CHAPTER 61:
WATERFRONT LAND USE

Sec. 61.1.	Findings and Declaration of Policy.
Sec. 61.2.	Land Use Planning Process.
Sec. 61.3.	Maritime Land Uses.
Sec. 61.4.	Acceptable Non-Maritime Land Uses.
Sec. 61.5.	Unacceptable Non-Maritime Land Uses.
Sec. 61.5.1.	Waterfront Height Limit Right to Vote Requirement.
Sec. 61.6.	Definitions.
Sec. 61.7.	Implementation.
Sec. 61.8.	Severability.
Sec. 61.9.	Amendment and Repeal.
Sec. 61.10.	Chaptering of this Ordinance.
Sec. 61.12.	Port Pre-payment of Jobs-Housing Linkage Program Obligations.

 

SEC. 61.1. FINDINGS AND DECLARATION OF POLICY.

   The people of the City and County of San Francisco find and declare:

   (a)   Whereas, the waterfront of San Francisco is an irreplaceable public resource of the highest value;

   (b)   Whereas, the most beneficial and appropriate use of the waterfront is for purposes related to and dependent on their proximity to San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean, such as maritime uses, public access to, and restoration of, San Francisco Bay;

   (c)   Whereas, San Francisco holds the waterfront in trust for the People of California;

   (d)   Whereas, maritime uses, public access to, and restoration of San Francisco Bay serve San Francisco residents, and provide significant economic, social and environmental benefits to San Francisco and its residents, including a diversity of employment opportunities and better access to a healthier San Francisco Bay;

   (e)   Whereas, the waterfront contains structures of historical and architectural importance;

   (f)   Whereas, it is poor planning to approve waterfront land uses on an ad hoc basis, rather than as part of a comprehensive waterfront land use plan;

   (g)   Whereas, it is in the interest of San Francisco to develop a strong and economically vital waterfront with adequate public access to and restoration of San Francisco Bay; and

   (h)   Whereas, changing conditions in the maritime industry such as deeper draft vessels and increased awareness of the negative environmental impacts of dredging and dredge-spoil dumping indicate that cargo handling at the Port of San Francisco could increase dramatically;

   Therefore the people of San Francisco declare that it is the policy of the City and County of San Francisco that:

      (a)   The waterfront be reserved for maritime uses, public access, and projects which aid in the preservation and restoration of the environment;

      (b)   Where such land uses are infeasible or impossible, only acceptable non-maritime land uses as set forth in this ordinance shall be allowed;

      (c)   A waterfront land use plan shall be prepared (as set forth in Section 61.2 of this ordinance) to further define acceptable and unacceptable non-maritime land uses and to assign land uses for specific waterfront parcels.

(Added by Proposition H, 11/6/90)

SEC. 61.2. LAND USE PLANNING PROCESS.

   (a)   Upon adoption of this initiative, the Board of Supervisors shall within 30 days request the Port Commission to prepare a "Waterfront Use Land Plan" which is consistent with the terms of this initiative for waterfront lands as defined by this ordinance. Should the Port Commission not agree to this request within 30 days of the Board of Supervisors request, the Board of Supervisors shall have 30 days to designate a different City agency or department to prepare the "Waterfront Land Use Plan."

   (b)   The agency drafting the “Waterfront Land Use Plan” shall consult the Planning Commission to ensure development of a plan consistent with the City’s General Plan. The final plan and any subsequent amendments thereto shall be subject to a public hearing conducted by the Planning Commission to ensure consistency between the plan and the City’s General Plan.

   (c)   The "Waterfront Land Use Plan" shall define land uses in terms of the following categories:

      (1)   Maritime land uses;

      (2)   Acceptable non-maritime land uses; and

      (3)   Unacceptable non-maritime land uses.

   Land uses included in these categories which are not part of the initial ordinance shall be added to Sections 61.3 through 61.5 of this ordinance as appropriate. No deletions from Sections 61.3 through 61.5 shall be allowed unless approved by the voters of San Francisco;

   (d)   No City agency or officer may take, or permit to be taken, any action to permit the new development of any non-maritime land use (except those land uses set forth in Section 61.4 below) on the waterfront until the "Waterfront Land Use Plan" has been completed. Non-maritime land uses existing, or which have all their necessary permits, as of January 1, 1990, shall be exempt from this limitation. Non-maritime land uses included in the following projects shall be exempt from this limitation provided that the projects shall be subject to all other applicable laws and regulations and that hotels are not permitted:

      (1)   A project to restore two buildings on the San Francisco waterfront that are listed on the federal National Registrar of Historic Places as of January 1, 1994, specifically the Ferry Building and the Agricultural Building, while continuing the role of the Ferry Building area as a transportation center, and to improve the adjacent pier areas including existing structures, up to but not including any portion of Pier 1 on the north and extending to include the pier area adjoining and south of the Agricultural Building, and

      (2)   A project to improve the public boat launch and dock facility near Pier 52 if the non-maritime land use is limited to a retail and food service use of approximately 3,000 square feet to serve the recreational boating and water use community.

      (3)   [Reserved.]

      (4)   This provision shall not be applicable to any new development within the Candlestick Point Special Use District.

   (e)   The "Waterfront Land Use Plan" shall be reviewed by the agency which prepared it or by such other agency designated by the Board of Supervisors at a minimum of every five years, with a view toward making any necessary amendments consistent with this initiative.

   (f)   The "Waterfront Land Use Plan" shall be prepared with the maximum feasible public input.

(Added by Proposition H, 11/6/90; amended by Proposition P, 11/8/94; Proposition B, 3/26/96; Proposition F, 6/3/97; Amended by Proposition G, 6/3/2008; Ord. 63-20, File No. 200077, App. 4/24/2020, Eff. 5/25/2020)

SEC. 61.3. MARITIME LAND USES.

   Maritime land uses include but are not limited to:

   (a)   Maritime cargo handling and storage facilities;

   (b)   Ship repair facilities;

   (c)   Fish processing facilities;

   (d)   Marinas and boat launch ramps;

   (e)   Ferryboat terminals;

   (f)   Cruise ship terminals;

   (g)   Excursion and charter boat facilities and terminals;

   (h)   Ship berthing facilities;

   (i)   Maritime construction and maritime supply facilities;

   (j)   Marine equipment and supply facilities;

   (k)   A list of additional maritime land uses developed as part of the Waterfront Land Use Planning process shall be included in the "Waterfront Land Use Plan" and added to this Section. Uses added to this list through the Waterfront Plan process include:

      (1)   Cargo shipping;

      (2)   Ship repair;

      (3)   Fishing industry;

      (4)   Recreational boating and water use;

      (5)   Ferry and excursion boats and water taxis;

      (6)   Passenger cruise ships;

      (7)   Historic ships;

      (8)   Maritime support services;

      (9)   Maritime offices; and

      (10)   Port-priority uses.

(Added by Proposition H, 11/6/90; amended by Ord. 7-98, App. 1/16/98)

SEC. 61.4. ACCEPTABLE NON-MARITIME LAND USES.

   Acceptable non-maritime land uses include but are not limited to:

   (a)   Parks;

   (b)   Esplanades;

   (c)   Wildlife habitat;

   (d)   Recreational fishing piers;

   (e)   Restoration of the ecology of San Francisco Bay and its shoreline;

   (f)   Transit and traffic facilities; and

   (g)   A list of additional acceptable non-maritime land uses developed as part of the Waterfront Land Use Planning process shall be included in the "Waterfront Land Use Plan" and added to this Section. Uses added to this list through the Waterfront Plan process include:

      (1)   Public access;

      (2)   Open space;

      (3)   Commercial uses, i.e., artist/designer studios and galleries, assembly and entertainment general office, museums, parking, retail, recreational enterprises, visitor services, warehousing/storage, wholesale trade/promotion;

      (4)   Other uses, i.e., academic institutions, community facilities, general industry, power plants, sports facilities, transportation services;

      (5)   Interim uses consistent with the provisions of the Burton Act and Public Trust.

   (h)   [Reserved.]

   (i)   [Reserved.]

(Added by Proposition H, 11/6/90; amended by Proposition B, 3/26/96; Proposition F, 6/3/97; Ord. 7-98, App. 1/16/98; Amended by Proposition G, 6/3/2008)

SEC. 61.5. UNACCEPTABLE NON-MARITIME LAND USES.

   (a)   Criteria for Consideration in Determining Unacceptable Non-Maritime Land Uses. Criteria to be considered in making findings regarding the acceptability of any specific land use on the waterfront shall include but are not limited to:

      (1)   Does the land use need to be located on the waterfront in order to serve its basic function?

      (2)   Is the land use compatible with existing or planned maritime operations on surrounding parcels if any?

      (3)   Does the land use provide the maximum feasible public access?

      (4)   Does the land use improve the ecological balance of San Francisco Bay?

      (5)   Does the land use protect the waterfront's architectural heritage?

      (6)   Does the land use represent the best interests of the people of the City and County of San Francisco and/or the State of California?

   (b)   Prohibition of Unacceptable Non-Maritime Land Uses. No City agency or officer may take, or permit to be taken, any action to permit the development of any unacceptable non-maritime land use (as set forth below) on the waterfront.

   (c)   Listing of Unacceptable Non-Maritime Land Uses. The following land uses are found to be unacceptable non-maritime land uses:

      (1)   Hotels.

         The City finds that hotels do not need to be located on the waterfront, and permitting their development on the waterfront will displace or preclude maritime uses;

         The City finds that waterfront hotels do not provide the economic benefits provided by maritime employment;

         The City finds that waterfront hotels do not provide high quality public access to, or permit restoration of, San Francisco Bay;

         The City finds that waterfront hotels do not serve the needs of San Francisco or its residents;

         The City therefore finds that hotels are an unacceptable non-maritime land use and shall not be permitted on the waterfront.

      (2)   A list of additional unacceptable non-maritime land uses developed as part of the Waterfront Land Use Planning process shall be included in the "Waterfront Land Use Plan" and added to this Section. Uses added to this list through the Waterfront Plan process include:

         (i)   Non-maritime private clubs;

         (ii)   Residential;

         (iii)   Nonaccessory parking (excludes interim parking);

         (iv)   Adult entertainment;

         (v)   Non-marine animal services;

         (vi)   Mortuaries;

         (vii)   Heliports (except for landings for emergency or medical services);

         (viii)   Oil refineries;

         (ix)   Mini-storage warehouses;

      (x)   Sports facilities with seating capacity greater than 22,000, unless approved by the voters of San Francisco.

   (d)   Grandfathering of Existing Unacceptable Non-Maritime Land Uses. This initiative shall not prevent any unacceptable non-maritime land uses existing as of January 1, 1990 from continuing in operation or expanding on its existing site in a manner consistent with all other applicable laws and regulations. At such time as a new land use is proposed for the site of a business existing as of January 1, 1990 that new land use must meet the conditions set forth in this ordinance.

(Added by Proposition H, 11/6/90; amended by Ord. 7-98, App. 1/16/98)