SOMA Pilipinas Statement on
1010V Mission St. Project

The South of Market Community Needs Affordable and Family-sized Housing, not Half a Million Dollar SRO Condos

Last week on September 15, 2022, a dozen community members who live and work in the South of Market came to the Planning Commission asking them to deny the badly designed 1010V Mission Street project. The project, which did not follow standards and regulations outlined in the Planning Code, proposed 57 Single Room Occupancy (SRO) condos, averaging 350 square feet, which project sponsors said would be sold for $400-500k. 

The project is in the middle of the Filipino Cultural Heritage District and right next to the Bayanihan Community Center, a cultural hub for the Filipino community in SoMa. Speaker after speaker testified that the proposed condos did not address actual housing needs in the neighborhood, lacking family-sized units and affordability. Planning Commissioners were also concerned about the poor design, including the lack of required rear-yard depth, failure to meet dwelling unit exposure standards, and increased pedestrian wind speed impacts. By stacking so many units on a slim lot, the project would also block air and light access to neighboring seniors next door. Additionally, by classifying it as an SRO, the project avoids the usual unit mix requirements to include two and three-bedroom units.

The Planning Commissioners did the right thing by denying the requested exemptions from building design standards and listening to the community. The project was NOT necessary, desirable, or compatible with the surrounding neighborhood, was NOT code compliant, and was seeking several exemptions from the Planning Code. It was a poorly designed project, out of touch with the SoMa neighborhood. The Planning Commission is supposed to be a public body that provides oversight on the  Planning Department, and not just a rubber stamp for private development. Their vote to prevent the 1010V Mission project from moving forward was sound decision making, taking into account the full needs of the community and the surprisingly ill designed project. 

The Filipino community has a long track record of working with developers to prevent displacement and improve projects. However, it's disappointing that this vote is being politicized by biased reporting like J.K. Deneen’s article in the Chronicle painting it as a Board of Supervisor vs. Mayor decision completely dismissed legitimate concerns about livability, design and affordability, and is tone deaf to its own article: Not just YIMBYs vs. NIMBYs: Chronicle poll breaks down S.F. Housing Attitudes by Class, Race, and Age.  No surprise that Black and Brown San Franciscans making less than 100k care more about affordability than white residents making more than 100k.  

None of the Filipino organizations met with any politicians before going to the Commission. The Filipino community was exercising our voice to advocate for the kind of housing our community needs, and against a badly designed project that no one can afford. 

Recently, the Planning Commission acknowledged its role in racist displacement and destruction of people of color communities, and committed to having more of a racial equity lens.

The SF Chronicle should also challenge its own race and class bias. J.K. Deneen only talked with white men making over $100K for his story and now SOMA Pilipinas is receiving hate mail being called NIMBY F**ks. Serving as a bully pulpit for real estate interests does not advance productive dialogue or real solutions to our affordable housing crisis.  

The South of Market produces the most market-rate housing in the city, builds the most highrises, and has an overabundance of small studio and 1-bedroom units. SoMa has one of the highest returns on investment for developers, and developers are seeking to build smaller units to make even more money. There’s already an abundance of under-sized units at oversized prices in SoMa.  

The developer failed to do proper outreach, reaching out to only one organization by email back in May 2021. Dineen, however, claimed there was an “11th hour blitz” on the developer by those who opposed the project. The real blitz occurring is on the communities, homes, and lives of low-income residents and working families in the South of Market who on a daily basis are planned-over, evicted, and displaced so developers can maximize their profits. Solving our affordable housing crisis requires a balanced approach to housing, and building housing that people can actually afford.

The Filipino community has made the South of Market home for 120 years. Despite being pushed out of SoMa through development and displacement, the community continues to thrive. We work with our neighbors to protect our homes, improve pedestrian and public safety, and fight for equitable development that includes affordable housing, parks, public open space, and good schools. Our community has continued to say that what the South of Market needs is affordable and family sized housing that meets the needs of low-income and working-class children, youth, families, and seniors. This site should be prioritized to meet the needs of those who live, work, and receive services on this block, and be developed as either affordable housing, community serving space, public open space, or even a one-stop shop “Barangay Center” services hub.

As one of nine of the City’s cultural districts working to stabilize long-term communities throughout the City, SOMA Pilipinas’ mission is to prevent the displacement of the Filipino community and fight for housing opportunities for low-income and working-class communities.