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San Francisco Municipal Railway
KIRKLAND YARD DEVELOPMENT PROJECT
DRAFT SUMMARY - JUNE 2006
Site History & Facts
The Kirkland Yard site was originally part of the Bay and was
filled in 1886. The 2.6-acre site was in private hands until 1942 when
it was acquired by the Department of War. San Francisco obtained the
property from the Department of War in 1947 and in 1950 it began its service
as a bus storage yard. The site is 412.5 feet by 275 feet, encompassing
113,437 square feet. It is currently zoned "P" or "Public", which is
due to its ownership and use by a public agency. The property is within
a 40-foot height district and is subject to the Northeastern Waterfront Area
Plan of the City's General Plan.
The Municipal Railway's diesel bus operation at the Kirkland Yard is to be relocated
to a new, larger facility at Cesar Chavez Street and I-280, currently scheduled
for completion in 2008. That relocation will allow the Kirkland site to
be redeveloped to a new land use that is more compatible with the surrounding
neighborhood. The Kirkland Yard property is a valuable real estate asset
and it is the intention of the Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) Board, which
oversees Muni, to obtain value from the site so that other transit capital financing
needs can be met, including the estimated $73 million price tag for Kirkland's
replacement bus facility for low emission vehicles.
In seeking to realize the value of the Kirkland property through
its redevelopment, Muni believes that it has a responsibility to assure that
a new land use on the site is compatible with the neighborhood and the City's
General Plan, zoning requirements, and development procedures. Consequently,
Muni has initiated a careful process, which first evaluated the economic and
planning context for the redevelopment of the Kirkland site. This report
was completed in 2003 and has led to the decision to move forward with the redevelopment
of the site as a "joint development" project.
Project Study Conclusions
The study of the Kirkland Yard site undertaken by Muni examined
a number of possible new land uses on the property, including hotel, office,
tourist-related commercial, and housing. The market analysis and associated
economic evaluation of the site led to a firm conclusion that the strongest
economic value of the site would be, for the foreseeable future, its development
as "for sale" or condominium housing. This conclusion was measured against
the City's General Plan guidelines for the area, and it was found that housing
on the site also met those guidelines very well.
These conclusions led to the decision to move forward with the
"joint development" of the Kirkland Yard site. "Joint development" defines
a process in which a private developer is asked to accomplish a defined development
on a publicly owned property, after which time the public owner of the property
receives a continuous revenue stream from the lease of the property or a lump
sum payment through the disposition of the property. In the case of the
Kirkland property, the near-term financial needs of the Muni have dictated an
interest in disposing of the property once the proposed housing development
is approved.
The Joint Development Process
It is proposed that the Kirkland development be accomplished through
an RFQ-RFP process, the goal of which is to select a team consisting of an experienced
housing developer and partnering architect to undertake a condominium housing
project on the site. The Request For Qualifications (RFQ) will be a document
that describes the proposed Kirkland project and defines information about the
developer and architect which will be submitted to the Muni and then carefully
reviewed. Several development teams that are determined to be qualified
will then be provided with the opportunity to respond to a Request for Proposals
(RFP).
The RFP will ask the development teams to prepare and submit information
about their ideas for a housing project on the Kirkland property. This
will likely include preliminary project ideas, such as number and type of units,
financial information about the resulting value of the project, and initial
design thoughts and concepts. These responses will be evaluated carefully
and a development team will then be selected.
Selection of a developer will allow an Exclusive Negotiating Agreement
to be signed between the developer and the City. This interim contract
will remain in place while the developer refines the proposed project and then
steps through the necessary entitlement process of the City, including preparation
of necessary environmental documentation (an EIR), approvals of the necessary
re-zoning, and all other public approvals that might be required. When
approval of the project is completed, a disposition contract will be prepared,
and following approval of the project and this contract by the Board of Supervisors,
the property will be conveyed from the City to the developer.
Project Notes
The RFP will define condominium housing as the new use on the
Kirkland site, but the design and many details of the proposed project will
the responsibility of the developer/architect selected to accomplish the project.
The RFP will state as "givens" the current height and setback limitations
on the property, along with the City's Inclusionary Affordable Housing Program
goals. In addition, working with the Planning Department, the RFP will
seek to provide guidance to the developer and to emphasize certain elements
considered to be important to a successful project.
The RFP will also set forth certain project priorities, including
attention to a pedestrian-friendly design, possible inclusion of neighborhood-serving
ground-floor commercial uses, and special attention to other elements which
reflect the unique location of the site. The Kirkland property enjoys
a high level of transit access with direct service to downtown, so elements
such as the off-street parking requirements, integration of the F-Line streetcar
passenger stop, and encouragement of bicycle accommodations, will be highlighted
in the RFP.
Throughout the RFQ, RFP, and design and permitting processes,
Muni will be seeking input from a Citizens Advisory Committee, made up of members
of the surrounding community, the district Supervisor, and City staff from other
departments.
Project Schedule
Although preliminary, the schedule set forth
below attempts to identify the major project milestones for the Kirkland Yard
project. This schedule is not binding and is subject to actions by the
Municipal Transportation Agency Board and other City policy-making boards and
commissions.
- RFQ Solicitation and Receipt of Responses
Sep-Nov 2004
- Completion of Screening of RFQ Responses
Dec 2004
- RFP Provided to Selected Teams
Jan-Mar 2005
- Selection of Prospective Developer Team
May 2005
- Exclusive Negotiating Agreement Signed
July 2005
- Completion of EIR & Project Approval Steps
Nov 2006
- Final Contract Approval
April 2007
- Project Design / Engineering / Permits
May 2007 - Nov 2008
- Construction Begins
Jan 2009
- Construction Completed
July 2010
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