In a unanimous vote, the San Francisco planning commission on Thursday approved a hotly debated proposal for AutoZone to take over a now-closed Walgreens in Bayview — with some caveats. 

“Is it perfect? No,” said commissioner Sean McGarry.

Despite residents’ complaints about adding yet another auto-parts shop to the neighborhood, and their desires for a grocery store or pharmacy, commissioners said the store could pave the way for more retailers to move into the neighborhood.

“We could use this as a stepping stone to make the situation better in the future,” McGarry said.

The Bayview-Hunters Point Citizens Advisory Committee, a community group that gives advice to the planning commission and the Board of Supervisors, unanimously voted against the proposal earlier this year.

Theo Ellington, a candidate for district supervisor who spoke against it at Thursday’s hearing, said 70 people signed a petition objecting to the plan. 

Still, planning commissioners voted 4-0 to see it through. 

As a way of assuaging residents’ concerns, the planning department required that the AutoZone incorporate a mural onto the building’s facade, refrain from high-intensity lighting and signage, and collect all fluid and auto parts inside the facility, among other conditions. 

Walgreens occupied the space at 5300 Third St. until 2025, when a slew of the pharmacies closed across the city, citing “increased regulatory and reimbursement pressures.” The pharmacy was the second Walgreens to close in Bayview, forcing residents to travel outside of their neighborhood to access medications. 

The buildings’ landlords, Raj and Veena Kaul, said on Thursday they were aware the Walgreens would close in 2020, and that they had searched for a new tenant for five years without success. But residents felt blindsided by the closure. 

“Where was the community in all of that?” said Evangela Brewster, a Bayview resident, of Walgreens’ decision to abruptly close. “When Walgreens closed, it was really hard on this community,” Brewster said at Thursday’s hearing.

The now-empty storefront, located in the middle of Bayview’s commercial corridor on Third Street and Williams Avenue, could have been “transformative,” said Tyra Fennell, a Bayview resident, at an earlier July 9 hearing.

“This is valuable commercial space,” Fennell said then. “Bayview deserves a bigger vision for its future.” 

Ellington, who is running to replace Supervisor Shamann Walton as District 10 supervisor, had circulated a petition asking residents to weigh in on the proposal. 

Bayview-Hunters Point has a robust history of environmental justice due to residents’ disproportionate exposure to high levels of air pollution and the now-closed Hunters Point Naval Shipyard, which spewed toxic chemicals into the bay. 

AutoZone, Ellington told Mission Local, would not be a good fit. The automotive retailer was forced to pay $11 million to the state of California in 2019 after allegedly illegally disposing of more than five million hazardous waste items. 

“It feels like they’re trying to get one by us,” said Ellington. “There’s clear rationale as to why they shouldn’t be there.” 

What should be on the site instead? Ellington said the neighborhood needs an “anchor institution” to replace the Walgreens. “One that could help bring much-needed foot traffic.” 

Oronde Sterling, a Bayview resident and contractor, proposed a few ideas at Thursday’s hearing.

“Imagine if this space became a workforce development center where residents could train for trades,” Sterling said. “A business incubator … a youth mentorship program.” 

Multiple new businesses have recently moved into Bayview’s commercial corridor, including new restaurants and soon, a highly anticipated bookstore. A nonprofit pharmacy is also expected to soon open in Bayview to replace the shuttered Walgreens. 

But the neighborhood has struggled since the pandemic to recover from a significant drop in sales-tax revenue. The neighborhood lost both its main grocery store and its last pharmacy in 2025. 

The landlords of the shuttered Walgreens said that AutoZone has proven to be a “responsible tenant.” The building, which has remained vacant for more than a year, said Raj Kaul, has been vandalized multiple times, and Kaul has had to pay insurance on the empty building. It has become a “financial burden,” said Kaul. 

As is, the building is “not good for the community or anybody else,” said Kaul. 

But many residents believe it could be better. 

“My hope is we can dream bigger and build the neighborhood that we deserve,” said Ellington.