SAVE THE DOGGIE!
Chronicle:
Ken Garcia:
Examiner:
Andrea Woo 10/15/99
Carousel Diner:
Official Hearing Notices"
SF Independent:
Friday, October 15, 1999 * SAN FRANCISCO EXAMINER
S.F. panel makes sure Doggie Diner has its day
After much debate, planners reject idea to declare sign historical landmark
By Andrea Woo
OF THE EXAMiNER STAFF
Planning Commissioner Dennis Antenore recalled driving on the Bay Bridge one day when a pickup truck drove by with the famed Doggie Diner head in the back. All the motorists around him, he said, cheered and honked.
On Thursday, Antenore supported a plea to the commission from the Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board to make the famous brown dog head in the chefs hat a landmark, But he was in the minority.
By a vote of 4-2, the Planning Commission rejected the idea,
"I'm for the dog," said Anita Theoharis, president of the Planning Commission. "There's no question this dog is loved by many people in The City. However, land- marking this signage... would set a very dangerous and bad precedence for this city."
Once the symbol of the Doggie Diner, a chain of 30 fast-food restaurants in the Bay Area, the last remaining sign exists on 2750 Sloat Blvd., although the location has not been Doggie Diner since 1986. In July, the dog sign was recommended by the Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board to be designated a landmark. Such a designation would have prevented the Sloat Garden Center, the current owners of the property, to bulldoze the area and remove the treasured doggie.
But Beverly Mills, vice president of the Planning Commission, said, "It is an enormous stretch to say (the sign) meets any of the requests for land marking. Land- marking is an extraordinary act for
highly significant structures. There are many options for the Doggie Diner sign.... Land marking is an absolutely inappropriate tool if we have any respect for the process." During the discussion, Commissioner Hector Chinchilla wanted to know when the line would be drawn on calling signs landmarks. He urged the Landmark Commission to take a closer look at the issue.Commissioner Linda Richard son was concerned about the legal implications of leaving the Doggie Diner sign at a site where the Doggie Diner no longer exists. Representatives from Baker and McKenzie, the law firm representing Sloat Garden Center, raised the possibility of trademark infringement if the sign is land marked.
The Planning Commission's decision comes after months of work by the Planning Department to keep the sign on the Sloat Boulevard location. Planner Adam Light said the amount of support for the sign has been overwhelming, including 7,000 signatures and numerous phone calls.
Commissioners Cynthia Joe and Antenore believed the sign should remain where it is.
"(Land marking the sign) is not silly," Antenore said. "It's plain, ordinary fun. When it comes to historical objects, we don't have to have something weighty and significant ... San Francisco is a fun place, and this is a symbol of some thing in the past that has been a lot of fun and continues to be a lot of fun."
