Updates
August 3, 2024
Let's Stop Amazon!
A community meeting of 888 7th Street residents, neighbors, friends and allies.
Wednesday, August 21, 2024
6:30 - 7:30 pm
Click here to join via Zoom
Please join us for a Zoom meeting with updates on the Amazon warehouse project and next steps. There are some new developments and opportunities. We are eager share news and hear your thoughts as we continue our fight to protect our neighborhood from this massive facility.
Amazon Project Update
Wednesday, August 21, 6:30-7:30 pm
Join via Zoom
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81096447888?pwd=lmZVQ7md3PuY4ldlvGrQbEH4039dMR.1
Meeting ID: 810 9644 7888
Passcode: 617006
Looking forward to seeing you!
March 4, 2024
Say No to Amazon!
Email the San Francisco Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors to tell them what you think about the Amazon Project.
SAMPLE EMAIL MESSAGE
TO: CPC.900-7thStreet@sfgov.org
CC: Board.of.Supervisors@sfgov.org
Dear Planning Commissioners:
I am a nearby resident/business/community member of the former Recology site on 7th Street where Amazon is proposing to build a major shipping depot. I am concerned about the impacts of this project on my health and safety, and on our neighborhood. Please vote NO on the authorization of this project.
[YOUR NAME]
Other concerns you might raise:
Pollution — 20 freight trucks, 175 delivery vans, and 395 worker cars (x 3 shifts) every day
Noise — the facility will operate 24 hours a day across the street from homes occupied by families, seniors, children, and students
Safety — the amount of traffic will make the area unsafe for pedestrians, bicyclists, seniors, and children
Property values — who wants to buy a home next to a giant warehouse operating 24 hours a day?
Quality of jobs — Amazon has a bad reputation for working conditions and pay. They oppose unions and worker rights. Pay for entry-level jobs barely meets San Francisco’s minimum wage.
Accountability — Amazon delivery vehicles are driven by contractors not employees. If they drive in dangerous ways, park on sidewalks, or cause accidents who will hold them accountable?
We need transit, not more cars — A parking lot for 395 cars makes a mockery of the City’s policy for encouraging transit, bicycles, and walking
Keep the promise — The City’s plans for the neighborhood promises a vibrant community for residents and small businesses that “supports walking and sustains a diverse, active and safe public realm."
Sunday, March 3, 2024
Supervisor Dorsey Meets with 888 7th Residents
On January 18, Matt Dorsey, Supervisor for District 6 where 888 7th Street is located, joined residents of our building, Leigh Sato from the California College of the Arts (CCA), and Apollo Wallace from Teamsters Local 2785 for a walking tour of the neighborhood around the former Recology site where Amazon is proposing to a massive distribution center that would operate 365 days a year, 24 hours per day.
We wanted Supervisor Doresey to see how the development of our neighborhood is fulfilling the vision of the City’s plans for a vibrant community of diverse residents, thriving small businesses, and creative institutions. And we wanted him to understand the impact this project would have on the 888 community and the neighborhood.
We started at the California College of the Arts, on the opposite side of the Recology site from us. The supervisor met David Howse, the new president of the College. With 1400 students, many of whom live on campus, CCA is one of the most diverse art colleges in the country.
Next, Leigh Sato, who is overseeing CCA’s growth in the neighborhood, gave us a tour of the campus and showed us the plans for the college’s new Double Ground facility. The new building will provide studios, classrooms, galleries, and green spaces. Leigh also pointed how the Adobe building on Hooper Street is a a hub of product design and manufacturing for robotics, furniture and fashion—the kind of small-scale uses the City’s plans call for.
From there we walked to 888 7th St. From one of the balconies facing Berry Street we looked at the Recology site and asked the supervisor to imagine a 150-foot long and 65-foot high blank wall facing our green space where children play, elders take walks, and residents walk their dogs and 175 vehicles passing by every day.
Finally, we stopped at our community room, where 888 7th residents along with neighbors Celia Schuman from the Design Center and faculty from CCA gathered for a conversation with the supervisor. We were proud to see our neighbors speak up and ask hard questions about the impacts of the project on the safety of pedestrians and bicyclists, the health of our residents, property values, and the character of our neighborhood. Apollo from the Teamsters Local 2785 pointed out that Amazon drivers are contractors, and Amazon is not accountable for their safety.
One theme stood out: everyone agreed the Amazon project is too big for this area and Amazon, as one of the world’s largest corporations, does not have the best interests of San Francisco in mind.
Yosh, Will, Supervisor Dorsey, and
Leigh Sata from CCA
888 residents press Supervisor Dorsey for answers.
Monday, November 20, 2023
Meeting with Supervisory Dorsey
On October 31, we had a good meeting with District 6 Supervisor Matt Dorsey, who represents our neighborhood on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. Our meeting was made possible with the support of the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 5 and we were joined by representatives from California College of the Arts and the Teamsters Joint Council No 7.
Our conversation covered our specific concerns about Amazon’s proposed shipping warehouse at 900 7th Street, but we really focused on sharing our vision for our neighborhood. Our comments echoed the guiding principles of the City’s Showplace Square Potrero Area Plan, which calls for a dynamic, sustainable and safe hub of housing (with a range of affordability), good quality jobs, enhanced open space, and every day services.
We want Supervisor Dorsey to get to know our neighborhood and our vision for a safe, healthy, and vibrant community. We’ve invited him to visit the Design District to meet more members of our community atsome of the residents of 888 7th Street. The visit is tentatively scheduled for mid January 2024.
October 16, 2023
Interim Zoning Controls Extended
In September, the Board of Supervisors approved a resolution (sponsored by our supervisor, Matt Dorsey) extending interim zoning controls for shipping warehouses like the one Amazon is proposing at 900 7th Street. The extension provides an additional six months (to March 24) for the Planning Department to study permanent zoning changes for these high-impact facilities. Until that study is completed, interim zoning controls require a “conditional use authorization”, adding a significant hurdle to the project approvals process. We are tracking the Amazon warehouse project and will develop a plan for making our concerns heard.