For nearly two decades, San Franciscans have been sold a pipe dream about Parkmerced. The 3,221-unit development, hastily built in the aftermath of World War II, spans some 152 acres of the west side, adjacent to San Francisco State University, the Stonestown Galleria, and some of the country’s best golf courses.
Since 2005, a New York-based developer by the name of Robert Rosania has been promising to supercharge the city’s largest housing complex into a “vibrant, pedestrian-focused” neighborhood.
His vision was to capitalize on San Francisco’s growth potential by building approximately 10,000 homes and a string of neighborhood amenities, including a retail corridor, parks, and stops on the Muni M line, which connects southwest neighborhoods to downtown.
But 14 years after his redevelopment proposal was greenlit by the city, Rosania and his investors have yet to break ground.
During that time, he has broken up with the company with which he embarked on the project, Stellar Management, and launched his own, Maximus Real Estate Partners. He has nearly defaulted on the mortgage twice. And he watched as first the Great Recession crippled the investment market, then as the pandemic struck.
Last month came what is likely a double death knell. Lenders petitioned the courts to put Parkmerced under receivership, stripping Maxmius of control, and weeks later, the company and Rosania were named in a sexual harassment lawsuit.
Here is a rundown of how a billion-dollar housing development comes undone.
Timeline
2005: Rosania, principal at New York-based Stellar Management, acquires a controlling interest in the Parkmerced property alongside Boston-based Rockpoint Group, with plans to revive the aging development. The deal reportedly values the complex at $700 million.
2010: The ownership group announces it is in danger of defaulting on a $500 million mortgage but still plans to move forward with a multidecade expansion project that would triple the amount of housing at the site while delivering new retail and offices and public infrastructure improvements.
“If worse came to worst and they could not continue with the project, the development agreement only adds value to the property,” Michael Yarne, former development adviser in the Office of Economic and Workforce Development, tells the Chronicle.
2011: The redevelopment is entitled after the Board of Supervisors approves the multidecade plan in a 6-5 vote. The controversial proposal includes replacing 1,500 rent-controlled townhomes with 7,200 “energy-efficient” units over 20 to 30 years.
2012: Rosania leaves Stellar to form Maximus Real Estate. In a lawsuit filed in New York, which reached the county’s Supreme Court, Rosania claims he was ousted from the firm by his longtime mentor and partner, Laurence Gluck. In a court filing, Gluck (who died in 2024) responds that Rosania made a deal to refinance Parkmerced without his knowledge.
2013: While the group is still facing legal challenges related to Parkmerced, Maximus pitches a luxury development near the 16th St. BART station that critics dub the “Monster in the Mission.”
2014: Maximus refinances the troubled loan, bringing in a group of investors led by New York-based 601 W Co. to buy out control from Rockpoint and Fortress Investment Group, valuing the property at more than $1.35 billion.
Rosania is retained as owner and managing partner. A San Francisco judge dismisses an environmental lawsuit challenging the development’s sustainability goals.
2015: The city Planning Department approves Phase 1 of the project, which covers primarily residential development on the western portion of the site. Construction of this portion, with approximately 1,668 units, is scheduled to start in 2016 and be completed by 2022.
2017: The below-market requirement of the first phase is approved by the Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development. Despite the approvals, construction never begins.
2019: Maximus refinances its Parkmerced debt again, this time for $1.8 billion from Barclays, Citigroup, and Aimco. The loan has a maturity date of December 2024. Around this time, Maximus earns approval for a 697-unit project in San Leandro at 899 Alvarado St.
Construction is supposed to start in the spring/summer of 2020.
Meanwhile, Maximus pulls the plug on its Mission project in February. A month later, the Covid-19 pandemic shuts down San Francisco.
2023: Aimco sells 20% of its loan mezzanine position in Parkmerced for $33.5 million, giving the unnamed purchaser an option to acquire the remaining amount for $134 million.
In the thick of the pandemic, Parkmerced’s vacancy rates reportedly approach 30%. Complaints continue to pile up at the Department of Building Inspection, reporting mold, squatters, and deferred maintenance.
2024: Maximus requests in April that its $1.5 billion CMBS loan enter special servicing, a process in which an intermediary is brought in to help renegotiate terms. Credit rating agency Morningstar reports that the property is about 83% occupied, with cash flow “well below” the point needed to cover its existing debt payments.
The city’s Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing provides vouchers for portions of the complex to be leased out to needy residents.
The effort to refinance the loan falls apart in December after months of negotiations, according to the San Francisco Business Times.
2025: In March, a San Francisco judge grants lenders’ request to place Parkmerced under receivership, putting San Diego-based Douglas Wilson Co. in charge of the property. Although Maximus can still technically work out a deal to keep control of Parkmerced, experts say it is highly unlikely.
On March 24, Rosania’s personal assistant, Richaele Affannato, sues him and the company in San Francisco Superior Court for sexual harassment, retaliation, wrongful termination, and failure to pay all wages due.
Among the allegations, Affannato says she was required to buy male performance-enhancement pills and that Rosania left pornography showing on a television at his San Francisco apartment when she was required to be present. Additionally, she said he showed a female receptionist a bag of dildos.
Rosania and Maximus have not responded to the lawsuit and did not respond to a request for comment.