The San Francisco Planning Commission voted Thursday afternoon against the arrival of a pilates studio on Valencia Street.
All commissioners but Amy Campbell voted to deny a permit for Club Pilates, pointing to the nearly 20 concerned neighbors and business owners who spoke in opposition of the Southern California chain with 1,200 studios globally.
Valencia merchants said that allowing Club Pilates on the corridor would hurt small businesses trying to compete with a franchise this large. They added that opening the door to one chain would mean possibly opening the door to others, incentivizing landlords to wait for higher bidders to rent commercial spaces on Valencia.
Lastly, chains on Valencia Street do not align with the aesthetics and uniqueness merchants have fought so hard to preserve for decades, they said.
“It’s about building a brand on Valencia and taking it out into the world. It’s not taking a national brand or international brand and bringing it to Valencia,” said Ron Elder, a Valencia neighbor of 20 years and the owner of Hi-Hat at 1432 Valencia St.
San Francisco’s planning code requires formula retail — businesses with more than 11 locations and at least two “standardized features” like same color, signage, uniforms or trademark — to obtain a conditional-use-permit to open a business in the Valencia commercial corridor.
Applicants Carrie Wu and CJ Liu, who already own a Club Pilates in Diamond Heights, Mountain View and have secured permits to open in Nopa, hoped to persuade the commissioners, that despite qualifying as a formula retail, their business was to operate independently from Club Pilates because as franchisees they have the control over operations.
The studio, they said, would create local jobs and serve local customers who have to travel to their Diamond Heights location.
Wu and Liu’s arguments did not convince the most commissioners, but made commissioner Campbell question why the permit was being denied if formula retail on Valencia Street is allowed, even if it means obtaining a conditional use.
“If formula retail is not something we want to see on this corridor, then we should add it to the list of districts that do not allow formula retail and change the rules of the road,” said Campbell. “That would be my recommendation.”
Wu and Liu can appeal the commissioners decision to the Board of Supervisors.
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