CITIZENS ADVISORY COMMITTEE
OF THE SURPLUS CITY PROPERTY PROGRAM
CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO
___________________________________________________________
Meeting Minutes
for
Monday, October 17, 2005 at 4:00 PM
city hall
1 dr. carlton b. goodlett place, room 408
Present: Chair richard lee, Mr. Jay bradshaw, Mr. Bruce Engle, Ms. Jill Fox, Ms. lori bammerger (sitting in for Mr. Matthew O. Franklin), Sister bernie galvin, Ms. Ana B. Gutierrez, Mr. tomas lee, Mr. leroy moore, Jr.
Absent: Ms. Jamie Armstrong, Mr. Scott clark, Vice Chair James Reilly and Ms. Noelle Simmons
Staff: Ms. Teresa Yanga, Ms. Joan McNamara and Ms. Lynn Hua
1. Roll Call
Chair Lee called the meeting to order at 4:10 PM. Roll call was conducted and a quorum was recognized, with four members absent.
2. Approval of Minutes of Last Meeting
A motion to approve the August 15, 2005 meeting minutes was made by Mr. Bradshaw and seconded by Ms. Gutierrez. The committee unanimously approved the motion.
3. Director’s Report
Ms. Teresa Yanga, Senior Project Manager at the Mayor’s Office of Housing informed the committee that the Roosevelt Way parcel was approved in September by the Board of Supervisors to be transferred to the Recreation and Park Department. Ms. Yanga added that the Deputy City Attorney, Ms. Susan Cleveland-Knowles, has advised that the committee deferred from taking any action at the meeting due to the items being improperly agenized.
4. Consideration of Main Menu
(a) 150 Otis Street (Block 3513/Lot 007)
Mr. Jerry Romani, from the Department of Real Estate (DRE), presented to the committee an appraisal summary of 150 Otis Street. Mr. Romani explained that DRE contracted with an independent appraisal firm to prepare an appraisal for the subject parcel in its “As-Is” condition and “As-Proposed” condition. The appraised value for the “As-Is” condition came in at $2,200,000. The appraised value for the “As-Proposed” condition, which included the renovation of the first floor shelter, came in at $2,470,000. Mr. Romani stated that the Mayor’s Office of Housing (MOH) has determined that renovation of the property into housing for the homeless is financially imprudent and has requested that DRE sell the property.
Ms. Joan McNamara, Senior Project Manager at the Mayor’s Office of Housing, explained that Asian Neighborhood Design (AND) did a conceptual design for the building and came up with 64-66 units of studio living, with each unit being approximately 300-350 square feet. Based on the conceptual design from AND, MOH had a cost estimation done. The cost estimator gave a construction cost of approximately $10 million. When compared with four other similar projects in MOH’s current pipeline, the construction cost per sq. ft. and the total development cost per sq. ft. are higher for 150 Otis. Ms. McNamara added that the building has a number of limitations that make it a less efficient project. The footprint of the building cannot be changed due to its landmark status; therefore, flexibility on the building design is very limited. Currently, the building has two elevators that could make it accessible; however, the elevators are outdated and would need to be replaced, adding significant cost to the project. There are also the unknown factors that are associated with an adaptive rehabilitation. Based upon the high renovation cost, the limited availability of funding, the lack of flexibility in the design and the unknown factors in an adaptive rehabilitation, staff recommended that the property be sold.
Mr. Thomas Lee commented that the proposal for 150 Otis Street went before the Landmark Committee, but because of insufficient information and calls from the community, the Board of Supervisors decided to send it back to the Citizens’ Advisory Committee (CAC) for more information. Mr. Lee requested for additional information and justification as to why the property is financially imprudent.
Ms. Fox questioned the accuracy of the costs in the comparison chart. She recalled from the May 2005 meeting that there was a concern regarding the infrastructures in the basement that are shared with 170 Otis Street and inquired as to whether the issue has been resolved. Ms. McNamara responded that the switching room in the basement of 150 Otis cannot be moved. The appraised value of $2.2 million assumed that the switching room remained in the basement of 150 Otis and that there be an easement between the two buildings.
Sister Galvin commented that additional affordable housing sites are needed beside what is in the pipeline. She felt that the higher cost for 150 Otis is relatively small compare to the need for housing in the city.
Mr. Bradshaw felt that the construction cost is inaccurate and requested that more cost estimations be done, especially from non-profits that specialize in affordable housing development.
Ms. Gutierrez commented that she is opposed to selling the site because of the difficulty of acquiring sites in the city. She would like the building to be renovated into senior housing.
Sister Galvin wanted to explore other possibilities based on the concerns expressed by the community and committee members. She suggested that a Letter of Interest or Request for Qualifications be issued.
Public Comment
Mr. James Tracy, from Land and Liberty, commented that Bernal Heights Neighborhood Center and Home Build have both expressed an interest in the property. He suggested that a Request for Proposals or Qualifications be issued in order to explore other alternatives.
Mr. Randy Shaw, Director of Tenderloin Housing Clinic, commented that he has looked at the building and it has a sweeping view of the city on floors 4 to 9. The building would provide living conditions that exceed the quality of the vast majority of housing units for homeless. Mr. Shaw commented that AND’s conceptual design assumed 350 sq. ft. per unit when the vast majority of SRO’s in San Francisco are less than half that size. If the building was converted to 175 sq. ft. SRO units with kitchen on each floor, there would be a possibility of having 125 units. Mr. Shaw pointed out that there is no density limitation for 150 Otis. Other vacate sites in the South of Market area would have density limitation.
Ms. Charlotte Prozan, from Religious Witness, commented that a very high percentage of homeless people are Vietnam veterans and people from foster care. She urged the committee to use the building for housing.
Mr. Richard Magary, from the Buena Vista Neighborhood Association, commented that most of the properties on the list are not good and that there must be a lot of other underutilized city owed parcels that are not listed.
Ms. Barbara Blong, from the Senior Action Network, presented a letter and a proposed resolution from the Senior Action Network and the Senior Housing Action Committee for 150 Otis. Ms. Blong commented that there is a need for additional housing, especially since the shelters are closing.
Ms. Bianca Henry, from the Coalition on Homelessness, commented that additional housing in the city is needed and suggested that the site be used for seniors.
Mr. Sam Dodge, from the Central City SRO Collaborative, commented that even if 150 Otis was converted into SRO units, it would still be better than a shelter.
Ms. Aria Ertz, from the Homeless Children’s Network, commented that it is not just about the cost of converting the building into housing, but the need to address a social emergency.
Ms. Jean Matin commented that the property was known as the Otis Street Hotel when it was operated as a Juvenile Detention facility. She would like to see it be converted into affordable housing and not be sold.
Public Comment Closed
Mr. Tomas Lee commented that a RFP or RFQ should be issued so that non-profit organizations could respond. The property is owed by the city and every effort to secure the building for affordable housing should be explored. The site should not be sold just based on financial cost since it is such a perfect site.
Mr. Bradshaw and Ms. Gutierrez commented that they would like to see the appraisal report.
Mr. Moore commented that he would like to hear from BHNC and Home Build before a decision is made.
Ms. Fox inquired if it would be possible to issue an informal Letter of Interest. Mr. David Curto, Director of Contracts from the Department of Human Services, responded that a solicitation of interest could be done. It could be advertised and results could be obtained in approximately two weeks. Mr. Curto wanted to point out that if the property was sold, the city would have to repay the $500,000 grant in state funds.
Ms. Fox moved that the committee request that the Mayor’s Office of Housing work with the Department of Human Services in a timely manner to solicit Letter of Interests for the development of 150 Otis Street that meet the criteria of the Surplus City Property Program and to draft a letter to the Board of Supervisors requesting that they delay consideration of granting landmark status for the property until the Citizens’ Advisory Committee has made a decision. The motion was seconded by Mr. Tomas Lee and unanimously approved.
5. Committee Members’ Questions and Matters
None
6. Public Comment
Mr. Richard Magary thanked the committee for their work. He wanted to insure the committee that the neighborhood is committed to maintaining the Roosevelt site.
Public Comment Closed
7. The meeting was adjourned at 6:00 PM.