Committee sends downtown conversion fee waiver to Board as amended after heated debate

The Land Use and Transportation Committee on Feb. 10 sent to the Board of Supervisors, as amended, an ordinance designed to incentivize adaptive reuse of underutilized downtown office and commercial buildings by waiving certain development impact fees and inclusionary housing requirements for qualifying commercial‑to‑residential conversions in core downtown zoning districts (C2 and C3).

Sponsor Supervisor Matt Dorsey framed the legislation as part of “deep downtown recovery,” noting a historically high office vacancy rate and a “regional housing needs allocation” (RHNA) target the city must meet. Dorsey said conversions can both produce housing and reduce vacant office supply, helping stabilize the city’s tax base. He proposed non‑substantive cleanup amendments and a reporting requirement to the Inclusionary Housing Technical Advisory Committee; Supervisor Nannie Sauter, a co‑sponsor, said conversions would “activate a block” and benefit…