After 9 years of delay, 181 new homes approved at burned-out Mission site

Ten years ago, a deadly fire destroyed this Mission building and killed one resident. Now, 181 new homes will rise in its place. After nearly a decade of delays, San Francisco has finally approved new homes at 2588 Mission — despite angry opposition from a couple loud voices who want no change at all.

The Facts

On Thursday, the San Francisco Planning Commission approved a 10-story, 181-unit apartment building at 2588 Mission Street. The site has sat vacant since 2015, when a fire killed one person and displaced dozens of tenants and small businesses. The new project includes 17 below-market-rate homes and 164 market-rate homes. The Planning Commissioners approved the project in a 4–3 vote, noting that the city had no legal grounds to block it under state housing law.

The Context

This lot has been empty for nearly 10 years, even as San Francisco face a severe housing shortage. Anti-development activists in the Mission, like "United to Save the Mission," fought to keep the site vacant rather than permit a home builder to replace the empty lot with new homes. There's a long history of anti-development activism in the Mission based on the false belief that new homes cause gentrification, drive up rents, and displace existing residents. In reality, new homes help meet demand and lower prices for everyone, while also ensuring people have access to high quality housing.

State housing laws like the Density Bonus and SB 330 limit the city’s ability to reject code-compliant housing, especially on underused land like this. This project meets all the requirements and has been through multiple rounds of public hearings and revisions. The Planning Commission’s approval is a victory for state housing laws and a step toward addressing San Francisco’s housing crisis.

This building will provide 74 two-bedroom homes and 107 1-bedroom homes, with 17 of those homes set aside as subsidized low-income housing. The project also includes ground-floor retail space, over 100 bicycle parking spots for residents, and solar panels on the roof.

The GrowSF Take

This is exactly the kind of housing San Francisco needs — dense, near high quality transit, and filling an empty lot. The fire was tragic, but we shouldn’t let the memory of loss be weaponized to block new homes forever.

Opposition to this project wasn’t about justice or affordability — it was about stopping any new housing in the Mission, no matter the cost. That’s unacceptable. We need to say yes to homes, yes to neighbors, and yes to healing the wounds of the past by building a better future.

We applaud the Planning Commission for doing the right thing, even in the face of loud opposition. 181 new families will soon call the Mission home — and that’s something to celebrate.