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Mayor Edwin Lee highlights housing investments, navigation center and $310 million bond in remarks
Summary
Mayor Edwin Lee told the Board of Supervisors the city is pursuing a large package of housing investments including RAD public-housing revitalization, a $310 million housing bond that he said will not raise property taxes, and an expansion of the Navigation Center model for homelessness.
Mayor Edwin Lee used opening remarks to highlight the city's housing and homelessness efforts, describing federally supported renovation plans for public housing, a proposed $310 million housing bond to send to voters, and the expansion of a Navigation Center model that he said is helping people off the streets.
Lee told the Board that the city is proceeding with a Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) approach to transform multiple public-housing sites, including work on the Robert B. Pitts Apartments, and that Phase 1 would span about 15 housing sites with nearly $700 million in investment. "We are doing this without displacing any tenants," the mayor said, characterizing the RAD work as enabling capital improvements that would otherwise take decades.
The mayor said the administration is sending a $310 million housing bond to voters that, he said, "won't raise property taxes" and will fund rebuilding public housing, building new affordable units, and provide assistance for middle-class housing. He reiterated the city's target of building or rehabbing 30,000 housing units by 2020, with roughly one-third permanently affordable.
On homelessness, Lee described the Navigation Center approach as a "compassionate, comprehensive" model that he said reduces hospital stays and jail time while connecting people to services. He said the first six months of the Navigation Center helped about 210 people off the streets and announced the Navigation Partnerships Fund to match philanthropic donations to expand the model.
Lee framed the investments as part of a national-model approach and emphasized partnerships with federal leaders, philanthropy, and local agencies. He credited a recent visit by HUD Secretary Julian Castro to review the city's plans.
The mayor's remarks were delivered in a five-minute special-order forum with supervisors and preceded a question from Supervisor Malia Cohen focused on racial disparities in outcomes. Lee responded in the forum with policy framing about jobs, training, public-safety recruitment, and programs intended to close equity gaps alongside the housing efforts.
