Transit Center District Plan Approved by Planning Commission
Project to create new downtown heart in San Francisco now goes to the Board for approval
Transit Center District Plan Approved by Planning Commission
Project to create new downtown heart in San Francisco now goes to the Board for approval
SAN FRANCISCO – The Transit Center District Plan was approved by the San Francisco Planning Commission today, moving the city one step closer to creating the new commercial heart envisioned in the downtown plan and helping to finance the multi-modal Transbay Transit Center already underway.
“This district will be transformed from an area once dominated by cars and trucks to lively streets, abundant parks and more open spaces,” said Mayor Edwin Lee. “With even more transit service planned for the future and the new transit center now under construction, this is the best place to accommodate growth in the City and the region.”
The plan proposes a vision for the district that responds to the public investment in the new district, the $4.2 billion Transit Center/Downtown Rail Extension project, as well as to the City’s need to provide space for continued job growth in a transit-oriented manner.
Between now and 2035, approximately 17 percent of the projected job growth in San Francisco will occur in the area surrounding the new Transbay Transit Center. The project anticipates over 27,000 new permanent jobs will be accommodated in the District -- the most significant concentration of projected job growth in the entire city.
“We are proud to recommend and move this project forward so that we can capitalize on this major transportation initiative which will create a new, vibrant heart for downtown San Francisco,” said Rodney Fong, President of the Planning Commission. “This plan sets the gold standard for sustainable, transit-based growth in the region and carefully balances this with critical aspects of livability that makes San Francisco special.”
The new district will feature more than six million square feet of new office space, over 4,000 new housing units of which at least 1,200 units will be affordable, up to 1,000 new hotel rooms, and improved streets to enhance transit service and support walking and bicycling. The new Plan also proposes to create and fund over 11 acres of new public spaces such as parks, plazas and living streets. Furthermore, the project would provide an additional $18 million for open space improvements outside of the Plan Area.
One of the key objectives of the Transit Center District Plan is to raise revenue from new development for the Transit Center/Downtown Rail Extension project and other public infrastructure to support continued growth in the Plan area, including circulation, streetscape, open space, and other transit improvements. The Plan’s Funding Program is projected to raise $590 million of new revenue from development, including over $400 million for completing the Transit Center/Downtown Rail Extension project.
The project is anticipated to go before the Board of Supervisors later this summer.
“Since 2007, the Planning Department has worked diligently with its partners to develop this plan and we’re pleased to have crossed this milestone for a project which will have innumerable positive outcomes for our city,” said Planning Director, John Rahaim.
The plan was developed in partnership with the Planning Department, the Transbay Joint Powers Authority and the Successor Agency to the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency, and involved close coordination with many public agencies, such as SFMTA.
Project to create new downtown heart in San Francisco now goes to the Board for approval
SAN FRANCISCO – The Transit Center District Plan was approved by the San Francisco Planning Commission today, moving the city one step closer to creating the new commercial heart envisioned in the downtown plan and helping to finance the multi-modal Transbay Transit Center already underway.
“This district will be transformed from an area once dominated by cars and trucks to lively streets, abundant parks and more open spaces,” said Mayor Edwin Lee. “With even more transit service planned for the future and the new transit center now under construction, this is the best place to accommodate growth in the City and the region.”
The plan proposes a vision for the district that responds to the public investment in the new district, the $4.2 billion Transit Center/Downtown Rail Extension project, as well as to the City’s need to provide space for continued job growth in a transit-oriented manner.
Between now and 2035, approximately 17 percent of the projected job growth in San Francisco will occur in the area surrounding the new Transbay Transit Center. The project anticipates over 27,000 new permanent jobs will be accommodated in the District -- the most significant concentration of projected job growth in the entire city.
“We are proud to recommend and move this project forward so that we can capitalize on this major transportation initiative which will create a new, vibrant heart for downtown San Francisco,” said Rodney Fong, President of the Planning Commission. “This plan sets the gold standard for sustainable, transit-based growth in the region and carefully balances this with critical aspects of livability that makes San Francisco special.”
The new district will feature more than six million square feet of new office space, over 4,000 new housing units of which at least 1,200 units will be affordable, up to 1,000 new hotel rooms, and improved streets to enhance transit service and support walking and bicycling. The new Plan also proposes to create and fund over 11 acres of new public spaces such as parks, plazas and living streets. Furthermore, the project would provide an additional $18 million for open space improvements outside of the Plan Area.
One of the key objectives of the Transit Center District Plan is to raise revenue from new development for the Transit Center/Downtown Rail Extension project and other public infrastructure to support continued growth in the Plan area, including circulation, streetscape, open space, and other transit improvements. The Plan’s Funding Program is projected to raise $590 million of new revenue from development, including over $400 million for completing the Transit Center/Downtown Rail Extension project.
The project is anticipated to go before the Board of Supervisors later this summer.
“Since 2007, the Planning Department has worked diligently with its partners to develop this plan and we’re pleased to have crossed this milestone for a project which will have innumerable positive outcomes for our city,” said Planning Director, John Rahaim.
The plan was developed in partnership with the Planning Department, the Transbay Joint Powers Authority and the Successor Agency to the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency, and involved close coordination with many public agencies, such as SFMTA.
###
Media Contact: Joanna Linsangan, 415.575.9119
joanna.linsangan@sfgov.org