Get a Shared Spaces permit for your sidewalk or parking lane

Follow our instructions to take pictures of your site from specific angles. 

Take pictures of your Shared Space

You must have enough insurance for this program. 

You must prove you have liability insurance and workers compensation insurance. Your policies must meet these requirements.

You must have and keep commercial general liability insurance with at least $1 million in coverage per Occurrence and $2 million aggregate. It must include the City and County of San Francisco, Its Officers, Employees, and Agents as additional insured or a blanket endorsement.

You must have and keep workers compensation insurance in statutory amounts with at least $1 million in Employer’s Liability insurance coverage and a waiver of subrogation. It must include a blanket waiver or one in favor of the City and County of San Francisco, Its Officers, Employees, and Agents.

Here’s an example of a certificate of insurance (COI) form.

Get a copy of your insurance document. You will upload it with your application.  

For sidewalk use, you must get your neighbor’s permission to use any of their sidewalk. 

For parking lane use, you must get your neighbor’s permission for more than half of a neighbor’s marked parking space and any encroachment into an unmarked parking space.

If you intend to operate on or after April 1, 2023, we will require neighbor consent with your application. If you only want to operate until March 31, 2023, you can submit an application without neighbor consent.

When you apply, you must upload your Certificate of Insurance (COI).

If you have them now, you can upload your:

• Completed site plan and checklistt
• Signed neighbor permission (if you are using their space)

See application worksheet here.

Gather all the details for your application and apply.  

We will email you if you need to make changes to the site plan you submitted with your application.

If you do, you will have to make the changes and submit updated plans.

We will let you know if you need to make modifications to your structure. Do not make structural changes to your Shared Space unless instructed by the Shared Spaces permitting team.

Once your site plan and your application are complete and approved, the Shared Spaces team will: 

1. Conduct a preliminary inspection of your Shared Space and post a 10-Day Public Notice at the site.  

2. After the 10-Day Public Notification period has passed, your permit will be conditionally approved, and you will be given time to make modifications to your existing structure or install a new structure that matches the accepted site plan as well as the requirements and design guidelines in the Shared Spaces Manual. 

3. After construction and/or remodel is complete, you must follow up with Department of Public Works (sharedspacespermit@sfdpw.org) to schedule a final site visit to verify that your Shared Space is compliant. 

We will email you your permit as a PDF document. 

You must print and display your permit in your storefront window.