Committee hears multi-agency update on 2020 Health & Recovery bond: parks, housing and public-health projects

Recreation & Parks, the Department of Public Health (DPH) and the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing (HSH) gave the committee a joint update on projects funded by the 2020 Health & Recovery general-obligation bond, describing construction milestones, sources of supplemental funding, and the schedule for the next bond issuance.

Stacy Bradley, capital and planning director for Recreation & Parks, said the department has sold two issuances and is preparing for a third. Recreation & Parks reported $73.5 million expended from the 2020 bond to date, encumbrances and allocations for named projects, and roughly $92.4 million allocated but not yet encumbered (June 2025 snapshot). Bradley described major parks projects and their funding mixes: India Basin (total project budget expanded from $200 million to $225 million; bond allocation $40.8 million and additional philanthropic and grant seeking underway), Buchanan Street Mall (major construction underway), Jean Friend (in construction following structural design changes), Herz Recreation Center (near completion), and Portsmouth Square (bids rejected as too high; redesign underway to reduce cost by roughly 10%). Bradley said the department is using a combination of bond funds, development impact fees, state grants and philanthropy to complete projects.

DPH capital staff reported allocations totaling $60 million from the 2020 bond for psychiatric emergency services at Zuckerberg San Francisco General (ZSFG) and expanded behavioral-health services. Isabella Choa said the Treasure Island residential step-down facility is budgeted at about $47.1 million in bond funds augmented by a state Homekey Community Care Expansion grant and Treasure Island development-impact fees; construction-permit work is underway with a planned April 2026 start of construction. Choa also described a behavioral-health “Health Recovery and Connection Center” with multiple co-located clinical services at 1660 Mission Street, citing multiple funding sources (Prop C, state grant, DPH capital funds) and a total budget of about $33.4 million for that component.

HSH Finance Director Lisa Agustin outlined planned uses for the bond’s $147 million allocation for permanent supportive housing and shelter projects. HSH plans a third issuance this fall and intends to use bond proceeds alongside state Homekey grants to acquire and convert properties to permanent supportive housing. Agustin described four projects expected to be funded with the second issuance and related Homekey Plus grant applications: 835 Turk (target rehabilitation to create about 106 PSH units), 685 Ellis (conversion from temporary shelter to about 78 PSH units), a planned veteran-focused conversion (estimated total cost $43.3 million, with bond funding contributing $5.9 million), and 1633 Valencia (a senior PSH development of 145 studios, with $41 million of bond proceeds previously authorized). Agustin told the committee that operating and supportive-service funding for PSH will come from other local and federal sources; the bond pays capital costs only.

Committee members asked about grant timelines for Homekey Plus awards and about the extent to which bond dollars are matched by grant and philanthropic sources. Staff said Homekey Plus decisions were pending and that the department’s grant teams and partnership staff are actively pursuing state and philanthropic sources to stretch bond dollars further.

Ending: Staff said the next issuance schedule depends on pending Homekey Plus determinations and that Recreation & Parks will continue to seek grants and philanthropy to cover rising construction costs and preserve bond capacity for additional projects.