The Facts

Grocery and pharmacy chains could move into former chain-store spaces without an extra planning approval under Supervisor Bilal Mahmood’s new permitting proposal, reports Alyce McFadden at the San Francisco Chronicle. It would also ease approvals for chains operating inside grocery stores, such as cafés and pharmacies, and give grocery stores and pharmacies priority processing at locations not previously occupied by chains. Mahmood expects to introduce legislation in the coming weeks; Supervisors Stephen Sherrill and Myrna Melgar have signed on as co-sponsors.

The Context

San Francisco’s “formula retail” rules require chain stores to get special permission in many neighborhoods, aiming to protect independent businesses and neighborhood character. But the law itself acknowledges that chains generally charge lower prices and that excessive restrictions can raise storefront vacancy rates.

In GrowSF’s February 2025 poll, 75% of voters favored allowing more chain stores or repealing the restrictions.

The GrowSF Take

Thank you to Mahmood, Sherrill, and Melgar for backing a practical way to fill empty stores. Protecting neighborhood character should not mean making residents travel farther for groceries and prescriptions. A chain replacing another chain should be routine, not a political negotiation. The Board should pass this reform.