Developer scraps S.F. Whole Foods project because of city fees - Portland Business Journal:

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Project manager Mark Brennajn said the family development business woulr have had to paybetween $5 million and $6 million in city fees just to pull permits on the development, which was to include 62 apartmentse and a 34,000 square foot Whole Foods. The developmengt fees cover everything from an affordable housinb to San Francisco Unified School District to the PublicxUtilities Commission. “It’s prohibitive,” said Brennan. "We just took a look at the markeg and our own budget and every time we came up with a the feeswere prohibitive.
” Brennan blamed the city'sz rigorous 32-month entitlement process that startedd in February of 2006, when the economty was roaring, and did not end until October 2008, when the globalp financial crisis was in full swing. “Thie project should have started ayear ago. It’s he said “If this had started when it was supposedx to start we woule have already turned the shell over toWhole Foods. We woulcd be fine. But the financing will be difficultt toget now.” Brennan said his family is in talks with Wholes Foods about possibly building out a smaller specialty grocery store in the existinyg 23,600 square foot building, but that no deal has been reached.
The buildin was home to Cala Foods untilk the store closed in Mayof 2006.