MOHCD, OCII report increase in Certificate of Preference outreach; community members cite access gaps

Staff from the mayor’s office of housing and community development and OCII presented the fiscal year 2023–24 Certificate of Preference (COP) annual report and related outreach work at the Feb. 4 Commission on Community Investment and Infrastructure meeting.

Senior development specialist Pam Sims told the Commission the presentation would cover outreach, a streamlined application process and outcomes, and the AMI profile of applicants. Maria Benjamin of MOHCD said MOHCD and contractor partners have significantly stepped up outreach: MOHCD reported 319 new certificates issued during the reporting year, MOHCD staff said they are in contact with about 1,700 households believed eligible, and reported that 60 certificate-holders actively applied for housing in fiscal year 2023–24 and 34 certificate-holders obtained housing during that period. Benjamin said the average area median income among COP applicants was about "44 percent AMI." She also described program process improvements including a staffed COP hotline and streamlined document access.

Commissioners and numerous members of the public addressed persistent barriers. Several speakers described difficulty navigating program paperwork, long waits for housing-counseling responses, and cases where families were denied housing for narrow technical reasons. Natalie and Rene Tucker, who said they are native San Franciscans and used the certificate to buy a home after Commissioner Brackett intervened, told the Commission they initially faced a denial and slow responses from housing counseling staff. Janice Smith, a COP holder, said her certificate had expired in 2021 and she had filed to renew in October 2023 but "still haven't heard anything back" about an updated certificate.

Community organizations and residents urged more hands-on application assistance, expanded down-payment assistance, and clearer communication. Lynette Mackey of LINCS (the outreach contractor) described the time-consuming work of tracing descendants and families displaced decades ago and said, "It takes time... sometimes it requires 25 phone calls" to locate eligible people. Maria Benjamin and other MOHCD staff said MOHCD has a staffed telephone line (628-652-5801) and is working to help applicants complete forms and access counseling and subsidies, and that down-payment assistance programs such as DreamKeeper and shipyard legacy funds are available in some projects.

Several community leaders, including Dr. Veronica Honeycutt (Hunters Point Shipyard CAC) and local contractors, echoed long-standing concerns about whether the units and subsidy levels being produced will match COP holders’ incomes. Dr. Honeycutt urged the city to "focus on the viable projects" and warned against misinformation that could impede housing production. Community commenters and contractor groups also raised questions about local hiring and minority contractor participation on development projects.

After extended discussion the Commission voted unanimously (4–0) to continue the COP and related housing items to the next meeting to allow additional Commission review and time for staff to provide requested clarifications. Commissioners asked staff to include clearer written materials and evidence of program follow-through, and Commissioner Brackett requested photographic documentation of site conditions wherever relevant to occupancy or repair claims.

Staff said they will continue the LINCS/Community Leadership Foundation outreach phases and pursue data-digitization and record-search steps to find additional eligible original displaced households and descendants.

The Commission's continuation of the item preserves public comment and allows staff time to provide additional documentation and timeline clarifications.