Earlier this summer the Planning Commission reviewed a new housing development at 115 Telegraph Hill that brought the wrath of the ever-powerful Telegraph Hill Dwellers. Now a tweaked version of the project is back before Planning. As you recall, the design by Butler Armsden Architects called for a new 17,645-square-foot, three-unit residential building designed to look like three 40-foot single-family houses. Last time, the Hill Dwellers slammed the mass and scale of the project, even though the site is sandwiched compatibly between a two-story and a four-story building. The Planning Commission continued the hearing after giving a few suggestions, like creating side spacing between the buildings, reducing the size of the penthouses, and making the plain stucco wall that faces the Filbert Street stairs a little more jazzy.
The project sponsors drew up the changes, and they also reduced the height of each unit a smidge, redesigned the rear yard, and moved the curb cut. Naturally, the Hill Dwellers don't think they've done enough. We'll see if it's enough to get Planning approval and quell the malcontents.
· Conditional Use Authorization — 115 Telegraph (PDF) [SF Planning]
· Telegraph Hill Dwellers Unfooled by Triplex Disguised as Houses [Curbed SF]