Board committee backs exclusive negotiations for Pier 45 revitalization and urges public input

Supervisor Connie Chan, chair of the Budget and Finance Committee, moved Sept. 6 to forward to the full Board a resolution that would exempt a potential Port of San Francisco transaction at Seawall Lot 303/301 (Pier 45) from the city’s competitive-bidding rules and authorize exclusive negotiations with Fisherman’s Wharf Revitalized LLC.

The resolution, sponsored by Board President Aaron Peskin, directs the Port and city staff to negotiate an exclusive negotiating agreement and term sheet on a sole-source basis while urging outreach to neighbors and stakeholders. "Fisherman's Wharf is an incredible part of San Francisco, that is one of the geese that lays the golden egg," Peskin said in introducing the proposal, framing the site as both an economic engine and cultural asset.

Port Assistant Director Mike Martin told the committee the Port has followed the waterfront plan’s unsolicited-proposal process: the Port held community meetings, issued a request for information in May and presented results to the Port Commission in July. Martin said the Port received two responses to its RFI — one from the proposers and one from an adjacent Port tenant expressing interest in improving the Triangle Lot for visitor-serving uses — and the Port Commission recommended the waiver.

Developer Lou Gerardo, representing Fisherman's Wharf Revitalized LLC, described the team’s vision for mixed uses, job creation and preservation of fishing-industry functions. He urged the Board to allow negotiations to proceed: "We believe that Fisherman's Wharf needs revitalization," he said, asking supervisors to forward the item so the proposal can advance.

Committee members repeatedly emphasized opportunities for public oversight. Chan said that approving the waiver would start a 24–36 month negotiation and design period that would return to the Board with a fiscal feasibility determination and further environmental review. The committee voted 3–0 to forward the resolution with a positive recommendation.

The full Board of Supervisors will consider the waiver and any exclusive negotiating agreement in subsequent hearings, where the public will have additional opportunities for comment and where environmental review and fiscal analysis will be required.