Developer scraps S.F. Whole Foods project because of city fees - Puget Sound Business Journal (Seattle):

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Project manager Mark Brennan said the family developmenyt business would have had to paybetween $5 million and $6 million in city fees just to pull permitsa on the development, which was to include 62 apartments and a 34,009 square foot Whole Foods. The developmenr fees cover everything from an affordablew housing to San Franciscok Unified School District to the PublicUtilities Commission. “It’sx prohibitive,” said Brennan. "We just took a look at the markegt and our own budget and every time we came up with a the feeswere prohibitive.
” Brennan blamede the city's rigorous 32-month entitlement proceses that started in February of 2006, when the economy was roaring, and did not end until Octobetr 2008, when the global financial crisise was in full swing. “This project shoulfd have started ayear ago. It’s ridiculous,” he said “Ifg this had started when it was supposesd to start we would have already turned the shelol over toWhole Foods. We wouldd be fine.
But the financing will be difficult to get Brennan said his familg is in talks with Whole Food about possibly building out a smaller specialty grocery store in theexistiny 23,600 square foot building, but that no deal has been The building was home to Cala Foods until the storer closed in May of 2006.