at our next meeting. Sue GREEN GUERRERO STREET Saturday, November 5, rain or shine Two shifts, 9 AM and 1 PM Guerrero Street between Cesar Chavez and Duncan Streets bring gloves and a shovel or spade Call 415 285-8188 or email contact@sanjoseguerrero.com for more information. The San Jose/Guerrero Coalition to Save our Streets, together with several public agencies and plant nurseries, will be gathering to green the existing medians of San Jose and Guerrero streets with drought-tolerant trees and plants, including Olive trees, agaves, cacti, and grasses. HOME DEPOT UPDATE The Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the proposed Home Depot store on Bayshore Boulevard was appealed to the Board of Supervisors, who took testimony on October 25; action on the item was continued until November 1, and was continued again until November 8. The Home Depot EIR is inadequate, because the traffic analysis didn't include the voter-approved project for bus rapid transit/transit preferential streets corridor on the important Potrero, Bayshore, and San Bruno corridor; nor does the traffic analysis make provisions for bicycle improvements to Bayshore, which street is slated for bicycle improvements in the city's bicycle plan. We are urging the Supervisors to reject this inadequate EIR, which should be re-done with a traffic analysis that incorporates these important transit and bicycle projects. The Board may act on Tuesday, November 8, although no further testimony will be heard; you can contact the supes and tell them not to approve this inadequate EIR. For contact information, see http://www.sfbike.org/?leaders DOWNTOWN PARKING REFORM UPDATE An ordinance to reform residential parking in public transit-intensive downtown core took a step forward when it was heard for the first time at the Planning Commission on Thursday October 27. The legislation would affect the C-3 zoning district, which includes the Market Street corridor from Van Ness to the Embarcadero, as well as the Financial District and Union Square areas north of Market street and the Yerba Buena and Transbay areas South of Market. The legislation is the first major reform of downtown residential parking requirements in over two decades, and would extend progressive approaches to parking management enacted in small areas of downtown (Transbay and Rincon Hill) to the entire downtown. It will: * eliminate minimum parking requirements downtown; * establish a parking maximum of one space for every two units; * require that the sale or rental of parking spaces be "unbundled" from the sale or rental price of units; * eliminate size and independent accessibility requirements for parking spaces, to allow greater flexibility in configuring parking; * prohibits parking spaces on upper floors; * requires bicycle parking in residential projects; * requires car sharing spaces be set aside in larger projects; * protects major bicycle, pedestrian, and transit streets from new driveways and curb cuts. TLC was there to testify in support, along with several other livable city advocates; a gaggle of development attorneys were there in opposition to several provisions of the legislation (particularly the estabishment of maximum parking ratios), although, thanks to the work of advocates over the past year, many provisions were supported by the developer representatives and the commissioners as overdue reforms. The reaction of the planning commission was mixed; Commissioner Shelley Bradford-Bell was powerfully articulate about how the downtown is the ideal neighborhood for car-free living--she should know, as she lives downtown car-free and raises her family there. Commissioner Olague was also supportive, and made the point the city must do more to make downtown more safe and walkable for families, seniors and women. The commission's more conservative members, including Bill Lee and Michael Antonini, parroted the development attorneys' spin, including the bizarre argument that more parking downtown will actually reduce downtown traffic! The developer attorneys made the argument that residential parking downtown doesn't increase traffic, but is simply "car storage" for residents who rarely use their cars. Their car storage argument was effectively de-bunked in a TLC-sponsored research project conducted by San Francisco State University (see "Study: If there is parking, they will come", SF Examiner, July 28, 2005 http://www.sfexaminer.com/articles/2005/07/29/news/20050729_ne05_parking.txt), which demonstrated that housing built with more parking generates more automobile trips, including many more commute trips (and more pollution and traffic congestion), than housing with lower parking ratios does. The legislation will be heard again at the Thursday, November 17 Planning Commission hearing; we will give you more details as the date draws closer. REMINDER: ENVISIONING COLUMBUS AVENUE A Collaborative Community Effort Thursday, November 3, 6-8 PM Oakville Grocery at The Cannery 2801 Leavenworth Street (at the foot of Columbus) An opportunity to see developing plans and hear ideas that will change the Columbus Avenue corridor (from Montgomery to Beach Streets) during the next five years. For more information contact wells39@msn.com. DALY CITY BART COMMUNITY DESIGN WORKSHOP Saturday, November 5, 10 AM to 4 PM Woodrow Wilson Elementary School 43 Miriam Street, Daly City Daly City BART station is an important intermodal hub for southwestern San Francisco and northern San Mateo County, but is an urban design disaster, with poorly designed streets that limit bicycle and pedestrian access to the station, and automobile-oriented land uses that don't take advantage of the excellent transit access the station provides. BART and the City of Daly City have launched a two-day workshop focused on enhancing access and safety, improving transit connections, managing and guiding growth, and ensuring better links between the station and the community. The first session, which happened on Saturday October 29, focused on reviewing existing conditions, touring the station area, and setting goals for the future. The second session (this Saturday November 5) will be a hands-on community design workshop. Have your say in enhancing access and planning transit-oriented land uses for this important station! For more information contact Peter Albert at BART, 510 287-4702. Tom Radulovich Executive Director Transportation for a Livable City 995 Market Street Suite 1550 San Francisco CA 94103 415 344-0489 www.livablecity.org tom@livablecity.org