After years of public meetings, the City of San Francisco announced the winning bid to develop the Balboa Reservoir into mixed-income housing! The process, led by the Office of Economic and Workforce Development, the Planning Department, and the Public Utilities Commission, narrowed the applicants to three finalist during the summer, and picked a winning team of AvalonBay Communities, BRIDGE Housing, Mission Housing, Pacific Union Development Company, and Habitat for Humanity of Greater San Francisco. From the June analysis of their proposal:
It includes up to 1,100 homes, half of them subsidized for low- and middle-income residents, plus a mix of rental and for-sale units. Since the site is currently used as CCSF parking, their proposal calls for upwards of 1,260 parking spots, 500 of which would be shared with the school. The site also includes 4.2 acres of open space and a child care center.
While we are thrilled the winning team features so many SFHAC members, there’s still a lot of work ahead. There will be continued Community Advisory Committee (CAC) meetings to work through the design, environmental review, and other modifications before the project is approved. Furthermore, SFHAC staff feels that the 1,100 proposed homes does not come close to meeting the need. Considering the transit rich site, plus access to the Ocean Blvd. commercial corridor, we’re calling for the team to increase the proposal to at least 2,500 homes, 50% of which will be permanently subsidized affordable to low- and middle-income San Franciscans.
Further, we look forward to a City-wide conversation about the best use of this site. Since the site is owned by SFPUC and so integrated with the City College of San Francisco, we all have an equal voice in determining the future of Balboa Reservoir. Outside of a CAC meeting on October 2nd, we’re awaiting a date for a meeting downtown that will be more accessible to all City residents. Once those details are finalized, we’ll share the meeting information.
Image: Socketsite
