Supervisors back SFMTA joint development policy, add language to prioritize community benefits

San Francisco Feb. 24, 2025 — The Land Use and Transportation Committee of the Board of Supervisors on Monday voted 3-0 to recommend a resolution supporting the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency(SFMTA) joint development program goals and policy, approving an amendment from Vice Chair Supervisor Cheyenne Chen that asks the agency to model alternatives that maximize community development, housing affordability and green sustainable development.

Committee Chair Supervisor Mirna Melgar, chair of the Land Use and Transportation Committee, said the resolution is intended to protect the financial health of Muni while preserving long-term service and equity goals. "We have to be thoughtful about it, and keep, as first and foremost, the health of the transit agency," Melgar said during the meeting.

The resolution responds to an SFMTA policy the agency's board unanimously adopted establishing goals and a framework for "joint development," in which private developers build housing or commercial uses on MTA land and make lease or rent payments to the agency. Wade Wickraff, identified at the hearing as SFMTA's joint development program manager, said the agency has identified more than 90 MTA-owned properties across the city and has preliminarily narrowed the portfolio to about 25 sites for closer evaluation.

Wickraff told the committee the program is intended to diversify funding for Muni without increasing taxes, and to use developer-financed improvements to generate long-term revenue that can be reinvested in transit facilities and service. He said two SFMTA bus yards are more than 110 years old and that many facility projects lack state-of-good-repair funding. "One way to address that deficit is over the long term is through generating revenue from our land," Wickraff said.

Wickraff also said SFMTA engaged consulting firm Hatch Consulting to model a range of scenarios for developing 4 to 12 properties over the next 25 to 30 years. That initial analysis produced a range of about $12 million to $47 million in net new revenue per year for the agency under the scenarios modeled. He cautioned the committee that some revenue would be reinvested in projects such as rebuilding bus yards, and that the portfolio evaluation has not yet been completed.

The SFMTA policy as presented also instructs the agency to comply with the California Surplus Lands Act. Wickraff said that, under the law and the agency's approach, large properties in the portfolio should be designated at least 50% for residential uses and that at least 25% of units on those residential portions be affordable to households at or below 80% of area median income. "This 25% at this affordability level is currently double the city's inclusionary housing requirements," he said.

Public commenters at the hearing supported addressing Muni's structural deficit but urged stronger protections for affordability and community benefits. Speakers representing community housing organizations, SoMa Filipinas, South of Market and neighborhood groups argued that public land should prioritize deeply affordable housing, cautioning that market-rate development around transit can accelerate displacement. One commenter suggested prioritizing parcels like the Moscone Center Garage for 100% affordable housing and community uses.

Vice Chair Supervisor Cheyenne Chen moved amendments that added a "whereas" noting prior community-serving joint developments on MTA land and revised the resolved clause to urge SFMTA to model alternatives that maximize community development, housing affordability and green sustainable development goals. The committee voted 3-0 to approve the amendment and to recommend the resolution to the full Board of Supervisors.

Action and next steps: The committee's recommendation sends the amended resolution to the full Board of Supervisors; any final project proposals for specific MTA parcels would require separate environmental review, planning approvals and, where required, conditional use or rezoning actions.

Votes at the committee: The motion to amend and recommend the resolution as amended passed on a roll call of three ayes: Vice Chair Supervisor Cheyenne Chen (aye), Supervisor Bilal Mahmood (aye), and Chair Supervisor Mirna Melgar (aye).

Background: SFMTA officials said joint development is one of several strategies under consideration to address a near-term and structural funding gap. The agency presented the policy as a long-term tool to generate revenue, improve facilities, and advance housing and climate goals, while noting it is not a short-term fix for this year's budget gap.

Community reaction: Several community groups welcomed the agency's goal of leveraging public land for transit-supportive uses but urged the supervisors to ensure the city's longstanding practice of prioritizing affordable housing and community-serving uses remains central to any reuse of MTA land.