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Report regarding a resolution making findings and determining that the re-conveyance of a formerly City-owned property on 201 Baden Avenue (APN 012-335-110) from Firehouse Live LLC (Eden Housing) is in conformance with the South San Francisco adopted General Plan and in accordance with provisions of State Planning Law (Govt. Code Section 65402) (Pierce Abrahamson, Management Analyst II)
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RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
It is recommended that the Planning Commission adopt a resolution making findings determining that the re-conveyance of the property at 201 Baden Avenue from Firehouse Live, LCC (Eden Housing) is in conformance with the South San Francisco adopted General Plan in accordance with provisions of State Planning Law (Govt. Code Section 65402)
MOTION FOR THE COMMISSION TO ADOPT STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
1. Move to adopt a resolution making findings that re-conveyance of the 201 Baden Avenue from Firehouse Live, LLC (Eden Housing), to the City of South San Francisco is in conformance with the South San Francisco adopted General Plan.
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BACKGROUND/DISCUSSION
In November 2021, the City executed two (2) Purchase and Sale Agreements ("PSA") for the property at 201 Baden Avenue. The first PSA was to sell the City's former firehouse (APN 012-335-100) to a group made up of principals of Group4 Architecture. The second PSA was to sell the remnant parking lot portion of the property (APN 012-335-110) to Firehouse Live LLC (Eden Housing), a nonprofit affordable housing developer. While the appraisal value of the property at the time was $1,440,000, the City sold the remnant parking lot portion of the property to Eden Housing for $1.00 as a land donation in exchange for Eden Housing developing a 100% affordable senior housing project at the site. While the original PSA with Eden Housing outlined performance obligations that included project completion by February 2023, as of April 2025, Eden Housing has not been successful in obtaining the required permits for the project. Following Council direction, staff is invoking legal provisions in the PSA to pursue a third amendment to the PSA to re-convey the property back to City ownership.
Parcel Information
This property is an approximately 0.3-acre section of 201 Baden Avenue that fronts Baden Avenue to the north and Second Lane to the south. It is located mid-block between Linden Avenue and Airport Boulevard. No changes have been made to the property since the City sold the property to Eden Housing in 2021. The property's current use is a public parking lot and is in the Downtown Transit Core Zoning District. No changes to the property's current use are proposed as part of the pending third PSA amendment.
201 Baden Avenue Project Information
While the City anticipated an affordable senior housing project to be constructed by Eden Housing on this site, the project is not moving forward due to the developer's disinterest in further pursuing the project. Eden Housing specifically expressed this disinterest in a letter directed to the Director of Economic and Community Development in September 2024 that furthermore requested the City to pursue the property re-conveyance. Eden Housing submitted a pre-application to the Planning Division in 2019, but did not submit an official entitlement application. The pre-application is now considered withdrawn. Given that Eden Housing did not pursue project entitlements, the City anticipates the site continuing to function as a public parking lot for at least the near future.
GENERAL PLAN CONFORMANCE
In accordance with the provisions of State Planning Law (Govt. Code Section 65402), prior to acquisition or sale of real property by the City, the Planning Commission, as the planning agency for the City, is required to find such acquisition is in conformity with the adopted general plan. The Planning Commission previously approved a General Plan Conformance Consistency finding for the sale of the Eden Housing parcel in September 2021. This subsequent General Plan Conformance Consistency finding is for the re-conveyance of the property back to City ownership, which will allow the Council to take action on the PSA amendment, and the City to fully complete this transaction.
The re-conveyance or acquisition of the property through the pending third amendment to the PSA includes no proposed change of use to the property. The current use of the property as a public parking lot is consistent with the Downtown Transit Core Land Use Designation in the South San Francisco General Plan, which permits public parking facilities. Furthermore, because Eden Housing was unsuccessful in receiving planning permits and entitlements for their proposed affordable housing project, the site remains unchanged since the City last held ownership in November 2021.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The proposed re-conveyance of this property is consistent with the General Plan and does not contemplate development, therefore, no CEQA action is required by the Planning Commission at this time.
CONCLUSION
It is recommended that the Planning Commission make findings that determine that the re-conveyance of the property at 201 Baden Avenue (APN 012-335-110) from Firehouse Live, LLC (Eden Housing) to the City of South San Francisco is in conformance with the South San Francisco adopted General Plan in accordance with provisions of State Planning Law (Govt. Code Section 65402).
Associated Files:
25-423, General Plan Conformance Resolution