Treasure Island board approves subawards to begin work on $20 million EPA-funded transit package

The Treasure Island Mobility Management Agency on Feb. 25 approved subaward agreements to begin implementing Treasure Island Connects, a package of transit improvements funded by a $20,000,000 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Community Change grant.

The vote authorizes the agency’s executive director to execute subawards to 1 Treasure Island, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) and the San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA) for specified projects, provided the federal funds are available.

The work funded by the EPA grant is intended to support the island’s long‑term growth. Chair Matt Dorsey said the award “is exactly what was called for by our community‑based Treasure Island supplemental transportation study,” and thanked city attorneys for efforts to protect the funding after the agency reported an administrative pause by EPA staff.

Agency staff said the grant has been awarded and an agreement is in place, but implementation is contingent on federal decisions. Suwanee Cho, assistant deputy director for planning, told the board the EPA award comes from the Environmental and Climate Justice Program created under the Inflation Reduction Act and that the period of performance is three years beginning this past January; she cautioned that “there’s some certain uncertainty around it at the moment.”

Under the subaward plan approved by the board, the agency will authorize up to $2,382,935 for 1 Treasure Island, up to $4,788,248 for SFMTA and up to $3,200,000 for WETA. Cho described six component projects the grant would fund during the award period: a microtransit pilot connecting Treasure Island to destinations in San Francisco (modeled on the SFMT Bayview shuttle pilot); a free on‑island on‑demand shuttle serving Treasure Island and Yerba Buena Island; enhanced SFMTA service on the 25 line and procurement of an additional battery‑electric bus for that route; electric charging infrastructure at the Treasure Island ferry terminal to support transition to electric ferries; expansion of the Bay Wheels bike‑share system to Treasure Island plus resident and worker memberships during the grant period; and a Transportation Resource Center run by 1 Treasure Island to provide outreach, travel training and marketing.

Cho said the program’s performance targets include achieving 50% of trips by sustainable modes and making the overall program financially self‑sustaining. She added that, at full buildout, Treasure Island would include about 20,000 residents in roughly 8,000 homes, of which 27% are planned to be affordable; about 1,000 units are already complete.

The board’s authorization instructs staff to sign subaward agreements with partner agencies and to refine project details and procurement pending clarity from the EPA. The action was taken without objection at the meeting; the board previously recommended the item in committee.

The board also heard related funding updates: Chair Dorsey said the Metropolitan Transportation Commission staff recommended a $25,000,000 conditional award to support the multimodal Bay Skyway project and that the Transportation Authority has applied for a $71,000,000 Solutions for Congested Corridors state grant that, if successful, would provide about $38,000,000 toward the Bay Skyway multiuse path. Executive Director Tilly Chang said staff coordinated the state grant application with the Bay Area Toll Authority and Caltrans and that the board may hear results this summer.

No members of the public spoke on the item at the meeting. The board repeatedly noted that final execution of the subawards is contingent on the availability of the EPA funds given the administrative pause.

Votes on this item are recorded as board authorization to execute the specified subaward agreements, contingent on funding availability; the item passed without objection.