The San Francisco planning commission voted 4-3 today to approve an infamous Mission landlord’s proposal to open his own bar in the space previously occupied by Uptown, a 39-year neighborhood dive bar that closed in January.
Kaushik Dattani, the owner of the building at 17th and Capp streets, appeared at City Hall on Thursday to defend his plans for his new bar, which will be named Kiitos. At his side stood Kevin Ortiz, who took a leave of absence from his position as co-president of the Latinx Democratic Club in July following allegations of sexual assault, but holds down a day job consulting for local businesses. Ortiz said he was there as Dattani’s strategic services consultant.
Because Uptown was designated a legacy business, a change in ownership requires authorization from the planning commission. In its recommendation, the planning department noted that, although there will no longer be a legacy business at the site, the new bar would continue to serve as a community gathering spot.
Ortiz spoke quickly as he addressed the commission, flipping through dense PowerPoint slides of information about the new proposal. He said that, as mandated by the planning department, the landlord had conducted the necessary “community outreach” to garner support for the project. He did not elaborate on what this entailed during his five minute presentation, but said they’d received over 70 letters of support. On June 19, Mission Local reported that about 40 people confronted Dattani about his ability to operate a bar in a neighborhood where he has evicted dozens of tenants.
For his part, Dattani asked the commission not to consider landlord-tenant disputes when coming to a decision, saying he wished to be seen merely as a business owner. This elicited mutters from the back of the room.
All seven commissioners expressed moral qualms about Dattani’s business practices. Ultimately, though, the four in favor of the proposal explained that they could not find a legal opposition to the plan.
“It’s a matter of the use, not the user,” commissioner Theresa Imperial said.
Meanwhile, Gilbert Williams, one of the three commissioners who voted against the proposal, expressed concern about gentrification and displacement in the Mission, calling for stronger protections of legacy businesses.
In the audience were supporters of both Dattani and Uptown, including the legacy bar’s former owners. The owners have blamed the landlord for their business’ closure, saying they were charged rent “at least 80 percent above fair market” from 2019 to 2024. Mission Local previously reported that the owners said they were charged between $9,500 and $10,700 a month.
Nine neighbors and former Uptown staff waited almost four hours to speak in opposition of Dattani’s plans. They each filled their allotted three minutes for comment with emotional statements, describing Dattani’s troubled history as a “gentrifier” in the Mission.
“The landlord, Mr. Dattani, is renowned for being greedy and the opposite of community-minded,” said Barbara Attard, a policing expert and regular at Uptown.
“We did not willingly leave,” one of Uptown’s owners, Shae Green, said. “We were faced with an impossible lease.”
“A vote in favor of this conditional use authorization is actually a vote for Mr. Dattani’s unscrupulous business practices, and it’s a vote against legacy businesses,” added Green, her voice shaking with emotion.
Dattani’s supporters, meanwhile, were conducted into the hearing room by the landlord and Ortiz when their agenda item was due. They were directed to join the line of commenters. Some looked to Ortiz for approval before and after they spoke. One, Michael Rouppet, told Mission Local that he had no affiliation with Dattani’s project and was just there as a “community member.” Rouppet, a vice president of the Latinx Democratic Club, later left with Dattani and Ortiz.
Unlike Uptown’s supporters, Dattani’s backers kept their comments brief and dispassionate.
Louise Dawson, who said she’d worked in real estate with Dattani for almost two decades, told the commission that the landlord “goes over and above for a lot of his tenants.”
“They have … an emotional attachment to the place,” said the owner of Yasmin, a Mediterranean eatery at 799 Valencia St., referring to Uptown’s supporters. “But sometimes, you just got to move on.”
Others, who identified themselves as community members, read statements saying that Kiitos would help “bring some vibrancy back to the neighborhood” and be especially positive for the Latinx community. Dattani’s lawyer also spoke, stressing that a tenant dispute should not be considered by the commission.
When Marty Sargeant, a former Uptown regular who suffers from multiple sclerosis and uses a mobility device, had difficulty navigating away from the podium, Dattani shuffled over to help. “You’ve done enough,” Sergeant responded bitterly.
Before voting against Dattani’s proposal, Commissioner Kathrin Moore shared an anecdote about an old cafe she’d loved as “food for thought:” The popular cafe, like Uptown, had been replaced by another cafe under different owners. Its replacement never succeeded.
“The bar will open,” commissioner Derek Braun, who voted in favor, concluded. The community will “choose whether they go to that bar or not.”
After the decision, Jessica Gensley, another one of Uptown’s owners, sat crying in the back of the room. At least they’d won a “moral victory,” said community member Deanna McDougall, sitting besides her, consoling.
The greedy landlord evicts a legacy business and uses a local political leader/sexual assaulter turned consultant, who also uses his bro to garner “community support” for the project. This is quite the article.
Incredibly sad. May his business fail miserably. I’m so sorry for the community loss and for the way that money always wins over what is right and just. Another shining example of someone who deserves what karma has coming to him. I pray for many cockroaches and rats in your establishment.
Picture the kind of bar this guy will open. Can you imagine anyone in the neighborhood going there? Give him enough rope, and he’ll hang himself. Uptown owners/employees should look forward to the coming schadenfreude.
Always keepin’ it classy, Kevin, repping for the evictors.
So the verbally abusive, misogynist Kevin Ortiz now sides with landlords? Wow. He actually is on par with Jon Jacobo now. And still manipulating puppets in the Latino Democratic Club. Let’s be real, Michael Rouppet was not just there as a community member.
Benny,
I’ll still give Jacobo the benefit of the doubt and wait to see how the evidence comes before the judge. Had the preliminary on my calendar for Sept. 18 and it was heard on 9th and apparently no news outlet covered it.
I participated in a D-9 Candidates Forum sponsored by Latinx and it was well attended by righteous people and all of the candidates except Chandler who knows he won’t get any Latino support anyway.showed up.
Don’t condemn an entire organization over a few bad apples.
Great photo.
Reminds me of a song …
“Friend of the Devil is a Friend of mine.”
Forget who write it but I’m still shaking my head.
What an astounding and ironic career move for Ortiz.
I wonder if another of his clients is Lou Cipher ?
lol
h.
Since when did Kevin Ortiz start stumping for toxic and greedy landlords? This goes against everything he has fought for in the past, so it’s hilarious that he’s now working with/for someone who doesn’t value the D9 community. It’s bad enough that he’s facing allegations for sexual harassment, and it’s cast a bad light on SF Latino Demoratic Club. But now this? Kevin has now joined the ranks of John Jacobo and John Mendoza in sleazy Latino “community leaders”, who have allowed toxic mindsets and bad decisions to permanently stain their record in community organizing.
Another Mission joint to boycott (like Manny’s).
I am concerned with previous projects of Mr. Dattani and if this was a residential issue, I would not be representing Mr. Dattani. However, after thoroughly vetting this project, it’s clear there is a lot of misinformation about 200 Capp Street.I would be happy to represent the Uptown (free of charge) if they were looking to reopen.
Correcting the record: 1. There was a year-long attempt to renegotiate the lease, with Uptown hiring their own realtor Greg Koffman to do market comps to the space, and who offered (on behalf of Uptown) a rent offer of $7,775, the same rent they were paying in 2014. This was agreed to by Dattani and a month before lease expiration, it was not ultimately signed by the Uptown. The Uptown was not evicted, but rather chose not to sign the lease, despite a 30% rent reduction offer from their current rent. 2. Dattani reached out and wanted to keep the Uptown there. The Uptown partners allege that there was a provision to take their liquor license, the provision was a standard provision in all commercial leases that in the event Uptown left, the current license would stay at the location and the business would be compensated at either fair market value or a new license would be obtained at the landlords expense.
3. Uptown received substantial financial support during the COVID-19 pandemic, including grants, EIDL loans totaling $266,128, and a COVID-related loss of income insurance claim of $24,210.This totals $290,338. – The Uptown has no intention of returning to operating a bar. The majority of their officers are selling their shares, as well as the Uptown’s trademark and copyright.
Kevin
This is a one sided view of the facts. Uptown would not sign the lease for a number of poison pills inserted into it including a provision that we expend resources to improve the building not the Business the building that he owns without offering an option that would have given time to recover investments. The narrative that we received so much money to help the business does not take into account that we paid over $400,000 in rent to the landlord during this lease that took place during the pandemic when we were first required to close and then reopen to a smaller capacity. Tying the license to the address would have meant that we no matter what would be permanently in negotiations with this horrible person. The uptown will be reborn in a new location with folks that had worked or had been long term patrons of uptown. The new group will not be saddled by this man is the bright spot. And you are being fairly judged by the company you keep. There was no sale of shares. There has never been a payment to owners of the bar at anytime. All partners will leave without having recovered their original investments. While this landlord gets the benefit of whatever muscle memory exists for a bar on 17th and Capp.
The Uptown was given rent forgiveness at the beginning of the pandemic and then rent deferrals before rent was paid back, making everyone even. Additionally, three of the Uptown’s managing partners were taking officers salaries in addition to their full time legal salaries, and then charging the Uptown LLC for their legal costs during the negotiations . Double dipping. The Uptown was asked to make cosmetic improvements to the ground floor space, and that’s common, as tenant improvements fall to the tenant’s responsibility , not the landlord.It’s too bad I wasn’t able to get to the pictures of the space prior to the 50k in cosmetic improvements that have now been made, because the Uptown would likely not have passed a health or DBI inspection. But its disingenuous to say the Uptown was evicted, that’s factually not true. Dattani even offered to buy the Uptown’s liquor license when the Uptown declined to sign to a new lease, and then bought his own license from the market at a value of 225k. Uptown is now forced to sell their liquor license without a location (which our team offered available locations for Uptown to relocate) at a value of 130k -150k, because of the hostility. This all could have been avoided, and it’s bad business acumen, all because of ego and personality, where everyone has lost money. As for relocation, my offer to help the Uptown free of charge still stands.
“Serial evictor” …. Does Mission Local use the term serial vagrant or serial drug addict or serial welfare recipient? Your bias is monstrous…
They’re evicting businesses Einstein.