9-Unit Condo Building Planned For Former KFC/Taco Bell On Lombard

9-Unit Condo Building Planned For Former KFC/Taco Bell On LombardThe former KFC/Taco Bell. Photo: Google Street View.
Geri Koeppel
Published on April 27, 2016

Developers are getting ready to submit new plans in the next couple of weeks for a nine-condo building planned for the corner of Lombard and Fillmore streets on the site of the former KFC/Taco Bell.

We caught up with the project sponsor, Yves Ghiai of Ghiai Architects, and got more details about what's to come for this very visible corner. The project will demolish the current building, but stay within the 40-foot height limit. Developers won't wait for possible Affordable Housing Density Bonus legislation that would allow the developer to build higher, he said. All units will have two bedrooms and two bathrooms and average 1,150 square feet. The units won't have extremely expensive luxury finishes, but are meant for the middle range of pricing in the city. They're "really meant for a young family or young couple," he said.


The former KFC/Taco Bell as it looks now. (Photo: Geri Koeppel/Hoodline)

Among other things, Ghiai is excited that all 12 underground parking spaces (nine for residents and three commercial spaces) will have electric charging stations and "substantial" bicycle parking. "I'm a strong believer we need to move along on this stuff," he said, adding that they're planning to put solar panels on the roof, too.

In addition, "the design has been modified quite a bit from the original," Ghiai also said. A preliminary project assessment by SF Planning made several recommendations that they took into account. "It's a more classical, more subdued design than the original," he said, but still quite contemporary. He declined to give renderings out quite yet.


Planning wasn't keen on the monochromatic color scheme, so the plan now is for a mix of light gray and dark gray. They also added more stone work on the first floor, which will house about 3,000 square feet of retail. And the bay windows are still there on Fillmore, but not Lombard. "It hung over the street on Lombard and that's not permitted by Caltrans," Ghiai said.

Planning "strongly encouraged" that the developer increase the density, but Ghiai said they're sticking with the plan of nine units. That is just shy of the 10 units that trigger Section 415 of the Planning Code, which requires 12 percent of units be Below Market Rate (BMR).

A rooftop deck would provide the necessary open space, and it's not likely the project will need a shadow study because of its 40-foot hight. It will, however, require outreach to the Entertainment Commission because it's within 300 feet of a place of entertainment (including HiFi Lounge at 2125 Lombard St., and Jaxson at 3231 Fillmore St.).