By the end of a contentious hearing over 555 Washington three weeks ago, the twisty cylinder had snagged a crucial certification of its environmental impact report, but a few items had remained to be heard due to an administrative hiccup. The fight's second round, however, has already (and predictably) begun! Opponents of the project are wasting no time appealing the 400-foot tower's EIR to the Board of Supes — the board will take up the appeal on April 20. But developer Andrew Segal's not taking this lying down. In a letter to supes prez David Chiu and CC'd to a laundry list of neighborhood associations, political groups, and advocacy organizations, Segal practically threatens to cancel the whole thing.
'Course, that in turn would cost the city "more than $300 million in city revenues over the life of the project," the expanded Redwood Park, "hundreds of new jobs and 42 units of affordable housing." Basically, he writes, the project team has demonstrated flexibility with regard to community concerns already, but "we cannot develop solutions without thoughtful consideration and the remaining issues are too complex to be resolved before April 20. Further, any additional cost and time associated from yet more environmental review will render the project economically infeasible." So, that's just something to think about while they all look forward to a civil and reasoned debate.
· Letter: Andrew Segal to David Chiu (PDF) [Curbed Inbox]
· One Hurdle Cleared With Twisty Cylinder's Enviro Report Certified [Curbed SF]
· Commissioners Say Twisty Cylinder's Report Was Too Subjective [Curbed SF]
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