Large payment improving child care access

The deal approved Thursday, Jan. 16, arrived with an amendment to a development agreement for the under-construction project planned to eventually feature roughly 1.5 million square feet of office and lab space in the heart of the city’s biotech hub.

Two phases of the project are currently under construction. Once planned occupancy begins at the 850 Gateway Blvd. building in two years, city officials expect $6.5 million will be paid. The initial $1 million is due within the next month. The payment was offered in lieu of a day care program planned to serve between 80 and 100 children, according to the original development agreement. Life science companies Amgen and AbbVie signed initial leases to occupy about half of the project.

The money will go into a fund filled with contributions from developers building projects in South San Francisco intended specifically to address child care issues. The fund balance is about $5.5 million, prior to the new payment.

Alex Greenwood, Economic and Community Development director, said officials have picked a site where they would prefer to build a new child care facility with the development impact fees.

And while he could not specify where, he suggested it would be in the vicinity of the new civic campus planned by officials at the intersection of Chestnut Avenue and Antoinette Lane.

Noting the dearth of available spaces at the existing child care facilities, commission Vice Chair Alan Wong expressed his support for the deal designed to improve access for local families. Chair JulieAnn Murphy also signed off on the proposal, which required an amendment to the most recent development agreement for the project.

“I feel comfortable with this,” she said, according to video of the meeting.

In other business, the commission also recommended the South San Francisco City Council approve a proposal to install a new digital billboard along Highway 101.

Clear Channel, which has another similar sign north in South San Francisco facing the highway, is offering a $1 million down payment, plus $80,000 annually to install the billboard at 345 Shaw Road. The deal is intended to span 30 years. The advertising company will also pay $140,000 for new city signs, remove an existing static sign elsewhere and allow the city to run limited advertising on the digital sign for free.

Commissioners unanimously approved the proposal, but it must be ratified by councilmembers. If approved, the sign would be the third in South San Francisco — the most allowed by city zoning code. Councilmembers recently rejected an earlier, similar proposal from a different advertising company.

Should another company approach city officials with the interest in installing a fourth digital billboard, officials would need to amend the existing code. Restrictions also disallow digital billboards from being placed within 1,000 feet of each other. Beyond the digital versions, there are believed to be approximately 15 static signs along the city’s stretch of Highway 101 too, said city planner Billy Gross.

austin@smdailyjournal.com

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