SF Mayor Breed proposes permitting...

of Building Inspection before securing all the required Planning Department approvals.

The process is often used for larger projects so that the initial construction can get underway while the remaining construction documents are still being reviewed and revised.

Unfortunately, the current site permit process triggers multiple rounds of project reviews and revisions which require more time, are sometimes redundant and conflicting, and always expensive.

Proposed new streamlined process

The proposal will bifurcate the current Site Permit review process to substantially reduce the overall development timeline by standardizing the process and eliminating redundant stages during project and permit review. The new site permit process will feature fewer administrative steps, consolidate plan review, and reduce the number of times an applicant is asked to revise a plan for code compliance by having all the relevant departments review a project concurrently. With this narrower scope of review and a consistent, streamlined process, the Planning Department will be able to analyze projects faster, saving applicants time and money. Standardization of the site permit process will also establish greater transparency and a more predictable project review process at the Planning Department and Department of Building Inspection. Permit applicants will receive clear direction from the city about the information and additional permits required for their project.

Potential impacts and time savings

To evaluate the potential impacts of the proposed process, the City Administrator’s Permit Center analyzed previously approved site permit projects and found that they could have achieved substantial time savings from the proposed process and concurrent plan review. For example:

• A large apartment building on Market Street could have reduced its approval timeline from 4.25 years to 2.3 years.

• A condominium development on Tennessee Street could have shaved 1.5 years off the approval process – from 2.5 years to ten months, a 65%-time savings.

• Similarly, a commercial warehouse on Indiana Street could have saved nine months, while a commercial condominium project on Stanyan Street could have saved ten months.

“Improving the site permit process will both speed housing production and create a better, more efficient system for people who want to build in San Francisco,” said City Administrator Carmen Chu.

“There is no single magic solution, instead, every painstaking day we shave off the development process is a day sooner a person can be living in a new home in the city.”

“Changing the site permit process just makes good sense,” said Rich Hillis, Director of the Planning Department. “The process was well intentioned, but it is past time for a reinvention. This new system will allow city departments to focus on what each of us does best and to serve our customers better.”

“This is a major improvement in how we review and approve major construction projects in San Francisco,” said Patrick O’Riordan, Director of the Department of Building Inspection. “It’s a smarter way of doing business that is going to produce housing in less time, for less money and using a more rational process. It’s a win-win for everyone.”

The Mayor’s Office and the departments involved are now soliciting input and drafting legislation to codify these changes. The city plans to host a public forum for community input on April 19 and then have the proposal considered at a joint Building Inspection Commission and Planning Commission meeting on May 18.

(SF Mayor’s Office Release)

THE Chinese embassy in the Philippines on Sunday, March 12 said it sees “no problem” with the Philippines over freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, but accused the United States of using the issue to drive a wedge between Manila and Beijing. The embassy issued the statement in reaction to the remarks of U.S. Ambassador to Manila MaryKay Carlson in a television interview on the South China Sea dispute and the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) between the Philippines and the U.S. Carlson had said U.S.Philippine joint patrols in the waterways are important to ensure that it remains free and open to international navigation.

“On the South China Sea issue, there is ‘no problem’ of freedom of navigation in the South China Sea,” the embassy said.

“When talking about free and open waterways, what the U.S. has in its mind is actually the ‘freedom of rampage’ of its warships in the South China Sea,” it said. The U.S. has been sending its warships on “freedom of navigation” sorties in the South China Sea, which China claims is part of its territory. The embassy pointed out that the U.S. military “has been coming all the way from the other side of the Pacific to stir up trouble in the South China Sea and ganging up with its allies from other parts of the world to flex muscle in the South China Sea.”

“By doing these, the U.S. has not only heightened tension, driven a wedge between China and the Philippines, but also has disturbed and upset the joint effort of countries in this region to safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea,” the embassy said.

Now that China and the Philippines are at a critical juncture of post-COVID-19 recovery, “we should keep to the right track of maintaining good-neighborliness and attaining mutual benefit rather than getting distracted by forces who are fanning the flame and driving a wedge between us, even less inviting a bully into our community,” it added.

“We need to focus on cooperation and development, and truly safeguard, promote and build peace, stability, prosperity of our region and bring more tangible benefits to people of our two countries,” the embassy said.

Carlson said the EDCA sites, where the U.S. can store arms and equipment, would not only help the provincial and local authorities to enhance their ability to defend themselves, but to grow their economy.

The governors from Cagayan and Isabela expressed apprehension about having their provinces used as EDCA sites, fearing that the sites could become military targets if the conflict between China and Taiwan escalates further.

The Chinese embassy noted that “intense debates” have been going on recently in the Philippines about the four additional EDCA sites. “The governors of Cagayan and Isabela are not the only ones who publicly expressed reservation to having their provinces used as EDCA sites,” it said.

Peace and development, the embassy said, remain the theme of this era and the call of peoples around the world.

It accused the U.S. of “keeping on upgrading” military cooperation with the Philippines by adding EDCA bases and military deployment in the country “to secure its hegemony and selfish geopolitical interests and out of the cold-war mentality.”

“Whereas the U.S. claims that such cooperation is intended to help the disaster relief efforts of the Philippines and some Americans even tout the EDCA sites as driver of local economy, it is plain and simple that those moves are part of the U.S. efforts to encircle and contain China through its military alliance with this country,” the embassy said.

“To bundle the Philippines into the chariots of geopolitical strife will seriously harm Philippine national interests and endanger regional peace and stability,” it said. n

HIV among teens

IN their teens, there are Filipinos who are getting infected with the human immunodeficiency virus, the Department of Health has reported. In its latest HIV/ AIDS registry, the DOH reported this week that 79 Filipinos aged 10 to 19 years and seven children below age 10 were diagnosed with HIV in January alone.

Of the 86 cases, 78 got HIV through sexual contact, according to the DOH. The department reported that 65 of the infections acquired HIV through male-to-male sex, eight through sex with both male and female, and five through heterosexual contact, with most of the sexual contact unprotected or unsafe. Of the cases, 18 were 18 to 19 years old, 20 were aged 15 to 17 while two were between ages 10 and 14.

The problem raises the need to heighten awareness of safe sex and reproductive health among adolescents. Some sectors have expressed concern that sex education can encourage sexual promiscuity among the youth. Proponents of sex education, on the other hand, argue that adolescents will explore their sexuality anyway, so it is better to provide them with proper information on safe sex, reproductive health and the risks of HIV infection and teenage pregnancy.

Before the COVID pandemic, the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS had reported that the number of new HIV infections in the Philippines had more than doubled between 2010

From My Point of View

SINCE taxation is part and parcel of our existence, let’s continue to dwell on this subject matter. We are in the tax season mode, so we’ll provide some insights to navigate this important aspect of our lives whether we like or not.

Child and dependent care credit

For instance, Child and Dependent Care Credit is again a deductible tax credit. I have a client from Fresno, California who was given a $2,000 credit for his two-year-old baby and then some. Because the breadwinner of the house, a nurse, received a refund of more than $10,000.

He got excited that at last he can now have some cash to pay for his down payment for his first house.

If you have for more than and 2016, from 4,300 infections to approximately 10,500. The country has recorded the fastest growth rate in HIV infection in Asia and the Pacific, becoming one of eight countries that account for over 85 percent of new infections in the region, according to UNAIDS.

Last year, the DOH recorded a 21 percent increase in new HIV infections compared to 2021. In January this year, 1,454 new cases were recorded nationwide, or a daily average of 46 new infections. HIV cases in the country have shifted from female sex workers to men having sex with men.

A growing concern for health experts is the increase in HIV infections among teenagers. While new generation treatments have become available for HIV, the infection is still debilitating and can lead to death if it progresses to fullblown AIDS. Health experts are calling for a multisectoral response to the problem, from the home to schools, communities, civil society and concerned government agencies, all moving to save youths from infection. (Philstar.com)