San Francisco Planning Code § 811 Chinatown Visitor Retail

The Chinatown Visitor Retail District extends along Grant Avenue between California and Jackson Streets. This district contains a concentration of shopping bazaars, art goods stores, and restaurants, which attract visitors and shoppers and contribute to the City’s visual and economic diversity. Grant Avenue provides an important link between Downtown retail shopping and the Broadway, North Beach, and Fisherman’s Wharf areas.

This district is intended to preserve the street’s present character and scale and to accommodate uses primarily appealing to visitors (e.g. tourist gifts shops, jewelry stores, art goods, large restaurants). In order to promote continuous retail frontage, entertainment, financial services, health service, automotive, and drive-up uses are restricted. Most commercial uses, except financial services, are permitted on the first two stories. Administrative services (those not serving the public) are prohibited in order to prevent encroachment from downtown office uses. There are also special controls on restaurants and tourist hotels. Building standards protect and complement the existing small-scale development and the historic character of the area.

The height limit applicable to the district will accommodate two floors of housing or institutional use above two floors of retail use. Accessory dwelling units are permitted.

Table 811

CHINATOWN VISITOR RETAIL DISTRICT ZONING CONTROL TABLE

		Chinatown Visitor Retail District
Zoning Category	§ References	Controls
BUILDING STANDARDS
Massing and Setbacks
Height and Bulk Limits	§§ 102, 105, 106, 250 - 252, 254, 260, 263.4, 270, 271. See also Height and Bulk District Maps	50-N. P up to 35 feet; C above 35 feet. See Height and Bulk Map for more information.
5 Foot Height Bonus for Active Ground Floor Uses	§ 263.20	Not Permitted
Rear Yard	§§ 130, 134, 134.1, 136	No more than 75% of lot coverage at the lowest level occupied by a dwelling. Location of open space may be modified per § 134.1.
Sun Access Setbacks	§ 132.3	15 ft. at specified heights
Front Setback and Side Yard	§§ 130, 131, 132, 133	Not Required.
Street Frontage and Public Realm
Streetscape and Pedestrian Improvements	§ 138.1	Required
Street Frontage Requirements	§ 145.1	Required
Maximum Street Frontage [per building]	§ 145.3	P up to 50 feet; C required for more than 50 feet

Ground Floor Commercial	§ 145.4	Not Required
Vehicular Access Restrictions	§ 155(r)	All alleyways in the Chinatown Mixed Use Districts.
Miscellaneous
Lot Size (Per Development)	§ 121.3	P up to 5,000 sq. ft.; C 5,001 sq. ft. & above
Planned Unit Development	§ 304	C
Awning, Canopy, or Marquee	§ 136.1	P
Signs	§§ 602 - 604, 607.2, 608.1, 608.2	As permitted by § 607.2
General Advertising Signs	§§ 262, 602.7, 604, 608, 609, 610, 611	NP
Design Guidelines and Standards	General Plan Commerce and Industry Element	Subject to the Urban Design Guidelines, Citywide Design Standards, and any other applicable design guidelines that have been approved by the Planning Commission.

Zoning Category	§ References	Controls
Zoning Category	§ References	Controls
RESIDENTIAL STANDARDS AND USES
Development Standards
Usable Open Space [Per Dwelling Unit]	§§ 135, 136	48 sq. ft.
Off-Street Parking, Residential	§§ 150, 151.1, 153 - 156, 166, 167, 204.5, 303	P up to one car for each two Dwelling Units; C for up to .75 cars for each Dwelling Unit, subject to the criteria and procedures of Sections 303(u) and 151.1(e), NP above 0.75 cars for each Dwelling Unit (2)
Dwelling Unit Mix	§ 207.6	Not Applicable
Use Characteristics
Intermediate Length Occupancy	§§ 102, 202.10	NP
Single Room Occupancy	§ 102	P
Student Housing	§ 102	P
Residential Uses		Controls by Story
		1st 2nd 3rd+
Residential Uses		P P P
Accessory Dwelling Unit	§§ 102 , 207.1, 207.2	Accessory Dwelling Units are permitted to be constructed within an existing building zoned for residential use or within an existing and authorized auxiliary structure on the same lot, provided that it does not eliminate or reduce a ground-story retail or commercial space.
Dwelling Unit Density	§ 207	Up to 1 unit per 200 sq. ft. lot area.
Minimum Dwelling Unit Densities, if Applicable	§ 207.9	Varies depending on project location, but generally ranges between 50 and 100 dwelling units per acre.
Maximum Dwelling Unit Size	§§ 207.10, 317	P up to 4,000 square feet of Gross Floor Area or an equivalent Floor Area Ratio for any individual Dwelling Unit of 1.2:1. C for Dwelling Units that exceed the greater of those thresholds.

Group Housing Density	§§ 208, 890.88(b)	1 bedroom per 140 sq. ft. lot area
Homeless Shelters Density	§§ 102 , 208	Density limits regulated by the Administrative Code
Senior Housing Density	§§ 102 , 202.2(f), 207	P up to twice the number of Dwelling Units otherwise permitted as a Principal Use in the district and meeting all the requirements of § 202.2(f)(1). C up to twice the number of Dwelling Units otherwise permitted as a Principal Use in the district and meeting all requirements of § 202.2(f)(1), except for § 202.2(f)(1)(D)(iv), related to location.
Loss of Dwelling Units: Conversion, Demolition, or Merger of Dwelling Units, including Residential Flats	§ 317	C
Residential Hotel Conversion, Demolition or Merger	Ch. 41 Admin. Code	NP NP NP

Zoning Category	§ References	Controls
Zoning Category	§ References	Controls
NON-RESIDENTIAL STANDARDS
Development Standards
Floor Area Ratio	§§ 102, 123, 124 , 207.9	2.0 to 1 2 For Office Uses minimum intensities may apply pursuant to § 207.9.
Use Size	§ 121.4	P up to 2,500 sq. ft. C 2,501 to 5,000 sq. ft. (1)
Open Space	§ 135.1	1 sq. ft. for every 50 sq. ft. of building over 10,000 sq. ft.
Off-Street Parking, Non-Residential	§§ 145.1, 150, 151.1, 153 - 156, 166, 204.5	No car parking required. Limits set forth in Section 151.1. Bike parking required per Section 155.2. Car share spaces required when a project has 25 or more parking spaces per § 166.
Off-Street Freight Loading, Non-Residential	§§ 150, 152, 153 - 155, 161, 204.5	None required if gross floor area is less than 10,000 sq. ft.
Commercial Use Characteristics
Drive-up Facility	§ 102	NP
Formula Retail	§§ 102, 303.1	NP
Hours of Operation	§ 102	P 6 a.m. - 11 p.m.; C 11 p.m. - 2 a.m.
Maritime Use	§ 102	NP
Open Air Sales	§ 102	P
Outdoor Activity Area	§§ 102, 145.2	P in front, C elsewhere
Walk-up Facility	§ 102	P if recessed 3 ft., C otherwise

Zoning Category	§ References		Controls
Zoning Category	§ References		Controls
NON-RESIDENTIAL USES			Controls by Story
		1st	2nd	3rd+
Agricultural Use Category

Agriculture, Industrial	§§ 102, 202.2(c)	NP	NP	NP
Agriculture, Large Scale Urban	§§ 102, 202.2(c)	C	C	C
Agriculture, Neighborhood	§§ 102, 202.2(c)	P	P	P
Automotive Use Category
Automotive Uses*	§§ 102, 202.5	NP	NP	NP
Electric Vehicle Charging Location	§§ 102, 202.2(b), 202.13	C(4)1	C(4)	C(4)
Parking Garage, Private	§ 102	C	C	C
Parking Garage, Public	§ 102	C	C	C
Parking Lot, Private	§ 102	C	C	C
Parking Lot, Public	§ 102	C	C	C
Entertainment, Arts and Recreation Use Category
Entertainment and Recreation Uses*	§§ 102, 202.4	NP	NP	NP
Entertainment, General	§ 102	C	C	NP
Entertainment, Nighttime	§ 102	C	C	NP
Open Recreation Area	§ 102	C	C	C
Passive Outdoor Recreation	§ 102	C	C	C
Industrial Use Category
Industrial Uses*	§§ 102, 202.2(d)	NP	NP	NP
Institutional Use Category
Institutional Uses*		P	P	P
Hospital	§ 102	NP	NP	NP
Medical Cannabis Dispensary	§ 102	NP	NP	NP
Public Facilities	§ 102	C	C	C
Sales and Service Use Category
Retail Sales and Service Uses*	§§ 102, 202.2(a), 202.3	P	P	NP
Adult Business	§ 102	NP	NP	NP
Adult Sex Venue	§ 102	NP	NP	NP
Animal Hospital	§ 102	NP	NP	NP
Bar	§ 102	C	C	NP
Cannabis Retail	§§ 102, 202.2(a)	NP	NP	NP
Flexible Retail	§§ 102, 202.9	P	NP	NP
Gym	§ 102	P	P	NP
Hotel	§ 102	C	C	C
Kennel	§ 102	NP	NP	NP
Massage Establishment	§§ 102, 204, 303(n), 803	C(3)	C(3)	NP(3)
Massage, Foot/Chair	§ 102	P	C	C
Mortuary	§ 102	C	C	NP
Motel	§§ 102, 202.2(a)	NP	NP	NP
Reproductive Health Clinic	§§ 102, 202.5	P	P	P

Restaurant	§ 102	P	C(1)	NP
Retail Workspace	§ 102	NP	NP	NP
Services, Financial	§ 102	NP	NP	NP
Services, Fringe Financial	§ 102	NP	NP	NP
Services, Health	§ 102	C	P	NP
Services, Limited Financial	§ 102	NP	NP	NP
Services, Personal	§ 102	C	P	NP
Services, Retail Professional	§ 102	P	P	NP
Storage, Self	§ 102	NP	NP	NP
Tobacco Paraphernalia Store	§ 102	C	NP	NP
Trade Shop	§ 102	P	C	NP
Non-Retail Sales and Service*	§ 102	NP	NP	NP
Design Professional	§ 102	NP	P	NP
Trade Office	§ 102	NP	P	P
Utility and Infrastructure Use Category
Utility and Infrastructure*	§ 102	C	C	C
Power Plant	§ 102	NP	NP	NP
Public Utilities Yard	§ 102	NP	NP	NP
Wireless Telecommunications Services Facility	§ 102	P	P	P

Not listed below

(1) C for Use Size is not required for Restaurants larger than 2,500 sq. ft., but C to establish the Use is required as indicated.

(2) Installation of a garage in an existing residential building of four or more units requires a mandatory discretionary review by the Planning Commission; Section 311 notice is required for a building of less than four units. In approving installation of the garage, the Commission shall find that:

(a) the proposed garage opening/addition of off-street parking will not cause the “removal” or “conversion of residential unit,” as those terms are defined in Section 317 of this Code;

(b) the proposed garage opening/addition of off-street parking will not substantially decrease the livability of a dwelling unit without increasing the floor area in a commensurate amount;

(c) the building has not had two or more “no-fault” evictions, as defined in Section 37.9(a)(7) through (9) and (11) through (12) of the Administrative Code, with each eviction associated with a separate unit(s) within the past ten years; and

(d) the proposed garage/addition of off-street parking installation is consistent with the Priority Policies of Section 101.1 of this Code. Prior to the Planning Commission hearing, or prior to issuance of notification under Section 311(c)(2) of this Code, the Planning Department shall require a signed affidavit by the project sponsor attesting to (a), (b), and (c) above, which the Department shall independently verify. The Department shall also have made a determination that the project complies with (d) above.

(3) P if accessory to a Hotel, Personal Service or Health Service.

(4)1 P where existing use is any Automotive Use.

(Added by Ord. 131-87, App. 4/24/87; amended by Ord. 115-90, App. 4/6/90; Ord. 275-05, File No. 051250, App. 11/30/2005; Ord. 235-06, File No. 060533, App. 9/14/2006; Ord. 289-06, File No. 050176, App. 11/20/2006; Ord. 269-07, File No. 070671, App. 11/26/2007; Ord. 244-08, File No. 080567, App. 10/30/2008; Ord. 139-09, File No. 090402, App. 7/2/2009; Ord. 77-10, File No. 091165, App. 4/16/2010; Ord. 66-11, File No. 101537, App. 4/20/2011, Eff. 5/20/2011; Ord. 75-12 , File No. 120084, App. 4/23/2012, Eff. 5/23/2012; Ord. 56-13 , File No. 130062, App. 3/28/2013, Eff.

4/27/2013; Ord. 287-13 , File No. 130041, App. 12/26/2013, Eff. 1/25/2014; Ord. 227-14 , File No. 120796, App. 11/13/2014, Eff. 12/13/2014; Ord. 235-14 , File No. 140844, App. 11/26/2014, Eff. 12/26/2014; Ord. 14-15 , File No. 141210, App. 2/13/2015, Eff. 3/15/2015; Ord. 20-15 , File No. 110548, App. 2/20/2015, Eff. 3/22/2015; Ord. 73-15, File No. 141303, App. 5/28/2015, Eff. 6/27/2015; redesignated and amended by Ord. 162-15 , File No. 150805, App. 9/18/2015, Eff. 10/18/2015; amended by Ord. 33-16 , File No. 160115, App. 3/11/2016, Eff. 4/10/2016; Ord. 162-16 , File No. 160657, App. 8/4/2016, Eff. 9/3/2016; Ord. 166-16 , File No. 160477, App. 8/11/2016, Eff. 9/10/2016; Ord. 217-16, File No. 160424, App. 11/10/2016, Eff. 12/10/2016; Ord. 99-17, File No. 170206, App. 5/19/2017, Eff. 6/18/2017; Ord. 229-17, File No. 171041, App. 12/6/2017, Eff. 1/5/2018; Ord. 213-18, File No. 180319, App. 9/14/2018, Eff. 10/15/2018; Ord. 277-18, File No. 180914, App. 11/20/2018, Eff. 12/21/2018; Ord. 311-18, File No. 181028, App. 12/21/2018, Eff. 1/21/2019; Ord. 208-19, File No. 190594, App. 9/20/2019, Eff. 10/21/2019; Ord. 63-20, File No. 200077, App. 4/24/2020, Eff. 5/25/2020; Ord. 54-21, File No. 201326, App. 4/23/2021, Eff. 5/24/2021; Ord. 111-21, File No. 210285, App. 8/4/2021, Eff. 9/4/2021; Ord. 136-21, File No. 210674, App. 8/4/2021, Eff. 9/4/2021; Ord. 233-21, File No. 210381, App. 12/22/2021, Eff. 1/22/2022; Ord. 37-22, File No. 211263, App. 3/14/2022, Eff. 4/14/2022; Ord. 75-22, File No. 220264, App. 5/13/2022, Eff. 6/13/2022; Ord. 190-22, File No. 220036, App. 9/16/2022, Eff. 10/17/2022; Ord. 248-23, File No. 230446, App. 12/14/2023, Eff. 1/14/2024; Ord. 249-23, File No. 230701, App. 12/14/2023, Eff. 1/14/2024; Ord. 33-24, File No. 231144, App. 2/21/2024, Eff. 3/23/2024; Ord. 297-24, File No. 241055, App. 12/19/2024, Eff. 1/19/2025; Ord. 245-25, File No. 250701, App. 12/12/2025, Eff. 1/12/2026, Oper. 1/12/2026; Ord. 1-26, File No. 250385, App. 1/8/2026, Eff. 2/8/2026)

AMENDMENT HISTORY

Zoning Control Table: .74A and .74B added; Ord. 66-11 , Eff. 5/20/2011. Zoning Control Table: .41, .43, and .44 amended, former categories .42 and .45 deleted; Ord. 75-12 , Eff. 5/23/2012. Zoning Control Table: .54 amended; Specific Provisions: 811.54 added; Ord. 56-13 , Eff. 4/27/2013. Zoning Control Table: .39a and .39b amended; Ord. 287-13 , Eff. 1/25/2014. Zoning Control Table: .20 amended; Specific Provisions: 811.47b and 811.54 amended, former category 811.71 deleted; Ord. 227-14 , Eff. 12/13/2014. Specific Provisions: 811.54 amended; Ord. 235-14 , Eff. 12/26/2014. Zoning Control Table: .92b added; Ord. 14-15 , Eff. 3/15/2015. Zoning Control Table: .15, .16, and .17 amended; Ord. 2015 , Eff. 3/22/2015. Zoning Control Table: .54 amended; Specific Provisions: 811.54 amended; Ord. 73-15, Eff. 6/27/2015. Section redesignated (formerly Sec. 811.1); introductory material amended; Zoning Control Table: .91 amended; Specific Provisions: 811.91 added; Ord. 162-15 , Eff. 10/18/2015. Zoning Control Table: former categories .38a, .38b, .39a, and .39b deleted, .97 and .98 added; Ord. 33-16 , Eff. 4/10/2016. Specific Provisions: 811.91 amended; Ord. 162-16 , Eff. 9/3/2016. Zoning Control Table: .99 added; Ord. 166-16 , Eff. 9/10/2016. Zoning Control Table: .99 added; Ord. 166-16, Eff. 9/10/2016. Zoning Control Table: .30 amended; Ord. 217-16, Eff. 12/10/2016. Zoning Control Table: heading and categories .22 and .94 amended; Ord. 99-17, Eff. 6/18/2017. Zoning Control Table: .75 added; Ord. 229-17, Eff. 1/5/2018. Zoning Control Table: .75 and .83 deleted; Ord. 213-18, Eff. 10/15/2018. Zoning Control Table: .23 and .94 amended; Ord. 277-18, Eff. 12/21/2018. Zoning Control Table: .23 and .94 amended; Ord. 311-18, Eff. 1/21/2019. Introductory material amended; Zoning Control Table replaced; Notes (1)-(2) added; Specific Provisions table deleted; Ord. 208-19, Eff. 10/21/2019. Zoning Control Table and Note (2)(c) amended; Ord. 63-20, Eff. 5/25/2020. Introductory material and Zoning Control Table amended; Ord. 54-21, Eff. 5/24/2021. Zoning Control Table amended; Ord. 111-21, Eff. 9/4/2021. Note (2) amended; Ord. 136-21, Eff. 9/4/2021. Second introductory paragraph and Zoning Control Table amended; Note (3) added; Ord. 233-21, Eff. 1/22/2022. Second introductory paragraph, Zoning Control Table, and Note (3) amended; Ord. 37-22, Eff. 4/14/2022. Zoning Control Table amended; Ord. 75-22, Eff. 6/13/2022. Zoning Control Table amended; Note (4)1 added; Ord. 190-22 , Eff. 10/17/2022. Zoning Control Table amended; Ord. 248-23 , Eff. 1/14/2024. Zoning Control Table amended; Ord. 249-23 , Eff. 1/14/2024. First introductory paragraph amended; Ord. 3324 , Eff. 3/23/2024. Zoning Control Table amended; Ord. 297-24 , Eff. 1/19/2025. Undesignated introductory material and Zoning Control Table amended; Ord. 245-25 , Eff. 1/12/2026. Zoning Control Table amended; Ord. 1-26 , Eff. 2/8/2026. CODIFICATION NOTES

Note “(4)” is referenced as Note “(3)” in Ord. 190-22. The note was redesignated by the codifier because a note designated as “(3)” had previously been added to this section by Ord. 233-21.
So in Ord. 245-25.