By J. K. Dineen :sfchronicle – excerpt
A month before Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin announced his candidacy for mayor, London Breed stood on the steps of City Hall flanked by a dozen yellow-vested carpenters and delivered a scathing assessment of her soon-to-be rival’s approach to housing.
“What Supervisor Peskin is trying to do is what he’s always done, the NIMBY that he is, and that is to destroy housing production,” Breed charged. “I am sick of his shenanigans.”…
Yet Peskin’s record is more nuanced than critics are likely to admit. As board president, he shepherded through the rezoning of the eastern neighborhoods, which has resulted in thousands of units in Potrero Hill, Dogpatch, the Mission and Showplace Square. He supported and was instrumental in negotiating neighborhood plans for Market-Octavia, the Transbay Transit District, Rincon Hill and Central SoMa, as well as development agreements for mega-projects such as Potrero Power Station and Balboa Reservoir…
Peskin has also shown an independent streak on big housing decisions, voting against his progressive allies to support large projects. That was the case with the several key votes, including the a 2006 rezoning that set the stage for the approval of the redevelopment of Hunters Point Shipyard and Candlestick Point, which came after Peskin had left office. Then-Bayview Supervisor Sophie Maxwell needed one more vote to push through 13,000 housing units and millions of square feet of commercial space in one of the poorest corners of the city…
Over his many years in office, Peskin said he has supported neighborhood plans, development agreements and other approvals that have led to 80,000 units, of which 37,000 are affordable. He has worked to put three housing bonds on the ballot, totaling $1.1 billion, including the recent $300 million bond for which Peskin led fundraising.
“We don’t build things. We create conditions for things to get built. We approve development agreements. We approve zoning changes. We grant money for affordable housing. We put measures on the ballot for affordable housing,” Peskin said. “Put that up against any other supervisor in modern San Francisco, and that is an unbeatable record.”…
Peskin said he now supports the [Tresure Island] island development, where 1,000 units are either recently completed or under construction. “I went out there on a tour with Chris Meany a year ago,” he said. “It’s impressive — they are sinking a billion dollars of infrastructure into that piece of Jell-O.”
Peskin’s clash with Wiener has only escalated over the years. Peskin called California’s most prominent pro-housing legislator “a senator who hates his own Senate district.” Wiener says Peskin is committed to preserving a housing system that is “structurally broken” and “designed to fail.”…
Architect Mark Hogan said he has disagreed with some of Peskin’s positions, but they have worked together on legislation to allow more granny flats, making it easier for multifamily building owners to convert basement storage spaces and other common areas into units.
More than anything, Hogan said he has been struck with Peskin’s willingness to tackle the byzantine world of development — skills that fans and critics agree make him a force in the politics of housing and land use.
“Aaron’s knowledge of the planning code and development and land use is pretty exceptional,” said Rahaim, the former planning director, “Probably better than mine.”…(more)