Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a great holiday season in December and is looking forward to an exciting 2012. This upcoming year promises to be eventful in San Francisco, and District 2 in particular. There are many events and major projects that will either be completed or started in the coming year and will be transformative for our district, so I wanted to take this month’s column to provide a few key updates and “what to look for” in 2012.

CALIFORNIA PACIFIC MEDICAL CENTER (CPMC)

Presently, CPMC and the mayor’s office are still in negotiations regarding a development agreement that will include provisions for health benefits for the poor, housing for the CPMC workforce, and various community improvements around the CPMC campuses. Certification and final adoption of the draft environmental impact report (DEIR) was originally scheduled for September 2011, but was postponed as negotiations continued and election season kicked into high gear. Although the date is currently not set, the hearing on the DEIR should take place in late January or early February 2012 at the Planning Commission. Subsequently, it will likely appear at the Board of Supervisors in the second quarter of 2012 for approval.

As a quick background, CPMC is operating under a state-mandated timeline to seismically upgrade all their acute care hospitals so they will remain operational after a major earthquake. CPMC is actually one of four hospitals in the City currently planning to build new facilities to comply with this law – the other three hospitals are UCSF, San Francisco General Hospital and Chinese Hospital. Three of CPMC’s four acute care hospitals must be rebuilt or de-licensed in order to comply with this state law: the California Campus (3700 California Street in Presidio Heights), the Pacific Campus (2333 Buchanan in Pacific Heights), and the St. Luke’s Campus (3555 Cesar Chavez Street in the Mission).

CPMC’s plans will have an enormous impact on District 2. As part of the plan to seismically upgrade their facilities, CPMC has proposed building a new hospital on Cathedral Hill (at Van Ness and Geary), which includes a 265-foot-tall, approximately 919,000 square-foot acute care hospital with an underground parking garage. After the Cathedral Hill hospital is completed, CPMC plans to transfer all inpatient acute care and emergency department functions from the Pacific Campus to Cathedral Hill. They will then begin renovations on the Pacific Campus to be used as an ambulatory care center (outpatient only), which they expect to complete in early 2017. CPMC plans eventually to sell the California Campus following relocation of their own services to Cathedral Hill and the Pacific Campus.

Given the significant impact on District 2, I have been intimately involved with these development discussions and I will continue to work with CPMC and the mayor’s office to make certain the impacts to District 2 are well thought out and addressed.

The Planning Department has dedicated a special webpage for the CPMC project (www.cpmc.sfplanning.org) and will be updating it whenever changes are made to the project schedule. This site also includes all CPMC staff reports and presentations, along with several other documents that may be of interest. CPMC’s website is www.rebuildcpmc.org.

VAN NESS BUS RAPID TRANSIT (BRT)

The proposal to implement bus rapid transit (BRT) improvements along a two-mile stretch of Van Ness Avenue (from Lombard Street at the north to South Van Ness Avenue at Mission Street in the south), commonly referred to as the Van Ness BRT, is moving right along. Van Ness Avenue has been a traffic nightmare as far back as I can remember, and the goal of the BRT is create a more efficient traffic flow on Van Ness in both directions.

The environmental impact report for the Van Ness BRT was recently published and analyzed three alternative configurations, including one configuration that would create two dedicated bus lanes in the middle of Van Ness Avenue. In early 2012, the Transportation Authority will identify a preferred configuration for the project based on a vast amount of technical analysis, as well as public and agency input.

As a member of the Board of Supervisors, I also sit on the Transportation Authority and will continue to review carefully the various project configurations proposed. This project cannot be considered in a vacuum, and I will be especially mindful of the neighborhood impacts in District 2, as well as the impact of CPMC’s proposal to build the Cathedral Hill hospital. For more information on the Van Ness BRT proposal and history, visit www.vannessbrt.org.

METRO THEATER AT 2055 UNION STREET

Having been a boarded-up eyesore for nearly six years, I am extremely pleased that the development project for the Metro Theater on Union Street is finally making its way through the Planning Department. Although I have fond memories of going to the movies at the Metro Theater while growing up, the business model behind single-screen movie theaters across San Francisco has fallen apart and the current plan is to convert the Metro Theater into an Equinox Fitness Center. The project will include the Equinox gym as the anchor tenant with retail use at the ground floor, as well as a dedicated community room.

I believe the Metro Theater will benefit the neighborhood in a number of ways: it will serve as an economic anchor for Union Street, bring much needed foot traffic and revenue to local businesses, bring jobs in the form of construction and permanent jobs once the facility opens, all while preserving neighborhood character once the theater’s exterior is restored.

The project sponsors will go before the Planning Commission on Feb. 9, 2012 for their permits and plan to start construction soon thereafter.

GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE’S 75TH ANNIVERSARY

May 2012 will mark the 75th anniversary of the Golden Gate Bridge. Over the course of this year, several events will pay tribute to the bridge including exhibits, lectures, performances, films, contests, and tours.

The main celebration will take place over the 2012 Memorial Day weekend at various sites in District 2 including Crissy Field, the Marina Green, Fort Mason, and of course the Golden Gate Bridge itself – all with an eye towards recreating the Golden Gate Bridge Fiesta that occurred for the grand opening of the bridge in 1937. Unlike the 50th anniversary in 1987, the Golden Gate Bridge will not be closed for foot traffic as part of the celebration.

A full schedule of the events around the City is available at www.goldengatebridge75.org.

MARINA YACHT HARBOR RENOVATION

The Marina Yacht Harbor renovation is moving forward steadily, and Phase II of the project will begin in 2012. In the last six months, nearly half of the existing timber docks have been removed and the basin channel has been dredged, clearing way for a new permanent breakwater at the entrance to the harbor. Because of seasonal concerns, underwater construction has been limited to date and Phase II will not begin until the middle of 2012. While underwater construction is on hold, work has begun at the Harbor Master Building at the base of Scott Street. The complete renovation should be completed in time for the 2013 America’s Cup races.

The Marina Yacht Harbor is the oldest recreational marina in San Francisco, and the new Marina Yacht Harbor will be a significant upgrade not only for boat owners but for the entire neighborhood.

2012 AMERICA’S CUP RACES

Although the America’s Cup Finals will take place in 2013, San Francisco’s participation in the America’s Cup begins with two exciting events in August 2012 as part of the America’s Cup World Series. This race series takes place at locations around the world – in 2011 races were held in Portugal, the United Kingdom and San Diego. In 2012, the World Series races will continue in various international countries including Italy, and San Francisco will host two race schedules from August 11–19 and from August 27–September 2.

As a member of the America’s Cup Organizing Committee, I continue to be very involved in the planning for these World Series races, which I believe are not only going to be an awesome spectator experience but also a great build up for the excitement that will surround the America’s Cup Finals in 2013.

My office will continue to keep you updated about all of these events and more throughout 2012 through my quarterly newsletter. To sign up for the newsletter, visit www.sfbos.org and click on Supervisor Mark E. Farrell and the newsletter link.

Best wishes for a great 2012!

Please do not hesitate to contact my office with any questions, comments or concerns. I can be reached at 415-554-7752 or at [email protected]. You can also contact my legislative aides, Margaux Kelly and Catherine Stefani at the same number or at [email protected] and [email protected].