A San Francisco florist has launched a petition to protest Kilroy Realty's plans to develop the western portion of the Flower Mart's home in SoMa into an SOM-designed tech campus. Even though Kilroy has vowed to preserve the Flower Mart in a newly constructed space, as you recall, the florists' leases expire at the end of this year. And as the SF Business Times has pointed out, some flower sellers worry that the process of building a new mart could bring higher rents and disruptive construction that could threaten their survival.
"A coalition of flower vendors, florists, tenants, wholesalers and concerned citizens are gathering to lambaste the scheduled purchase by Los Angeles developer, Kilroy and Company," says the petition, "that provides no tangible guarantees for locally owned businesses occupying the space."
· Kilroy: Let's Preserve the Flower Mart By Building a New One [Curbed SF]
· Can the Development Police Uproot Kilroy's Flower Mart Plans? [Curbed SF]
Battle brewing over San Francisco Flower Mart development [SF Business Times]
· Save the San Francisco Flower Market [The Petition Site]