Board advances Pier 70 special tax districts despite public concerns over coal‑tar contamination

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors on Jan. 14 advanced multiple resolutions to form Community Facilities Districts (CFDs) to finance infrastructure, shoreline resiliency and arts space at the Pier 70 redevelopment, while members of the public urged the board to investigate extensive contamination tied to past industrial uses.

The board convened as a committee of the whole for two related hearings: one for a Condominium CFD (Pier 70 Condominiums) and another for a CFD covering leased properties. Staff from the Port presented the project scope — a multi‑phase, 35‑acre site in District 10 with an entitlement that anticipates 1,600 to 3,000 residential units at full buildout, commercial space and nine acres of open space — and described financing through developer and port capital to be reimbursed later via special tax revenues and bonds.

The board approved resolutions of formation and resolutions calling a special landowner election for the condominium CFD (items 25 through 27) and for the leased‑properties CFD (items 32 through 34). The two sets of formation proceedings were adopted on votes recorded in the transcript; the items requiring canvass of election results and final bond authorizations were continued to Jan. 28. Public commenters urged the board to account for contamination, specifically citing "over a million tons of coal tar" and large ammonia spills from a former power plant on the site.

Why it matters

The CFDs would create long‑term revenue streams for site infrastructure, shoreline protection and an arts facility, including a shoreline tax that staff described as a revenue source extending up to 120 years to fund sea‑level rise work. Opponents and at‑least one public commenter say the site's industrial contamination requires careful abatement and mitigation planning before large‑scale residential or recreational uses proceed.

Details from staff presentation

- Project scale and timeline: Pier 70 is a multi‑phase project on a 35‑acre site east of Illinois Street with 1,600–3,000 residential units at full buildout, between 1.1 and 1.75 million square feet of commercial space (ranges reflect "flex" parcels), and nine acres of open space. - Public benefits and requirements: The entitlement package includes 30% on‑site affordable housing, prevailing wage and local hiring components, a transportation demand management program, rehabilitation of historic buildings, sea‑level rise protections and a 90,000‑square‑foot arts facility and childcare space. - Financing: Initial horizontal infrastructure work is funded by developer (Brookfield) and port equity and is to be reimbursed through land sales, the CFD, and an Infrastructure Financing District (IFD); staff described prior steps including the IFD approval in 2018 and amendments to the city special tax law to permit certain resiliency and historic uses. - Taxes described: a facilities tax for roads/utilities/parks (40 years bonding authority), an arts tax for community arts space, a shoreline tax for long‑term resiliency (up to 120 years), and a services tax. Staff said bond issuances would return to the board for approval.

Public comment and environmental concerns

Several members of the public spoke during the CFD hearings to protest the proposals or to demand thorough investigation of contamination. One speaker identified only as a resident urged the board to address what the speaker called a "million tons of coal tar" and multiple ammonia spills, saying prior heavy industrial uses — including a coal‑fired power plant and shipbuilding during World War II — likely left large areas contaminated that require abatement and mitigation prior to development.

Board action and next steps

- For the condominium CFD (items 25–27), the board adopted resolutions proposing formation, determining necessity to incur bonded indebtedness and calling a special landowner election (the transcript recorded a 9‑yes vote due to two members being out of chamber). The board moved to continue the resolution declaring results and bond authorizations to the Jan. 28 meeting, when the Director of Elections will submit a canvass. - For the leased‑properties CFD (items 32–34), the board similarly approved formation resolutions and called a landowner election, then continued remaining actions to Jan. 28.

What the record shows

Staff repeatedly emphasized that the figures in the formation resolutions are "not to exceed" amounts covering the life of the tax districts and that specific bond issuances will return to the board. Public commenters requested more environmental remediation detail; staff and the port did not present a detailed contamination abatement plan at this hearing and committed to later steps tied to bond issuance and project phases.

Context and implications

The CFDs, if finalized after the required landowner elections and bond appropriations, would provide a structured way to fund infrastructure and long‑term shoreline resilience at Pier 70. Opponents’ concern about contamination highlights an implementation risk: remediation, regulatory approvals and construction sequencing will affect timing and cost and will be relevant to future bond offerings and CEQA compliance.