SF Chron: Battles are brewing for Mission rezoning plan Date: Thu, 16 Feb 2006 14:35:11 -0800 Battles are brewing for Mission rezoning plan Activists target development plans By Emily Fancher Staff Writer Published: Wednesday, February 15, 2006 11:44 PM PST E-mail this story | Print this page Fights over gentrification are simmering again in the neighborhood where activist groups such as the Mission Yuppie Eradication Project fought luxury lofts during the dot-com boom. While the rhetoric has calmed down a bit these days, the upcoming rezoning of the Mission promises a surge in development battles. On Wednesday, the Planning Department unveiled a proposal to rezone the area between Division Street to the north, Cesar Chavez to the south, Potrero Avenue to the east and Guerrero Street to the west. The proposal is part of the overall rezoning of The Citys eastern neighborhoods, which is expected to be completed next year. With the rezoning, officials hope to allow developers to build thousands of new apartments and condos to address The Citys housing shortfall while retaining vital industrial areas that provide blue-collar jobs. Planners propose increasing some residential density around Mission and Valencia streets while reserving the industrial area in the northeast section of the neighborhood for factories and warehouses. They also propose creating a buffer zone between industrial and residential areas where small office space, digital media and biotech would be permitted. The Mission is under particular development pressure because of its rich transit system, underutilized industrial sites and proximity to downtown and Mission Bay, where 30,000 new jobs, many in bioscience, are expected in the coming decades. Nick Pagoulatos of the Mission Anti-Displacement Coalition said housing developers are pushing out industrial businesses, creating a loss of blue-collar jobs in a community that is heavily Latino, immigrant and working-class. Just last week, the coalition successfully appealed the environmental review of a proposed 68-unit building at 2660 Harrison St., thereby slowing the controversial project. The housing development would replace an empty industrial site. Philip Lesser, president of the Mission Merchants Association, said industrial businesses have been leaving the neighborhood for years due to global economic forces, not development pressures. He said San Francisco, like most American cities, has seen the loss of manufacturing as companies have moved abroad seeking cheap labor. Its a different world,he said. You cant turn back the hands of time. Lesser said the Harrison Street development, which is the latest flashpoint in the ongoing debate, is not displacing any businesses. The Harrison Street project could be a poster child for what were talking about,Lesser said. Its been derelict for four years. George Hauser, the developer of 2660 Harrison St., said he believes permanent rezoning of the area next year would help reduce the challenges to residential projects. Hopefully these things wont create so much conflict,he said. d