SOMA AND “NEW TERRITORIES” PARKING EXPANSION: A PRACTICAL SOLUTION TO MITIGATING SAN FRANCISCO’S PARKING CRISIS A Position Paper and Proposed Solutions Overview –
San Francisco’s booming economy has spurred a remarkable surge in commercial renewal
and development, bringing with it many new jobs to satisfy increased business and
consumer demand for local products and services. Yet efforts to ensure that the City’s
expanding workforce, daily shoppers and visitors and increasingly mobile resident base are
provided available parking have not kept pace with the economic expansion. In fact, the
number of available parking spaces in San Francisco will soon significantly decrease,
necessitating a careful and considerate re-examination – and redress – of the City’s current
Current estimates are that the City soon will lose as many as 10,000 parking spaces. The
San Francisco Department of Parking & Traffic (DPT) and the City's Planning Department
confirm that, between now and 2004, public and private development in San Francisco will
result in the City losing between 4,000 and 6,000 parking spaces. In addition, CALTRANS
estimates that, as a result of the Bay Bridge retrofit, another 4,500 commuter-parking spaces
under and along the elevated span of Interstate 80 will be eliminated for a period of at least
Clearly, with the City already struggling to handle the current volume of visitors and daily
commuters to its expanding and emerging commercial hubs – much less an expected
increase in traffic volume and parking demand wrought by the spate of present and future
commercial and retail development projects – San Francisco must develop and quickly set in
motion a comprehensive and balanced parking strategy that:
1) Alleviates the existing strain on parking demands; and2) Compensates for future constraints placed on parking by ongoing and impending
A practical first step in solving the City’s parking woes is to devise a sensible parking plan for
San Francisco’s South of Market (SOMA) District and the area described by this paper as the
“New Territories,” which extends from PacBell Park to 3Com Park and includes the City’s
Eastern Waterfront, Potrero and Hunter’s Point districts. The benefit in doing so is twofold:
1) It enables the City’s most explosive growth area(s) to develop in a coherent,
straightforward and well-managed manner; and
2) It provides a viable means of relief to local residents and to visitors, shoppers and
employees required to commute by car to the City’s primary business, shopping and
entertainment districts by allocating parking in reasonably close proximity to those
Stuart Sunshine, director of San Francisco’s Department of Parking and Traffic (DPT), was
recently quoted that his agency is “in the process of studying parking needs South of Market,
and we’re trying to be very creative in how we solve the problem.” It is encouraging that City
officials recognize the severity of San Francisco’s parking crisis and they are to be lauded
for initiating efforts to address the situation. Likewise, Mayor Brown should be commended
for his efforts to remedy what has become a significant problem.
Unfortunately, from the vantage point of the authors of this position paper, there is a distinct
lack of communication between City departments. The result has been to delay and/or
forestall any meaningful efforts to address San Francisco’s parking crisis. Therefore, in the
spirit of cooperation, the authors of this position paper implore that City and State agencies,
elected officials, representatives of the private sector and other appropriate parties
collaborate to quickly develop and implement a transportation plan that incorporates a
balanced approach to meeting San Francisco’s parking needs. In turn, the plan should
include a component for replacing the 10,000 parking spaces lost to private and public
development and the Bay Bridge retrofit, as well as creating new parking alternatives (as
We recognize that some will dispute the call to replace soon-to-be-lost parking and to create
new parking opportunities. Yet merely advancing the argument that more parking attracts
more drivers is not sufficient to counter the tangible, measurable congestion we presently
realize – and most certainly will increase – from not properly managing the anticipated
It is the overwhelming wave of new public and private developments that create the need to
accommodate motor vehicles, as more and more people travel to San Francisco to shop, to
be entertained or to simply go to work. It must be acknowledged that public transit cannot
fully meet the Bay Area community's transportation needs. Ensuring an adequate supply of
parking, therefore, must serve as a critical component to any mass transit plan the City
The SOMA & New Territories Transformation –
According to the San Francisco Partnership, more than 700 New Media companies –
approximately 30 percent of the world total – are located in San Francisco, the majority of
which are based in SOMA and/or the New Territories. Of these New Media companies, 79
percent were founded in the City; women own 15 percent and minorities own 7 percent.
Currently, the New Media industry employs more than 49,000 people in San Francisco. New
Media is the fourth largest industry in San Francisco, behind Business Services (56,000),
Government (60,000) and Retail Trade (79,000), and it is responsible for 40 percent of new
job growth in the City. Between 1994 and 1999 the small – but growing – business district
known as Multimedia Gulch added roughly 9,000 New Media jobs alone.
It is obvious that SOMA and the New Territories are in the midst of an urban transformation
the likes of which has not been seen in the City in many years. Empty warehouses there
have filled with thousands of people working a range of hours, seven days a week, for a
multitude of multi-media and Internet companies. In the past year, many of these companies
Greater SOMA and the New Territories offer more than 18 million square feet of commercial
real estate. New Media firms occupy a significant portion of the commercial space in the
area(s) and remain the primary source of demand for space there. According to Colliers
International, in 1999, roughly 2.2 million square feet of office space was leased in the
greater SOMA area, lowering its overall vacancy rate to approximately 2 percent. Moreover,
Colliers research shows that practically all of the remaining 2 percent of commercial space is
committed to prospective tenants, effectively zeroing out SOMA and the New Territories’
As a result, SOMA and the New Territories have witnessed a notable increase in their
daytime population, and area parking lots and off-street spaces – which once served as a
plentiful source of parking – either have been eliminated by development or are beyond
capacity. Furthermore, a confluence of residential housing and retail development in SOMA
and the New Territories will greatly add to the areas’ part-time and full-time population base.
For example, according to Colliers, Mission Bay will contain between 4 and 6 thousand
residential units and150,000 square feet of space for the retail shops and grocery marts
expected to flock there to serve thousands of new area residents (and employees). Solutions Are Required Now –
With the transformation of SOMA and the New Territories well under way – including a
booming Multimedia Gulch, increased residential housing development, the new ballpark and
the restaurants and retail shops to come with it – areas that already attract an enormous
amount of traffic are and will continue to be overwhelmed by drivers in need of parking.
However, the City’s parking and transportation policy falls well short of meeting the parking
demands of residents, day and nighttime visitors, shoppers, employees and business
owners in those areas (as well the adjoining business, shopping and entertainment districts).
Indeed, parking, traffic and overall transportation conditions in the City as a whole are
deplorable and, with continued residential and commercial development, they will worsen.
Intermediate and long-term solutions – incorporating comprehensive planning, innovative
ideas and ‘Internet-speed’ action – are required now. The answer does not lie in San
Francisco's "Transit First" policy, which was adopted by the Board of Supervisors as part of
the City's Downtown Plan and has been interpreted by some to simply mean, "ride MUNI."
Such a stance is shortsighted, for a commercial sector that depends solely on a public transit
system to sustain its economy is doomed to suffer the consequences of not including every
reasonably available option in the mix of transportation demand management strategies.
A balanced demand-management approach must include:
1) New parking;2) Improvements to the transit system;3) Better signage;4) Improved connections between transit modes;5) Improved transit information; and
6) Increased housing density, relaxation of height restrictions and more mixed-use
development along well-served transportation corridors (thereby allowing people to
The authors of this position paper applaud plans by San Francisco MUNI General Manager
Michael Burns to draw $4.5 million in funds from the City’s Transit Impact Development Fee
Account for the purpose of expanding MUNI services in the SOMA and Mission Bay districts.
We suggest expanding on Mr. Burns’ plan by creating more available parking in SOMA and
the New Territories and by providing shuttle services to San Francisco’s Central Business
and Union Square districts. In doing so, the City not only will provide relief for San
Francisco’s fastest-growing neighborhoods, it will reduce the strain on parking and
transportation in two, adjoining commercial districts that are glutted daily with innumerable
commuters in search of a finite amount available parking spaces. Our Position: Begin with 14 Necessary Steps –
A coalition comprised of the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) of San
Francisco, the Committee on Jobs, the Downtown Association of San Francisco and the
Market Street Association has developed this position paper as a means to initiate a process
for solving the City’s parking crisis. Accordingly, we advocate and strongly urge DPT, the
City's Planning Department, the Mayor’s office, the Board of Supervisors, CALTRANS and
other responsible agencies to work with the private sector to pursue the following course of
Replace the 10,000+ parking spaces lost due to CALTRANS construction and other
public and private developments. This figure should include approximately 4,500
spaces lost due to the Bay Bridge Retrofit and a minimum of 5,000 to 6,000 spaces to
meet the parking needs of a SOMA and New Territories’ employee and resident
population base that is anticipated to more than exceed 100,000 (which includes
Mission Bay, etc.). Both the private and public sectors should provide these new
spaces – with input from SOMA and new Territories-area businesses and residents.
Prior to the commencement of the Bay Bridge retrofit/replacement project, pursue
adequate mitigation funding from CALTRANS. The City should commit all funds
obtained to the development of public parking facilities in the South of Market District.
Expand City owned parking facilities and acquire properties for new garage
developments in SOMA and the New Territories. Expansion of existing facilities can
be achieved through the utilization of valet operations and/or simply adding on to said
Increase the planning code ratio of parking-to-office space allowance from 7 percent
to 10 percent of floor area in the SOMA, New Territories, Central Business and Union
Square districts and, where feasible, encourage new developments to build out the
allowable parking. In those instances where it is not practical to build out parking
either on site or in close proximity to the development site, we suggest acting on
Mayor Brown’s recent proposal before the Downtown Association to designate a
portion of the City's surplus funds to infrastructure improvements. In this instance,
we recommend Mayor Brown and the Board of Supervisors draft and pass an
ordinance that designates a portion of the City’s surplus for investment in parking
infrastructure, establishing a parking development fund.
Encourage public/private partnerships by providing tax incentives, expedited plan
review processes, etc., for new parking garages and / or parking lots in needed
Research the ability of the City to cover the liability of private property owners whose
underutilized parking lots or garages could be opened to the public.
Select locations to use and / or construct inter-modal satellite parking lots (e.g., Crissy
Field, Candlestick Point, Catellus land south of ballpark, Alemany Farmer’s Market)
providing private shuttle services. Promote the use of environmentally friendly
Select a test site in either the SOMA, Central Business or Union Square district to
construct high-tech, robotic parking systems and solicit bids from private sector
companies for a pilot project. Supervisor Michael Yaki noted at a recent Board of
Supervisors’ Transportation and Land Use Committee hearing that the time has come
to consider novel solutions to San Francisco’s parking crisis. We agree. If the pilot
program proves effective, we recommend developing additional robotic parking
Solicit and quickly choose from best-price contract bids from private-sector shuttle
services (to serve the additional satellite parking lots) and directly supervise their
10) Investigate the use of Federal, State of California and Metropolitan Transportation
Commission funds for inter-modal parking projects.
11) Modify the existing Transit Impact Development Fee Ordinance to allow expenditures
12) Re-examine the manner in which the City’s Off-street Parking Fund is financed,
consider the adequacy of the process and, in turn, assure that moneys generated
(for the Fund) are spent effectively, i.e., to construct small-scale parking lots and
garages in neighborhood business districts. The result will be to support the City’s
small, neighborhood businesses, which face increased competition from large
13) Work with the San Francisco Giants to develop a workable plan to utilize their facility
for commuter parking on non-game days.
14) Develop a parking map of all public lots and garages in downtown San Francisco,
SOMA and the Union Square districts, with information detailing available hours,
usage fees, etc., and post it on the DPT Web site. In turn, publicize the Web site’s
Conclusion –
We recognize the above suggestions are not without controversy, nor are they exhaustive in
their scope. We also recognize the need to address issues such as traffic management and
the dependability and convenience of San Francisco’ s mass transit system. Yet it is
undeniable that without adequate parking to support overall growth, the long-term viability of
San Francisco’s now strong economy is threatened. Our coalition is willing and able to work
with San Francisco’s elected leaders, policy makers and administrators to unlock the gridlock
that prohibits the City from developing new and replacement parking for an increasingly
frustrated residential and business community. We hope this sets in motion a productive,
focused and solution-oriented dialogue.
Our first two babies had been conceived with the help of Clomid, a fertility drug, after much heartache and longing for a baby. When we found out we were pregnant with Jessie without the help of modern medicine we were truly shocked. Just a month or so before, we’d been taking a walk and discussing whether we were certain if we were ready to take a more permanent step about not having any more c