November 2017 — In a major victory for the rights of landowners to due process of law, the Land Use team at MEO successfully persuaded the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to rescind a 2015 tax sale of the street, sidewalks, and green space in the Presidio Terrace neighborhood — likely the first time in San Francisco history that the Board has done so. The San Francisco Tax Collector had allowed the private street to be sold at auction after claiming that the homeowners had failed to pay property taxes assessed on the street, when in fact, the notices sent by the Tax Collector to the homeowners had been repeatedly returned as undeliverable. Attorney Scott Emblidge persuaded a majority of the Supervisors that the Tax Collector violated the due process rights of the homeowners and their association by selling the property at auction without first making a proper attempt to notify them of the sale.
Read more
- “SF votes to return street to wealthy Presidio Terrace homeowners,” San Francisco Examiner, Nov. 28, 2017
- “San Francisco Board of Supervisors vote to give Presidio Terrace street back to homeowners,” San Francisco Business Times, Nov. 29, 2017
- “SF supes reverse sale, return private Presidio Terrace street to homeowners,” SFGate.com, Nov. 29, 2017