Scot, further to the post below on the Castro, picked this up in Streetsblog SF:
Personal Garages Become Cafes in the Castro, Thanks to Smarter Zoning
Three new cafes and restaurants in the Castro have been created in spaces formerly used as personal parking garages. Driveways and dark garage doors on 18th Street have been replaced with storefronts and inviting patios filled with people.
A few years ago, this would’ve been illegal.
Reveille Coffee Company and Beso, a tapas restaurant, were able to move in and convert these garages this year, thanks to changes in the SF Planning Code’s zoning laws in 2011 proposed by Livable City and former Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi. The provision to allow garages to be converted into shops, housing, and service spaces in “Neighborhood Commercial” zoning districts was part of a package of parking-related reforms.
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Unknowingly, I also captured this development, but from the viewpoint of the sidewalk on 18th:
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What I particularly liked was the cello player on the small balcony above.
