Home Depot gets nod to build in The City

It's a sad day in San Francisco, my friends... The same group of supervisors who oppose common-sense housing policy have just approved (IMHO) the lowest form of city destruction possible... They have approved the Home Depot in Bayshore.

Never mind the fact that the Colma store is 3 minutes away. Never mind the fact that Home Depot wouldn't sign anything binding them to the promises they made about fair wages or the hiring of local residents. Never mind the fact that this has been a key ingredient nationwide in the loss of 'community'...

It will, however, likely lead to a lower quality of life for anyone within a mile of the store, eroding property values and creating uneccessary traffic congestion on neighborhood streets.

The Examiner posted a story just before midnight on Tuesday on this unfortunate turn of events, "Supervisor Sophie Maxwell, who put together the winning margin on the board largely by touting the need for jobs in the adjacent Bayview District, said the discussions had gone on long enough in view of ongoing violence and unemployment in the neighborhood she represents."

So, instead, we'll create a strip mall atmosphere and degrade the neighborhood in a different direction altogether?

People have earned the right to shop where they choose. That doesn't mean that Home Depot has earned the right to move into a crowded city that is already short on land for much-needed housing or industrial jobs.

A three minute drive. That's all. I see NO reason for this, whatsoever.

"The pivotal “yes” vote was delivered by Board President Aaron Peskin, who conceded that he generally takes a dim view of chain stores that can hurt small businesses but said he had made a 180-degree turn on the issue. The reason he voted yes, he said, was due to “one of the unwritten rules” of district representation by supervisors. “It is about self-determination,” Peskin said."

Self-determination? Peskin says that as if Maxwell's district will be the only one affected by this decision... What a spineless move.

But Supervisor Ammiano is still fighting. "Although the 6-5 vote denied an appeal of the EIR filed by Cole Hardware, Ammiano said afterward there might still be more challenges ahead. “It’s not over yet,” he said."

Now if only Daly, Mirkarimi, Sandoval, and McGoldrick (who all voted against the store) spent even 20% of the time fighting this that they do fighting the creation of new housing... Home Depot wouldn't have stood a chance...

The Chronicle also has a piece in Wednesday's paper on the decision, "Supervisor Jake McGoldrick said Home Depot had sought to play "the politics of resentment" in winning approval for the 107,000-square-foot store by pitting neighbor against neighbor. "They have come into our community and caused deep and perhaps lasting harm by dangling jobs," he added. "We want good jobs. We do not want poverty-level jobs.""