San Francisco County Municipal Code § 135 Usable Open Space

C, AND M DISTRICTS. (See Interpretations related to this Section.) Except as provided in Sections 134.1, 172, and 188 of this Code, usable open space shall be provided for each dwelling and each group housing structure in R, NC, C, Mixed Use, and M Districts according to the standards set forth in this Section 135 unless otherwise specified in specific district controls elsewhere in this Code. (a) Character of Space Provided. Usable open space shall generally be composed of an outdoor area or areas designed for outdoor living, recreation or landscaping, including such areas on the ground and on decks, balconies, porches and roofs, which are safe and suitably surfaced and screened, and which conform to the other requirements of this Section. Such area or areas shall be on the same lot as the dwelling units (or bedrooms in group housing) they serve, and shall be designed and oriented in a manner that will make the best practical use of available sun and other climatic advantages. “Private usable open space” shall mean an area or areas private to and designed for use by only one dwelling unit (or bedroom in group housing). “Common usable open space” shall mean an area or areas designed for use jointly by two or more dwelling units (or bedrooms in group housing). “Privately-owned public open space,” only allowed in DTR and Eastern Neighborhood Mixed Use under this Section, shall mean an area of areas designed for use of the general public while owned and maintained by private owners as described in Section 138..2 For senior housing, usable open space requirements are set forth in subsection (d)(3) below. (b) Access. Usable open space shall be as close as is practical to the dwelling unit (or bedroom in group housing) for which it is required, and shall be accessible from such dwelling unit or bedroom as follows: (1) Private usable open space shall be directly and immediately accessible from such dwelling unit or bedroom; and shall be either on the same floor level as such dwelling unit or bedroom, with no more than one story above or below such floor level with convenient private access. (2) Common usable open space shall be easily and independently accessible from such dwelling unit or bedroom, or from another common area of the building or lot. (c) Permitted Obstructions. In the calculation of either private or common usable open space, those obstructions listed in Sections 136 and 136.1 of this Code for usable open space shall be permitted. Additionally, required common useable open space may be partially used for the provision of open space associated with an on-site Child Care Facility as follows: (1) The open space shall meet all state licensing requirements; (2) Not more than 50% of a single common open space may be used by the Child Care Facility; and (3) The hours of use of the common open space by the Child Care Facility are limited to Monday through Friday, 9 am to 6 pm. (d) Amount Required. Usable open space shall be provided for each building in the amounts specified herein and in Tables 135A and B for the district in which the building is located; provided, however, that (i) in the Downtown Residential (DTR) Districts, open space shall be provided in the amounts specified in Section 825, and (ii) in accordance with Section 210.5, usable open space shall not be required for Commercial to Residential Adaptive Reuse projects. In Neighborhood Commercial Districts, the amount of usable open space to be provided shall be the amount required in the nearest Residential District, but the minimum amount of open space required shall be in no case greater than the amount set forth in Table 135A for the district in which the building is located. The distance to each Residential District shall be measured from the midpoint of the front lot line or from a point directly across the street there from, whichever requires less open space. (1) For dwellings other than those specified in Paragraphs (d)(2) through (d)(5) below, the minimum amount of usable open space to be provided for use by each dwelling unit shall be as specified in the second column of Table 135A if such usable open space is all private. Where common usable open space is used to satisfy all or part of the requirement for a dwelling unit, such common usable open space shall be provided in an amount equal to 1.33 square feet for each one square foot of private usable open space specified in the second column of Table 135A. In such cases, the balance of the required usable open space may be provided as private usable open space, with full credit for each square foot of private usable open space so provided. (2) For group housing structures, SRO units, and dwelling units that measure less than 350 square feet plus a bathroom, the minimum amount of usable open space provided for use by each bedroom or SRO unit shall be one-third the amount required for a dwelling unit as specified in Paragraphs (d)(1) above and (d)(4) and (d)(5), below. For purposes of these calculations, the number of bedrooms on a lot shall in no case be considered to be less than one bedroom for each two beds. Where the actual number of beds exceeds an average of two

beds for each bedroom, each two beds shall be considered equivalent to one bedroom. (3) In all districts, for dwellings specifically designed for and occupied by senior citizens, as defined and regulated by Section 102.6.1 of this Code, the minimum amount of usable open space to be provided for use by each dwelling unit shall be one-half the amount required for each dwelling unit as specified in Paragraph (d)(1) above or 36 square feet, whichever is less. Notwithstanding 135(a), for these dwellings, “common usable open space” shall also include indoor community space, defined as indoor space that is not less than 10 feet wide in all directions at all points, is accessible to all residents of the building or site equally at no additional cost, is specifically configured and designed for leisure and/or recreational use, and shall not include any building circulation spaces, lobbies, or other building or resident support facilities not specifically intended for leisure and/or recreational use. (4) DTR Districts. For all residential uses, 75 square feet of open space is required per dwelling unit. All residential open space must meet the provisions described in this Section unless otherwise established in this subsection or in Section 825 or a Section governing an individual DTR District. Open space requirements may be met with the following types of open space: "private usable open space" as defined in Section 135(a) of this Code, "common usable open space" as defined in Section 135(a) of this Code, and "publicly accessible open space" as defined in subsection (h) below. At least 40 percent of the residential open space is required to be common to all residential units. Common usable open space is not required to be publicly- accessible. Publicly-accessible open space, including off-site open space permitted by subsection (i) below and by Section 827(a)(9), meeting the standards of subsection (h) may be considered as common usable open space. For residential units with direct access from the street, building setback areas that meet the standards of Section 145.1 and the Ground Floor Residential Design Guidelines may be counted toward the open space requirement as private non-common open space. (5) Eastern Neighborhoods Mixed Use Districts. (A) Minimum amount. (i) Dwelling units, excluding SRO dwelling units. The minimum amount of usable open space to be provided for use by each dwelling unit shall be as specified in Table 135B. (ii) Group housing including SRO dwelling units. The minimum amount of usable open space provided for use by each bedroom shall be one-third the amount required for a dwelling unit as specified in Table 135B. (B) Compliance. (i) Privately-owned public open space. Usable open space requirements in these areas may be fulfilled by providing privately-owned public open space as specified in Table 135B. (ii) Towers in the Central SoMa Special Use District. Residential developments taller than 160 feet shall provide on-site at least 36 square feet per unit or bedroom of the open space requirement of Table 135B. Any additional open space required pursuant to Table 135B may be satisfied through payment of the fee established in Section 427. (iii) Payment in case of Variance or exception. Projects granted a usable open space Variance pursuant to Section 305 or an exception through Section 329 shall pay the fee established in Section 427 for each square foot of useable open space not provided. (6) Homeless Shelters. Homeless Shelters, as defined in Section 102 of this Code, are exempt from the open space requirements described in this Section 135. TABLE 135A MINIMUM USABLE OPEN SPACE FOR DWELLING UNITS AND GROUP HOUSING OUTSIDE THE EASTERN NEIGHBORHOODS MIXED USE DISTRICT District Square Feet of Usable Open Space Required for Each Dwelling Unit If All Private Ratio of Common Usable Open Space That May Be Substituted for Private TABLE 135A MINIMUM USABLE OPEN SPACE FOR DWELLING UNITS AND GROUP HOUSING OUTSIDE THE EASTERN NEIGHBORHOODS MIXED USE DISTRICT District Square Feet of Usable Open Space Required for Each Dwelling Unit If All Private Ratio of Common Usable Open Space That May Be Substituted for Private RH-1(D), RH-1 300