Fancy SF street returned to residents

The sale of this street in San Francisco has been reversed by the city Board of Supervisors. LIA ZHU / CHINA DAILY

The sale of a private street in one of San Francisco's most affluent neighborhoods to a Chinese-American couple has been reversed, to the relief of wealthy homeowners.

The city's Board of Supervisors on Tuesday passed a motion to rescind the sale of Presidio Terrace with a seven-to-four vote.

Michael Cheng and Tina Lam, both San Jose-based real estate investors, bought the block-long street lined by 35 multimillion-dollar mansions, the sidewalks and other common ground, for a little more than $90,000.

The street was put up for auction in 2015 after the homeowners association failed to pay its annual $14 tax bill for decades, amounting to a debt of $994.

The homeowners argued at Tuesday's hearing that they were not aware that the street was a separate parcel subject to property tax and that the government should protect them from "strange and abnormal" things.

Among the homeowners who spoke at the hearing was Andrew Whittaker, British Consul General to San Francisco, who raised security concerns if they were to lose the street in the gated, exclusive neighborhood.

The homeowners association that oversees the private street - one of 181 private roads in San Francisco - wasn't aware of the sale until a title company hired by the Chengs contacted them in May.

The association filed a lawsuit challenging the sale and asking the supervisors to rescind it.

Scott Emblidge, the attorney representing the homeowners, said the tax office should have taken "additional steps" to notify the homeowners before auctioning off the street.

Tax Collector Jos Cisneros, who testified at the hearing, said he followed the law and proper notices had been provided. He said there were hundreds of properties auctioned for delinquent property tax bills in 2015, some of them under water.

He said the staff focused its efforts on "occupied parcels", while the street was classified as"unoccupied".

It's not the first time Presidio Terrace has been taken away. The street was seized in the 1970s and in 1983 again for defaulting on a common-area tax bill. Homeowners regained the property in 1985.

"The property has been taken before, so they should have known this would happen," said Michael Cheng. "Now they ask for a third chance, I think it's really unfair to us."

The homeowners got the backing of former Presidio Terrace resident US Senator Dianne Feinstein. She wrote to the board, asking to have the sale negated.

Other influential past homeowners in Presidio Terrace include House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and late mayor Joseph Alioto.

Cheng's supporters complained that rich and well-connected people don't have to play by the same rules.

Shepard Kopp, the attorney representing Cheng and Lam, said his clients had bought the property "fair and square". He warned that rescinding the sale would set a dangerous precedent, potentially invalidating other tax auctions, including previous ones.

liazhu@chinadailyusa.com