My last post was over one year ago. The site at 1266 Dolores Street was pretty quiet most of 2008. This neighbor's observations:

I am not a home owner. I am just a tenant who has lived in San Francisco my entire life and in this neighborhood for the last 15 watching the Noe Valley grow gracefully until this builder came in and decided to put these buildings up (more than 20 feet taller than the neighborhood allows) overpriced, still using sub par materials and thinking they can squeeze every dime out unsuspecting buyers who want to live in this sweet neighborhood.

In November the builder began working on the second building again laying down the floors and breaking up and laying down the sidewalk, and cleaning up and putting in a yard which all look nice but if you really look closely there are bubbles in the wood and the first building has been exposed to the elements for so long that the wood is rotting and peeling away from the building. You can see it from the back side of the buildings.

Three years later the damages they did to the buildings around them have not been fixed. In fact, they threw up a wall against the building next door to cover up the damages. My understanding is that recently the Building Inspection Department didn't buy it- they cited them again.

Is this the kind of builder we want in San Francisco? Would you want to buy a new home from these guys?

more to come.

All seems quiet

Recently the BDI came out and boarded up the two story addition on the lot at 1266 Dolores Street due to a stop work order which had been violated numerous times. As it has been from the beginning of this development project this developer has worked through all Stop Work Orders blatantly and in the face of the city and neighbors.

Within a day or two not only had the board with Keep Out on them had been put up suddenly the whole first floor was boarded up - my question at the time and still is - was that to keep the workers out or to keep the neighbors from looking in. Something to keep in mind as the variance hearing comes up for the illegal structure at the back of the property.

We do see workers (only a few) coming and going from the construction site. I can hear the workers from my apartment talking, yelling and hammering which gives me a good indication of what it will be like when the building next door is occupied.

I think many of us are frustrated with the developer's seemingly good luck in getting everything he has wanted so far. He has bullied, verbally abused, ignored city regulations and Notices of Violation and then to hear his lawyer state that any stop work orders have caused an undue hardship on the developer insinuating that the city and neighbor's are causing him to lose money when in reality it is his own doing. When you cut corners and get caught... who's fault is that - perhaps not cutting corner's in building these two monstrosities in the first place would have been prudent.

There should be a warning label on all the apartments at this site for any potential buyers/

I welcome anyone's comments about these two buildings at 1266 Dolores Street, your feedback, thoughts or insights.

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Construction began two years ago at 1266 Dolores Street and it has been a struggle with the City Zoning and Planning Department, Building Inspection Department and the Board of Appeals ever since.

The Noe Valley Neighbors in the area surrounding the development have been sending up red flags from day one to the City regarding the developer, project manager and representatives of Dolores Street Holdings, LLC and the fight continues.

The developer has used tactics are that unethical and underhanded when decisions are pending regarding Stop Work orders and Violations. The crews have crossed the Stop Work Order and built faster and in the middle of the night to get their building in before a final decision can be made.

They have damaged the surrounding properties with no regard to the property owners and have no intention of repairing what they damaged. The costs to the property owners is well over $100,000. A mere pitance of what they plan to make off of each apartment they are selling in these two buildings.

This is about ethics, breaking the law and as both the developer and project manager have said " We can do what ever the "bleep" we want to and there is nothing you can do about it".

I will be posting this story over the next few weeks. Buyer Beware. The workmanship is low-end, the price per apartment is high and and the developer is shortcutting to get his way.