TransForm applauds San Francisco Japantown Draft Plan Components

Making Japantown a Thriving Hub with a Range of Housing and Transportation Options

Although it hasn't been officially approved yet, on June 25, 2009 the San Francisco Planning Commission acknowledged its support of key elements of the Japantown Better Neighborhood Plan  

The Plan includes community-supported desires to improve parks, streets, pedestrian safety and have culturally-sensitive design for new development.

Highlights of the Plan:

  • Replacement of the east side of Webster Street between Geary and Bush with a new linear park.

  • New development requirements including: mandatory unbundled parking, transit passes bundled into HOA dues, and carshare facilities.

  • Maximum 0.75 parking spaces for new homes at Japantown Center.

The Planning Commission acknowledgement formally recognizes the work community members and city staff has done to build consensus on what the Japantown Better Neighborhood Plan includes to date. 

From 2007 to 2009, TransForm monitored the progress of the San Francisco Japantown Better Neighborhoods Plan.  Ann Cheng, TransForm's Senior Planner actively participated in dozens of community workshops, steering committee and focus group meetings.  TransForm brought a regional perspective and provided information on best practices in transit-oriented development and sustainable transportation strategies.

TransForm applauds the following Draft Plan Components*:

1) Increased Housing Opportunities Next to the Future BRT Station

TransForm believes the plan adds appropriately higher buildings at key sites in a way that respects existing neighbors.  Additional homes can be marketed to displaced members of the Japanese American community which will help alleviate a competitive housing market.

2) Innovative Sustainable Transportation Measures

TransForm also supports the extensive proposed improvements to make it safer to walk across Geary and other heavily used streets.  These improvements will complement future Bus Rapid Transit and improve the access to Japantown from the rest of the Bay Area.   The Draft Plan requires new development to support a more diverse transportation system by providing transit passes and car share pods.  Finally, the Draft Plan also requires charging the right price for parking, a requirement that will both reduce traffic and make it more convenient for drivers.

3) Cultural Preservation

Japantown is a multi-regional hub for the Japanese American community.  Having more homes support seniors, giving those who want to retire in Japantown a choice to be living within walking distance of their cultural and community services.  The Draft Plan includes an Implementation Plan for cultural preservation, historic resources, existing cultural institutions and small Japanese businesses.

Many of the TransForm recommended improvements to the Plan were derived from the Great Communities Collaborative Toolkit.  Take a look at the informational hand-out and policy fact-sheets here. 

* Next Steps for the Plan

The City needs more funding to identify strategies to prevent loss of family owned business, when renovation of Japantown Center and construction of the Geary BRT eventually happens.  The Planning Department also needs funding to conduct an environmental impact report (EIR) sot that the City can formally adopt the Plan.

City Contact Information

For more information on the city's process, contact Ken Rich, Senior Planner, City of San Francisco at Ken.Rich@sfgov.org or call him at 415-558-6354 or see the city's website on the Japantown Better Neighborhood Plan.