Votes at a glance: San Francisco supervisors approve Treasure Island financing, port leases, grants and contracts

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors on Dec. 10 approved a broad set of ordinances, resolutions and motions spanning port leases, Treasure Island infrastructure financing, retroactive grant acceptances for public health and shelter services, and contracts for city services.

Major items and outcomes

- Port and Waterfront Leases (Items 1618): The board approved three measures offered by the Port Commission. The package included an amendment to the business and tax regulations code to exempt certain Port Commission leases from real property transfer taxes (effective 11/01/2024 through 12/31/2034), authorization of a new 57-year lease for Waterfront Plaza with an initial annual base rent of $1,000,000, and a resolution endorsing a term sheet for the proposed lease and development of Pier 45 and related seawall lots. Vote: unanimous (10-0); ordinances passed, resolutions adopted.

- Treasure Island financing and capital plan amendments (Items 1923): The board took action on five items to support Treasure Island Stage 2 infrastructure financing including authorization to issue certificates of participation (COPs) in an amount evidenced at $65,000,000 for Stage 2, appropriation of approximately $65,500,000 to the Treasure Island Development Authority (including COP proceeds and other local sources), and related resolutions confirming district debt structures and revisions to the 10-year capital plan (FY2024'33), including changes to project timing and funding levels. Vote: taken without public speakers; ordinances passed on first reading and resolutions adopted.

- Department of Public Health and Grants (Items 3336; 2528; 31): Resolutions accepting or authorizing retroactive grants and gift agreements were adopted for the Department of Public Health and for homelessness and sheltering contracts: these included a $180,000 grant for hospital programs, a $1,000,000 HRSA construction grant, in-kind COVID-19 test-kit donations, continuation of Ryan White Program funding (approx. $15.7M request), and a sole-source contract to administer the Child Care Facilities Fund (approx. $67.7M over two years). Related homelessness and shelter grant amendments were adopted to extend or increase agreements with HomeRise, Saint Vincent de Paul, Compass Family Services and others. Vote: taken same-house, same-call; resolutions adopted.

- District Attorney grant (Item 24): The board approved a retroactive acceptance and expenditure of a $1,200,000 grant from the California Department of Insurance to fund an organized automobile fraud interdiction program and to add one grant-funded investigator position through 06/30/2027. Vote: passed on first reading (same-house, same-call).

- City-wide contracts and term extensions (Items 43, 44): The board approved a 7-year refuse collection and disposal services contract for city facilities with Recology subsidiaries (total contract amount $119,000,000 for up to 10 years) and approved a six-year option to extend contract administration services with Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC for budget and legislative analyst services. Vote: same-house, same-call; resolutions adopted and motion approved.

- Potrero Yard Modernization (Item 40): The board endorsed an infrastructure agreement for the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency Potrero Yard Modernization Project that included milestone and availability payments, a relocation payment and anticipated an initial milestone payment at financial close. Vote: resolution adopted (same-house, same-call).

- Ordinances and technical code updates (Items 5860, 6264): The board passed on first reading multiple planning and administrative code updates including (a) minimum residential density requirements in select districts, (b) typographical corrections and non-substantive planning code updates, and (c) designation of the Ladies Protection and Relief Society at 3400 Laguna Street as a landmark, among other code housekeeping measures. Vote: passed on first reading (same-house, same-call).

Items sent back or referred

- Embarcadero Plaza / Sue Bierman Park agreement (Item 32): Supervisor Chan asked that the item be referred back to committee to allow the Citys capital plan update and public financing questions to be considered alongside the proposed public-private grants and a potential $15$20 million public capital ask. The board re-referred the item to committee.

Notable roll-call detail

- Settlement ordinance for item 15 (Wiles and Sandberg claim): The board approved settlement terms by roll call (7 ayes, 3 noes); supervisors Walton, Peskin and Preston voted no on that ordinance (recorded in the minutes as item 15 roll-call).

What to watch next

- Treasure Island stage 2 financing actions will require Controller and trustee documents and future reporting on issuance and use of COP proceeds. - The re-referral of Embarcadero Plaza/Sue Bierman Park work back to committee places the project in the capital-planning timeline to be considered with the citys updated 10-year capital plan.

Speakers quoted in debate

Supervisor Matt Dorsey, Supervisor Aaron Peskin and Supervisor Connie Chan spoke at various points about housing, capital planning and community impacts; Supervisor Chan specifically asked the Embarcadero grant be reviewed as part of the capital plan update. "I would like to send this back to a committee," Chan said when the item was called, and the board complied.

Article note: Items listed above are a subset of the meetings consent and non-consent calendar; the full agenda contained additional unanimous consent votes and first-read ordinances recorded in the clerks minutes.