Board postpones decision on 244 Hartford third-floor permit after engineering discrepancies

The San Francisco Board of Appeals on Feb. 1 continued Appeal 202‑290 (244 Hartford St.) to Feb. 8 after receiving competing engineering assessments and hearing from both sides.

Appellants Bill Weil and counsel Andrew Catterall said the revised permit still proposed demolition of key structural walls without adequate seismic strengthening and that their engineer, David Strandberg, had identified shortcomings in hold‑down and overturning calculations. Strandberg told the board the currently filed structural drawings did not show how overturning forces from existing shear walls would be transferred and where hold‑down straps would connect, leaving potential risks to lower units.

Permit‑holder counsel Tom Tenney and engineer Alan Burr said discussions with DBI went well during a meeting the afternoon of Feb. 1 and that DBI plan checker Karen Liang (DBI) was largely satisfied with the new drawings. DBI representative Matthew Green told the board that Karen Liang had reviewed the drawings and that DBI would support adoption of a special conditions permit based on the revised engineering but would also support a short continuance so all three engineers could reach full agreement.

Given these conflicting engineer positions, President Rick Swig moved to continue the matter to Feb. 8 to allow permit revisions acceptable to both DBI and the appellant. The motion carried 5–0. The board asked staff to place the item early on the next agenda so the parties could present updated drawings or a stipulated resolution.

Next steps: The board’s continuance gives engineers time to reconcile calculations. DBI indicated it will attend the next hearing with Karen Liang available to testify if necessary; the board will act on the revised drawings or a special conditions permit at the next meeting.