Planning Commission approves Verizon rooftop antennas at 2059 Market despite tenant health concerns

San Francisco ' The Planning Commission approved a conditional use authorization April 27 to install a six-antenna macro wireless facility on the rooftop of 2059 Market Street, after hearing resident objections about radio-frequency exposure, building impacts and historic context.

Planning staff (Ryan Balba) recommended approval, saying the project complies with the Department's wireless-siting guidelines and relevant General Plan objectives and that the Department of Public Health had reviewed the design and found it would comply with current Federal Communications Commission (FCC) safety standards. The applicant, represented by Hayden Piper (Ridge Communications for Verizon), said the site addresses both coverage and capacity needs and that the design had been reduced from nine to six antennas following coordination with preservation staff.

Multiple tenants in the host building and nearby residents testified in opposition. Speakers said the rooftop installation would place transmitting antennas within feet of occupied units and asked whether continuous exposure could be safe for residents, children and pets. One resident, Regina Tsai, said she had emailed commissioners with studies she believed demonstrated harm and urged denial: "Please do not approve the installation of these mobile towers," she said.

The applicant submitted an engineering report from Waterford Consultants estimating that the maximum predicted exposure anywhere in the building would be about 3.42% of the FCC general-population limit. Commissioners asked technical questions about vertical separation, the radius of safe exposure and a condition included in the staff recommendation: a post-installation implementation report that requires testing and verification after equipment is activated. Staff said the standard condition obligates the carrier to conduct on-site measurements after installation and to make additional tests available to any resident within 25 feet of an antenna.

Commissioner Braun moved to approve; the motion passed on a unanimous 5-0 vote (Commissioner Diamond recused). Staff included standard conditions requiring compliance with the Department of Public Health findings and an implementation report with post-installation testing.