Residents have filed a federal suit over the planned high-rise residential project at the Marina Safeway site, accusing San Francisco planning officials of giving the project fast-track approval without meeting rules that disqualify contaminated sites.
They contend in the suit that the site is known to be contaminated by a nearby manufactured gas plant and other industrial activities over decades.
The action alleges the city’s planning department granted fast-tracking approval of the 848-unit, twin tower development at Marina Boulevard despite environmental concerns. The proposal is to build a 22-story tower as well as a companion 18-story tower along the city’s waterfront.
The city recently granted the project expedited approval as allowed under a state law designed to encourage urban housing projects.
But the suit says the city should not have granted such approval, because the 2.6-acre site and surrounding land is contaminated. One culprit, according to the suit, is the long-shuttered North Beach Manufactured Gas Plant. The plant’s role in polluting the area and the ongoing drive to clean up pollution has been previously highlighted by NBC Bay Area’s Investigative Unit.
“For unknown reasons,” the suit contends, the city “is unlawfully rubber-stamping a massive development project” without fulfilling its obligation under state law to assess the risk to the public before granting fast-tracked review.
The suit was filed by the YesAND Foundation as well as Neighborhoods United SF, along with several Marina residents. It names the city, its planning and public health directors as well as PG&E and the project developer, Align Real Estate, as defendants.
The city said it will review the suit when it is officially served. PG&E said it had not yet reviewed the suit.
The developer said late Monday that the project meets state requirements.
“Addressing our housing affordability crisis starts with building more homes, and that’s why a majority of District 2 residents support this project,” said David Balducci, co-founder and managing principal of the Align firm. “California passed stronger laws so that desperately needed housing can’t be blocked by the same old tactics that created this crisis in the first place. We’re confident this project fully complies with the law.”
But the suit alleges the 2.6-acre site has been near or directly involved in industrial uses known to cause pollution – a condition the law says must be accounted for to qualify for expedited review.
In the late 19th century, nearby land was used for a manufactured gas plant, known as the North Beach Manufactured Gas Plant, the suit says.
The suit alleges the city should have accounted for the potential of waste residue in the soil and groundwater from either the gas plant or the previous steam-power generation facility.
While state regulators previously found the steam plant-related pollution had been cleaned to a level acceptable for industrial or commercial use, the regulators cautioned that determination could be revisited if land use changed or should more contamination be found.
The suit notes that an official with the state’s Department of Toxic Substances Control back in 2023 found that petroleum-related contamination on the land exceeded normal testing limits for commercial projects and exceeded standards for residential developments.