Planning staff announces development review restructure and three preservation managers
October 19, 2022 | San Francisco City, San Francisco County, California
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At the Oct. 19 Historic Preservation Commission hearing, planning leadership announced internal staffing changes and a reorganization of the development review teams.
What was announced: The department made two temporary managers permanent (Natalia Kwiatkowski and Sylvia Jimenez) and promoted three managers — Kelly Wong to enforcement manager, and Nick Foster and Ella Simonsky to lead development review teams. The department is dissolving a specialized ADU team (the "flex" team) and moving to seven geographically defined development review teams aligned with recently redrawn Board of Supervisors districts.
Preservation capacity: The director said the change will increase managerial support for planners and create three preservation managers (Natalia Kwiatkowski, Marcel Boudreau and Elizabeth Gordon Jean Keer) who will paired with other development review managers to oversee preservation work in those geographies; landmark designation oversight for the citywide survey will report to Rich Sucre.
Rationale and expected effects: Staff said the reorganization is intended to build capacity, bring preservation expertise into district teams, and prioritize equity within the survey and designation workload. The director noted limited discretionary staffing and framed the changes as a way to focus FTE on the commission’s work program.
Quote: "Rich Sucre is still maintaining oversight of the historic preservation program in totality," the director said, pointing members to Sucre for preservation questions.
Next steps: Commissioners were informed they may see different managers in future hearings as the new team structure is implemented.
What was announced: The department made two temporary managers permanent (Natalia Kwiatkowski and Sylvia Jimenez) and promoted three managers — Kelly Wong to enforcement manager, and Nick Foster and Ella Simonsky to lead development review teams. The department is dissolving a specialized ADU team (the "flex" team) and moving to seven geographically defined development review teams aligned with recently redrawn Board of Supervisors districts.
Preservation capacity: The director said the change will increase managerial support for planners and create three preservation managers (Natalia Kwiatkowski, Marcel Boudreau and Elizabeth Gordon Jean Keer) who will paired with other development review managers to oversee preservation work in those geographies; landmark designation oversight for the citywide survey will report to Rich Sucre.
Rationale and expected effects: Staff said the reorganization is intended to build capacity, bring preservation expertise into district teams, and prioritize equity within the survey and designation workload. The director noted limited discretionary staffing and framed the changes as a way to focus FTE on the commission’s work program.
Quote: "Rich Sucre is still maintaining oversight of the historic preservation program in totality," the director said, pointing members to Sucre for preservation questions.
Next steps: Commissioners were informed they may see different managers in future hearings as the new team structure is implemented.
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