SEC. 178. CONDITIONAL USES.

   The following provisions shall apply to conditional uses:

   (a)   Definition. For the purposes of this Section, a permitted conditional use shall refer to:

      (1)   Any use or feature authorized as a conditional use pursuant to Article 3 of this Code, provided that such use or feature was established within the time limits specified as a Condition of Approval or, if no time limit was specified, within a reasonable time from the date of authorization; or

      (2)   Any use or feature that is classified as a conditional use in the district in which it is located and that lawfully existed either on the effective date of this Code, or on the effective date of any amendment imposing new conditional use requirements upon such use or feature; or

      (3)   Any use deemed to be a permitted conditional use pursuant to Section 179 of this Code.

   (b)   Continuation. Except as provided for temporary uses in Section 205 of this Code, and except where time limits are otherwise specified as a Condition of Approval, any permitted conditional use may continue in the form in which it was authorized, or in the form in which it lawfully existed either on the effective date of this Code or the effective date of any amendment imposing new conditional use requirements upon such use or feature, unless otherwise provided in this Section or in Article 2 of this Code.

   (c)   Enlargement, Alteration, or Intensification.

      (1)   A permitted conditional use may not be significantly altered, enlarged, or intensified, except upon approval of a new conditional use application pursuant to the provisions of Article 3 of this Code.

      (2)   Internet Services Exchange. With regard to an Internet Services Exchange as defined in Section 102, any physical alteration that will enlarge or expand the building for the purpose of intensifying the use shall be deemed to be significant under this Section, and any increase in the size of electrical service to the building that will require a permit from the Department of Building Inspection shall be deemed to be significant under this Section.

      (3)   Formula Retail. With regard to Formula Retail uses, a change of owner or operator of a Formula Retail establishment is determined to be an intensification of use and a new Conditional Use authorization shall be required if one or more of the following occurs:

         (A)   A change of use from one use to another, including but not limited to a change from one use to another within the use category Retail Sales and Service, and within the sub-categories of uses in the definition of General Retail Sales and Service in Section 102 and Other Retail Sales and Service in and Section 890.102 of this Code;

         (B)   Expansion of use size;

         (C)   Change to a Formula Retail establishment that has more locations than the existing Formula Retail establishment;

         (D)   Installation of a commercial kitchen, including but not limited to: ovens, open ranges or stoves, fryers, oven hoods or kitchen ventilation systems, heating stations, steam tables or cabinets, cold food storage, increased food preparation areas or self-service drink dispensers;

         (E)   A pre-existing Formula Retail use that had not previously been authorized via a Conditional Use from the Commission.

      (4)   Power Plant. A Power Plant use, as defined in Section 102, shall, whether nonconforming or conditionally permitted, require conditional use authorization in order to enlarge, intensify, or extend the use if such changes would expand a power plant use, make it more permanent, or substantially change the use. An intensification of use shall include the following changes, without limitation and in addition to the criteria set forth in Article 1.7 of the Planning Code:

         (A)   An increase in output capability by more than 10 percent (either an increase in capacity or increase in planned or permitted output per year);

         (B)   A change in type of fuel;

         (C)   A greater than 5 percent increase in the volume of monthly discharge of waste water into the sewer or into the San Francisco Bay, or an increase in the temperature of existing waste water discharges into the San Francisco Bay;

         (D)   Any increase greater than 5 percent in the emission rate or the total annual tons of emission for particulate precursors, ozone precursors or greenhouse gases;

         (E)   A greater than 5 percent increase in the volume of regulated substances used on site on a monthly basis, or in the volume of regulated substances stored on site or in the volume of regulated substances transported to the site on a monthly basis; or

         (F)   Improvements to any power generation unit costing more than 25 percent of the assessed value of the same unit prior to improvement.

   (d)   Abandonment. A permitted conditional use that is discontinued for a period of three years, or otherwise abandoned, shall not be restored, except upon approval of a new conditional use application pursuant to the provisions of Article 3 of this Code. For purposes of this subsection (d), the period of nonuse for a permitted conditional use to be deemed discontinued in the Castro Street Neighborhood Commercial District and the Jackson Square Special Use District shall be 18 months.

      A permitted conditional Formula Retail use which is discontinued for a period of 18 months, or otherwise abandoned, shall not be restored, except upon approval of a new conditional use application pursuant to Article 3 of this Code.

   (e)   Changes in Use. The following provisions shall apply to permitted conditional uses with respect to changes in use, except as further limited by the change of use procedures for Formula Retail uses set forth in Section 303.1 of this Code.

      (1)   A permitted conditional use may be changed to another use listed in Section 102 and Articles 7 or 8 of this Code as a principal use for the district in which it is located and the new use may thereafter be continued as a permitted principal use.

      (2)   A permitted conditional use may be changed to another use listed in Section 102 and Articles 7 or 8 of this Code as a conditional use for the district in which the property is located, subject to the other applicable provisions of this Code, only upon approval of a new conditional use application, pursuant to the provisions of Article 3 of this Code.

      (3)   A permitted conditional use may not be changed to another use not permitted or prohibited by the Zoning Control Table for the district in which the lot is located. If a permitted conditional use has been wrongfully changed to another use in violation of the foregoing provisions and the violation is not immediately corrected when required by the Zoning Administrator, the wrongful change shall be deemed to be a discontinuance or abandonment of the permitted conditional use.

      (4)   Once a permitted conditional use has been changed to a principal use permitted in the district in which the property is located, or brought closer in any other manner to conformity with the use limitations of this Code, the use of the property may not thereafter be returned to its former permitted conditional use status, except upon approval of a new conditional use application pursuant to the provisions of Article 3 of this Code.

      (5)   In the North Beach Neighborhood Commercial District, any use that exceeds the use size provisions of Section 121.2(a) or 121.2(b) may be changed to a new use only upon approval of a new conditional use application. The Commission's approval of such conditional use application shall explicitly address the use size findings of Section 303(c).

      (6)   In the Castro Street Neighborhood Commercial District, any use that exceeds the use size provisions of Section 121.2(a), but is smaller than the maximum use size limit of Section 121.2(b), may be changed to a new use only upon approval of a new conditional use application. The Commission's approval of such conditional use application shall explicitly address the use size findings of Section 303(c).

   (f)   Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this Section 178, a structure occupied by a permitted conditional use that is damaged or destroyed by fire, or other calamity, or by Act of God, or by the public enemy, may be restored to its former condition and use without the approval of a new conditional use application, provided that such restoration is permitted by the Building Code, and is started within 18 months and diligently pursued to completion. Except as provided in Subsection (g) below, no structure occupied by a permitted conditional use that is voluntarily razed or required by law to be razed by the owner thereof may thereafter be restored except upon approval of a new conditional use application pursuant to the provisions of Article 3 of this Code.

   (g)   None of the provisions of this Section 178 shall be construed to prevent any measures of construction, alteration or demolition necessary to correct the unsafe or dangerous condition of any structure, other feature, or part thereof, where such condition has been declared unsafe or dangerous by the Director of the Department of Building Inspection or the Chief of the Bureau of Fire Prevention and Public Safety, and where the proposed measures have been declared necessary, by such official, to correct the said condition; provided, however, that only such work as is absolutely necessary to correct the unsafe or dangerous condition may be performed pursuant to this Section.

(Added by Ord. 69-87, App. 3/13/87; amended by Ord. 131-87, App. 4/24/87; Ord. 115-90, App. 4/6/90; Ord. 312-99, File No. 991586, App. 12/3/99; Ord. 198-00, File No. 993231, App. 8/18/2000; Ord. 77-02, File No. 011448, App. 5/24/2002; Ord. 245-08, File No. 080696; Ord. 75-12 , File No. 120084, App. 4/23/2012, Eff. 5/23/2012; Ord. 56-13 , File No. 130062, App. 3/28/2013, Eff. 4/27/2013; Ord. 235-14 , File No. 140844, App. 11/26/2014, Eff. 12/26/2014; Ord. 22-15, File No. 141253, App. 2/20/2015, Eff. 3/22/2015; Ord. 129-17, File No. 170203, App. 6/30/2017, Eff. 7/30/2017; Ord. 47-18, File No. 171108, App. 3/16/2018, Eff. 4/16/2018; Ord. 204-19, File No. 190731, App. 8/9/2019, Eff. 9/9/2019)

AMENDMENT HISTORY

Division (d) amended; Ord. 75-12 , Eff. 5/23/2012. Division (f) amended; Ord. 56-13 , Eff. 4/27/2013. Former division (c) divided into current divisions (c)(1) and (2); division (c)(3) added; divisions (d) and (e) amended; Ord. 235-14 , Eff. 12/26/2014. Divisions (a)(1), (b), (c), (c)(2), and (c)(3) amended; division (c)(4) added; divisions (d), (e)(1)-(3), and (g) amended; Ord. 22-15, Eff. 3/22/2015. Division (c)(3)(A) amended; Ord. 129-17, Eff. 7/30/2017. Division (d) amended; Ord. 47-18, Eff. 4/16/2018. Division (d) amended; Ord. 204-19, Eff. 9/9/2019.