Sports
New Warriors Arena Opponents Have Day in Court
The city argues that the project meets "cutting-edge" environmental standards. The record of the case shows neighborhood support.
SAN FRANCISCO, CA ā A lawyer for opponents of a planned Golden State Warriors arena in San Francisco's Mission Bay district told a state appeals court the environmental review of the project was defective.
"There's a significant traffic impact," Mission Bay Alliance attorney Susan Brandt-Hawley argued before a three-judge panel of the state Court of Appeal.
"There are significant concerns among faculty and administrative staff and families with children about the ability of UCSF to function," she said.
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The proposed 18,000-seat arena at Third and 16th streets would be part of an 11-acre development in a former industrial area that would also include offices, stores and open space.
The site is near the University of California at San Francisco Medical Center at Mission Bay and the UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital.
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The alliance, made up primarily of UCSF donors, doctors and stakeholders, claims that an environmental impact report prepared by the city didn't adequately analyze effects of traffic, noise, production of greenhouse
gases and air pollution.
The group was joined in the case by SaveMuni and the mother of a young son with a heart condition, who says she fears that access to the UCSF hospitals may be impaired.
The opponents also claim the project violates zoning rules set for development of the area, known as Mission Bay South.
A ruling by the appeals court that further environmental review is required could delay the project.
The panel took the case under submission after hearing nearly two hours of arguments and will issue a written ruling at a later date.
The city and the basketball team's owners contend the project has been been thoroughly reviewed in accordance with California law and has broad public support.
Whit Manley, a lawyer for GSW Arena LLC, argued, "The key point is what else would you have the city do?"
The record of the case shows neighborhood support for the project, he said.
"It's not an avalanche of discontent," he told the court.
The city has also argued that the project meets "cutting-edge" environmental standards. It says the arena, which can be used for concerts and events as well as basketball, "will be one of the most sustainable arenas
in the country."
ā Bay City News; Image via Shutterstock
