The Castro Planner has been on hiatus for a few months but CAPA members have been busy following several planning initiatives that will ultimately benefit the Castro. CAPA will meet at its regular time on Thursday, July 12 at 7:30 pm at the Eureka Valley Recreation Center.

This month’s Castro Planner updates some of the events and projects ongoing in the Castro. For more information and links, go to CAPA’s website at www.capasf.org.

Upper Market Planning Workshop Starting

Sarah Dennis of the Planning Department attended CAPA’s April meeting to discuss progress on the Upper Market Planning Workshop (aka Castro Charrette). The Workshop, funded with $100,000 made possible by Supervisor Dufty, will allow the community to address growth and change in the Upper Market Corridor between Castro and Buchanan Streets, focusing on several sites where development is planned and many sites that will be rezoned under the Market Octavia Plan. Participants will also be able to address development-related issues that are important to Castro and LGBT community, and community support, as expressed in the final plan, will be crucial to developers since most will involve a public approvals process through the Planning Commission. Thus the resulting plan can include goals addressing communities need for retail, space for community institutions, and types of housing.

The Planning Department has selected a consultant to conduct the public planning process and prepare the plan documents. The public realm – such as streets, open space and community spaces can be addresses in the plan; further, the Planning Department is committed to creating a larger Castro Plan Element to be incorporated into the city’s General Plan. The Upper Market Planning Workshop could be seen as a sort f scoping process for such a plan.

Sarah, the Workshop project leader for the Planning Dept., reports that she is finalizing dates for the initial events, so as not to conflict with the various neighborhood meetings, and expects that the first workshop events will be held this month. Initial events could include public forums, walking tours, etc., with completion in three to six months. The final document could then be adopted as policy by the Board of Supervisors and the Planning Commission.

Better Streets Workshop in the Castro

Following up on the well attended Better Streets Workshop in April, members Jeff Tumlin and Steve Hall have proposed that CAPA should work with the city’s Better Streets project to draft an improvement plan for Castro Street, and other streets at the heart of the Castro. CAPA would build upon the Better Streets program and draw upon the resources of the community to reach some consensus. Jeff related a similar program focused on Columbus Ave. in North Beach, sponsored by a neighborhood group called Renew SF. The group received a grant from Caltrans with the Transportation Authority acting as fiscal sponsor and technical experts. The program could also tie into or follow up on the Upper Market Workshop process.

Castro Economic Forum Seeks Vacancies Solutions

On June 9, the Eureka Valley Promotion Association (EVPA) sponsored a Castro Neighborhood Economic Roundtable. CAPA and EVPA member Demian Quesnel organized the event and Joe Curtin was a panel member, along with a representative of the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development, Lisa Pagan. The major themes included balancing the economic needs of the Castro as a GLBT tourist destination, a village and a capital for the community; targeting specific business types to fill the many vacant storefronts; improving the public realm as a means of improving the business climate in the Castro; and establishing a neighborhood development corporation. Lisa Pagan of the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development is working full time to bring new business to the Castro and encourages input from the community regarding desired businesses.

Neighborhood Commercial Districts Zoning Review

Scott Dowdee of the Planning Dept. made a presentation at the April meeting on the city’s review of zoning regulations in all of its Neighborhood Commercial Districts (NCDs). This review should happen every two years but has happened only once before in the last twenty years. Scott, a Castro resident, was involved in the original planning for the city’s NCDs, and now is evaluating what types of permits have been approved and rejected over the years, and will release a study recommending changes to the zoning. The Planning Dept. will then go to neighborhood groups for more input. At the June meeting, CAPA members decided to study the zoning regulations for both the Upper Market and Castro NCD zones and make recommendations to the Planning Dept.

August Harvey Milk Plaza Forum at SPUR

On August 9, CAPA president Joe Curtin will present a lunchtime forum on plans for Harvey Milk Plaza at SPUR (San Francisco Planning and Urban Research), the influential planning think-tank. Joining him will be Heidi Sokolowsky, one of the winners of the 2000 Harvey Milk Plaza design competition (which was sponsored by SPUR). Look for more information in the August Castro Planner.