Things looked promising for the hip office condos at The Warfield building when they hit the market in mid May. Seven of the eight floors were being offered as commercial office condos with a special use that would allow for residential dwellings. Prices for the spaces ranged from $1,339,000-$1.4M. Thrown in with each purchase were eight tickets to all performances at the Warfield Theatre.
But unfortunately, the Planning Department has squashed potential buyers’ rock star dreams. Shortly after Pacific Union International started marketing the properties, according to one of the listing agents, city planners decided that they didn’t agree with the seller’s interpretation of the “accessory use housing” designation which allowed for 25% of the space to be used for residential purposes. The result? The units can only be sold now as commercial condos. There are two companies currently negotiating to lease several of the floors.
In other news, the infamous “blue church” condos as the corner of 28th and Church in Noe Valley are officially on hold once again:
The former church was demolished in October 2009, after a protracted battle between the church’s pastor and the property developer. But then…Nothing happened. Rumors recently began circulating that the property was going to revert back to the pastor.
Here’s the latest: J Branch Development is currently trying to obtain financing for the project, according to lead architect Tony Kotas at Kotas/Pantaleoni Architects. Unfortunately, lending is at a premium, and this has become a huge challenge. In the meantime, the developer is planning to maintain the site by cutting back weeds and cleaning things up in response to growing complaints from neighbors.