The premier topic of business at this week’s “Board Day” was the 12-hour special joint session of the Board of Supervisors and the San Francisco County Transportation Authority, where legislation to continue the closure of parts of JFK Drive in Golden Gate Park to cars was passed by a vote of 7-4 after hearing nearly nine hours of public comment. 

The board moved on to its regular session at around 10 p.m. after a short break. They considered a number of other issues, including the purchase of a 200-unit building for use as permanent supportive housing. They also cleared the way for new affordable housing on Treasure Island, and the revival of the city's bathhouses.  

More Project Homekey Deals

The board approved another property purchase to add to the city’s portfolio of permanent supportive housing. The proposed site at 333 12th Street is the second project local developer Panoramic Interests has sold to the city under Project Homekey, which reimburses local governments for the purchase of residential hotels and apartment buildings for use as long-term housing for homeless individuals.  

• 333 12th St, also known as “City Gardens,” would also be one of the largest properties purchased by the city so far. The Granada Hotel, one of the first properties bought under Homekey, has more units, but City Gardens has larger multi-room units and is a larger property overall.
• The city has already purchased seven properties under the program, ranging from the Granada to smaller properties in the Mission. Following its purchase by Episcopal Community Services under the state program, longtime residents at the Granada Hotel raised alarms about safety and oversight at the property.
• The conversion of another Panoramic property at 1321 Mission, a 160-unit “microunit” project, had generated some neighborhood opposition. 

Affordable Housing on Treasure Island

The Board also approved development and loan agreements for a 138-unit affordable housing project on Treasure Island. 

• It’s the second affordable project approved for the man-made island, which is undergoing a comprehensive redevelopment to include 8,000 new homes, over 2,000 of which are planned to be affordable. 
• The development follows a 104-unit affordable project dedicated to housing formerly homeless veterans, which is being developed by Chinatown Community Development Center and Swords to Plowshares. That broke ground last year.
• The new project, helmed by Mercy Housing and Catholic Charities, will include units of varying size up to four bedrooms. 
• Some units will be reserved for current residents of interim supportive housing on the island, which would be replaced by this and other developments.  
• The loan agreement with Mercy Housing, for around $33.5 million, will have a minimum term of 57 years. 

Bathhouses to Return

The board also unanimously passed an ordinance adding the “Adult Sex Venue” permit category to the Planning Code. 

• Adult Sex Venues, where consensual sex can take place between customers, can now be permitted in certain commercial and mixed use districts.
• The ordinance will allow the return of businesses such as Eros, which is reopening at a site on Turk Street in the Transgender Cultural District in the Tenderloin.

Roll Call

• Due to the late hour most Supervisors expedited their Roll Call announcements, however Supervisor Gordon Mar announced an In Memoriam for Peter Keane—former chief assistant public defender, law professor and police and ethics commissioner—who passed away at 79.
• Supervisor Catherine Stefani requested a hearing to follow up on progress made in accessibility to the museums in Golden Gate Park under Car Free JFK, as part of an inquiry into the post-pandemic recovery of arts institutions in the City. 
• Supervisors also honored their favorite small businesses during roll call, as a more extended agenda item commemorating Small Business Week was skipped due to the late hour. Among those honored: Excelsior Coffee and AllStars Donuts. Hopefully they deliver.

Farewell Matt Haney

• Tonight was District 6 Supervisor Matt Haney’s last meeting. Elected to represent the 17th Assembly District, he is resigning from the board on May 3. Haney expressed appreciation to his constituents and staff and noted the “significant challenges” his successor faces. His colleagues took turns wishing him well in Sacramento. He also gave a shoutout to his longtime aide Honey Mahogany, hinting that “we will see more” of the likely District 6 hopeful. 
• District 5 Supervisor Dean Preston noted that due to redistricting, he will be representing many of Haney’s former constituents. 
• District 2 Supervisor Stefani commended Haney for his courteousness, “especially never subtweeting me,” despite being on the opposite side of many issues. 
• District 9 Supervisor Hillary Ronen admonished Haney that the housing policy approach he embraced in his Assembly campaign “doesn’t work in the Mission.”