News
Developer banks on density bonus program for SoMa housing proposal
March 14, 2017 • Posted in: Market News
A San Francisco developer is proposing to tear down a commercial building at 755 Brannan St. and build 55 units of housing.
The project is one of the first to apply in San Francisco for additional units through the state's affordable housing density bonus. The site is zoned for up to 44 units in four stories, but using the program would allow for another story in exchange for 25 percent affordability. That means 11 of the units would be set aside for low-income residents.
The proposal comes after 200 micro-units were approved in December, the first time a San Francisco housing project has used the state's density bonus program. Another market-rate project seeking to use the state density program is the Toboni Group's 793 South Van Ness Ave., which wants to use the program to build 73 units at 793 South Van Ness Ave.
The 755 Brannan project, designed by Sternberg Benjamin Architects, is slated to include a mix of studios, one- and two-bedroom units as well as parking for 32 cars and 55 bikes.
Both the architect and developer Chris Harney of SF Green Homes LLC declined to discuss the project.
The existing 12,880-square-foot building once housed the headquarters of Shyp, a shipping startup, and is half a mile from the 4th and King Street Caltrain station and is also close Showplace Square and Mission Bay.
The site sits on a stretch of land in SoMa between Interstates 80 and 280 in a hotbed of development activity.
Other developers are working on large projects within just a couple of blocks. Equity Residential expects to complete 449 apartments at 855 Brannan St. this spring.
Kilroy Realty Corp.'s plans a major transformation of the San Francisco Flower Mart at 620 Brannan St. into 2.1 million square feet of office and retail space.