Mid-Valencia project overcomes CEQA hurdle and begins construction
Last Tuesday, after hearing from over 20 safe biking advocates rallied by the SF Bicycle Coalition and allies, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously voted 10-0 to reject a California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) appeal of the Mid-Valencia curbside bike lane project, which was filed by VAMANOS (Valencia Association of Merchants, Artists, and Organizations). (Supervisor Rafael Mandelman recused himself from the vote, because he owns property within 1000 feet of the project area.) The group is advocating to revert back to unprotected bike lanes along Valencia Street, restore left turns, and to put the bike lane on a different street.
The rejection of the appeal affirms the Planning Department’s finding that the project is statutorily exempt from CEQA, and that there are no legal grounds for the appeal.
Under SB922 and SB288, active transportation projects have statutory exemption from environmental review because they improve pedestrian and bicycle safety by constructing safe street infrastructure––which advances our City’s transit-first policy, Vision Zero, and sustainable transportation goals. Exempting active transportation projects from CEQA means we can implement life-saving and environmentally friendly interventions faster and more cost effectively.
We applaud Supervisor Fielder’s thoughtful leadership, meeting with all parties involved — merchants, SF Planning, SFMTA, and us — while clearly stating in her remarks at the hearing that, although she understands some stakeholders’ concerns, there is no legal reason to uphold a CEQA appeal. We’d also like to thank Supervisor Dorsey for his strong remarks acknowledging the history of perversely using CEQA to block or delay safe bike infrastructure, and upholding the position that CEQA appeals “will not be used to delay important bike and pedestrian infrastructure from being built.”
Now that the CEQA appeal has been rejected by the Board of Supervisors, construction on the Mid-Valencia project is starting this Monday, February 10. Construction will require three phases: removing the center-running bike lane, repaving part of the street and then installing the new parking-protected curbside bike lanes. Each of those phases will start at 23rd Street, working northward to 15th Street where the existing curbside protected lane begins.
After 2023’s botched roll out of the center-running bike lane, we are disappointed to see no alternative bike lane proposed during construction. Not providing a temporary bike lane on Valencia during construction and forcing people on active transportation to share the lane with drivers is going to be confusing and unsafe.
For people on bikes who feel unsafe sharing the road with drivers, we recommend these alternative routes:
- Traveling southbound on Valencia Street: Make a left turn on 14th Street to then go right on Shotwell Slow Street; then turn right on 25th Street to get back onto Valencia Street to the Tiffany Wiggle.
- Traveling northbound on Valencia Street: Make a right turn at 25th Street and then a left on Shotwell Slow Street. Continue going north on Shotwell and then make a left on 15th Street to reconnect to Valencia Street.
As this segment of Valencia moves towards a final design, we will be advocating for the SFMTA to complete the corridor by extending the protected curbside bike lanes from 23rd Street to Cesar Chavez. Get involved in the next phase of this saga by signing up for updates below.