Yeah, the “Jack Off” movement. You know, to stop Fifth & Pacific’s upscale menswear chain, not the other kind of jack, how dare you think I was making a lewd inference in order to get you to read yet another article about this company. Both Ammiano and former President of the Board of Supervisors Matt Gonzalez support a new appeal. The two are authors of the formula retail ordinance, and believe that the company has acted in bad faith, not holding a hearing and muscling their way in through technicalities.
But they love our gentrification!
Andy Blue sends in the press release, describing the next steps to keep the shop out of the Mission. Full text after the jump:
JACK SPADE OPPONENTS RETURN FIGHT TO CITY HALL
WITH EXPANDING SUPPORT FROM POLS AND COMMUNITY GROUPSAuthor of formula retail ballot measure, Assemblymember Tom Ammiano:
“Jack Spade has operated in bad faith”Matt Gonzalez, Aaron Peskin; Supes Campos, Avalos,
and Mar support the appeal.SAN FRANCISCO –– Backed by the original drafters of San Francisco’s formula retail ordinance, the coalition fighting to stop designer menswear line, Jack Spade, from opening a new store in the Mission District, heads to City Hall this Wednesday, October 9 (City Hall, Room 416, 5:00pm) to request a rehearing before the Board of Appeals.
Authors of San Francisco formula retail ordinances, Assemblymember Tom Ammiano and former president of the Board of Supervisors, Matt Gonzalez, expressed unequivocal support for the appeal, writing that to allow Jack Spade to move in without first holding a public hearing would subvert the intent of the formula retail ordinance. “Measure G was intended to protect the community voice from being overshadowed by large corporate interests,” Ammiano writes in a letter of support. “Jack Spade has operated in bad faith by using store count technicalities to evade fair and transparent public processes.” (Read full letter, here: bit.ly/ammiano-letter)
The Valencia Corridor Merchants’ Association, the appellant in the case, argues that the Board of Appeals has a duty to adopt a holistic reading of the Planning Code, which would lead to Jack Spade being classified as formula retail. The result would be to subject Jack Spade to a public conditional use hearing before being granted building permits. (Read the VCMA’s brief, here: bit.ly/vcmabrief)
Jack Spade claims that because it is an “independent business” with only 10 stores, it should not have to seek approval from the community. The Planning Code defines formula retail as a business with 11 or more locations in the United States.
The Coalition maintains that Jack Spade is the same company as Kate Spade LLC, both of which share headquarters in New York; distribution software and distribution center in Ohio; IT, HR and legal departments; staff and payroll; and parent company, 5th & Pacific (formerly “Liz Claiborne”). According to 5th & Pacific’s public filings, Jack Spade is considered a sub-brand of Kate Spade, which itself has 94 locations in the U.S., clearly qualifying as formula retail. (Read more backstory, here: bit.ly/jackspadesf)
The appeal has received wide support from elected officials and community groups. In addition to Ammiano and Gonzalez, Former Board of Supervisors president, Aaron Peskin, and current Supervisors David Campos, John Avalos, and Eric Mar each added their own letter of support. Several community groups including Causa Justa :: Just Cause, PODER, the Mission Economic Development Agency (MEDA), and Calle 24 SF have also backed the appeal.
“Allowing Jack Spade to locate into the Mission District would damage the economic and social conditions in the neighborhood by . . . damaging the local small business community who would have to compete with a highly capitalized large-scale ‘national retailer,’” wrote Luis Granados, MEDA’s Executive Director. (Read full letter, here: bit.ly/meda-letter)
The appeal comes as the debate around displacement in the Mission is coming to a head. Next Saturday, Calle 24 SF and some 40 other community organizations are holding an anti-displacement rally and march with hundreds of participants expected. The event is titled Our Mission: No Eviction, with the slogan, “Stop urban deportation. Stop Jack Spade!” (http://tinyurl.com/calle24). According to the San Francisco Rent Board’s annual eviction report, city-wide evictions have risen by 26 percent compared to last year, while the number of Ellis Act evictions increased by 81 percent.
In late September, a standing-room only crowd discussed these trends in an event titled “Jack Spade, Gentrification, and the Mission: A Community Discussion for Action.” In coverage of the event, SFist referred to Jack Spade as “a galvanizing symbol of the latest phase in the Mission’s gentrification and potential loss of character.”
Seriously, people: move on. Jack Spade will affect you as much at Self Edge and Betabrand.
Oh, and ps: http://techcrunch.com/2013/05/01/philz-coffee-raises-eight-figure-round-from-summit-angels-as-specialty-coffee-market-heats-up/
As soon as Self Edge and Betabrand become international chains, you’ll have a great point. Until then, not so much.
The difference being?
The difference is that people don’t move to the Mission because they want to live in a mall. If they wanted that, they’d be living in Santana Row or something.
But hey, if someone has to explain the difference between chain stores and local stores, you’re probably not smart enough to understand.
Wrong. I moved to the Mission for convenience and for cycling, not for watching men urinate in front of Katz’s bagels and for crappy storefronts.
But hey, if you’re going to make up a reason to live in the Mission for all its inhabitants, you’re probably not smart enough to understand.
I moved to the Mission because it was obvious that real estate prices would soar. I’m just kicking myself for not buying more.
Ps. Both have “international” presences… Its called the INTERWEBS:
http://www.selfedge.com/shop/
http://www.philzcoffee.com/Online-Store
Mind blown yet?
So we’re cool with McDonald’s, Popeye’s Chicken, Pizza Hut, KFC, Taco Bell and Starbucks existing in the Mission, but not Jack Spade?
McDonalds’ market capitalization is 34 times higher than Fifth and Pacific’s (Jack Spade’s parent company).
Fucking corporate gentrifiers, right?
It feels weird that I have to keep replying to this same old response. Just because I am highlighting this business, a corporate high end retailer, which is replacing a neighborhood institution, a shop that really served the community, not just sucked its money, doesn’t mean that I love every other company in the neighborhood. I agree with HDPDV, it doesn’t seem like people actually believe these counter arguments. If Sunflower got priced out and some kind of upscale McDonald’s was coming in, and their corporate mouthpieces came here to talk about how much they loved the gentrification going on, and how much they loved the uniqueness of the community, with no awareness of the fact that their presence is eroding that same uniqueness, you bet I’d post about that.
I was specifically replying to MrEricSir’s distaste for international chains, but you make good points.
Fair enough.
Justin, your argument seems to boil down to “x is bad but we already have x, so we should have more of x.”
There’s no logic to that argument whatsoever.
Concur.
Don’t feed the troll. Obvious JohnnyL is just trying to get a response. No one could possibly be stupid/naive enough to believe the stuff he spouts.
I’m stating facts. You trolls are cherry picking bullshit in order to make a “case”.
Vote with your dollar. MOVE ON.
Uh-huh, SURE you are. Nice try, troll!
hey man, why don’t you move on from being offended by other people offended? what’s it to you?
I love that the most reasoned commenter around here is “troll”.
Johnny L, you can’t compare Philz Coffee’s presence in The Mission to Jack Spade’s. Philz didn’t move here, it started here. Big difference!
Keeping The Mission local is exactly what gives small merchants a chance to become successful, like Philz Coffee. God Bless um. I hope other great locally owned business’ like Therapy, Puerto Alegre, Tartine and Delfina can do the same. That is of course, if Olive Garden doesn’t come in and price them out of their space when the lease is up.
I bet the “Jack Off” businesses will discover that their landlords won’t renew their leases at any price. That’s what really happened with Adobe Books.
Heya! Good for Tom. Glad to see he is on the right side of this one.
Wow. So much anger and hatred. The owner(s) of the building on 16th are not local and are merely trying to maximize their investment return. Whether we agree with that component or not is not for us to decide. Sure we can debate our philosophies as to what we believe, but it is the free market that allows these rents to sky rocket. (Or, plummet if the economy ever reverses). It’s unfortunate that a small, local business had to lose their lease. But it looks like they have found a new home where they will thrive.
Should there be rent control on commercial spaces?
More importantly, at what point does a business become an evil empire?
As an example, Pet Food Express started in S.F. some 20 years ago with a single store. Hooray small, local business!!!! They are still local and they have grown successfully. Wildly successful. Time to hate, right? We applaud you small business…just don’t become too successful appears to be our motto here. Take all the risk, employee many people….just don’t make too much money. La Boulange year 2001, we love you. 2013…How dare you become successful; sell-outs!?
What anger and hatred are you seeing? And why isn’t it for us to decide how to react to decisions made in our community that affect us? I’m not saying that businesses can’t be successful. A lot of straw men in your argument, kind of sounds like you reacted before really thinking about what’s being said.
Errr, are you being intentionally obtuse? There’s lots of anger being vented. And you didn’t address the point of why Pet Food Express couldn’t get approval this summer for their latest store.
No, this conversation doesn’t seem particularly motivated by anger to me. If anything more from the leave-Jack-Spade-alone side, which seems to be the opposite of what JackuAround was saying.
I’m not sure why I need to weigh in on whatever happened with Pet Food Express, wasn’t that in the Marina? This post was specifically addressing the neighborhood and community of the Mission.
OMG EVERYTHING IS SO TERRIBLE NOW.
Good for Tom. Yes — this kind of store was exactly what his legislation sought to prevent. Represent.
Yay! Jack Spade gave up!
Hey JohnnyL, GET OVER THIS: http://missionlocal.org/2013/10/jake-spade-is-out/
*BOOM*
I love all these uber white hipsters defining what the mission is all about. The gentrifiers are safe from gentrification!
Hey I just moved here from “x small liberal arts college” and I want to defend the community – how can I help?
Easy. Get involved with neighborhood activist organizations. Just arrived? That’s fine. You’re still just as welcome to help protect the area from those that wish to destroy it.
sarcasm comprehension fail
Naw, I just decided to pretend like you weren’t a schmuck.
The mission is losing its soul bringing in a big box store what effect that would do. I go to the mission all I see is sameness, no culture to speak of. I am not against Jack because it is soulless already. Everything from diversity has been used up and thrown away to make way for google glass entitled techies who have priced out anyone who is not white and in tech. So what’s the problem hipsters vs hipsters. I all see is skinny jeans, coffee drinkers, chain smokers, burrito eating white people who claim to be cool, hip and all of that when plainly they are biggest users, discriminators, anti community and anti humanity. Jack is not the problem look in the mirror and you will find your problem.