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PUC outlines phased plan to revitalize Southeast Community Facility; community urges career pipelines and local hiring
Summary
PUC staff presented a phased plan to make the Southeast Community Facility more active and locally beneficial through programmatic changes (City College wraparound services, contract assistance center, job training anchors) and building improvements (custodial/security, reception, signage). Community speakers — including Garden Project youth and staff — urged emphasis on careers, student input, and local contracting.
At a joint meeting with the Southeast Community Facilities Commission, San Francisco Public Utilities Commission staff outlined a phased approach to revitalize the Southeast Community Facility in Bayview Hunters Point.
What staff proposed Juliet Ellis presented findings from an extensive community engagement effort and described two tracks: programmatic changes and building/infrastructure improvements. Programmatic proposals include expanding City College course offerings to focus on high‑demand, short vocational certificates; colocating admissions, enrollment and financial aid staff; creating a PUC Contract Assistance Center to help smaller contractors bid on PUC work and to explore debundling contracts; and establishing job‑training anchors such as 5 Keys Charter School, Hunters Point Family Services, and others. Staff also proposed providing custodial and security services through the PUC (to reduce costs, improve oversight, and create opportunities to hire locally) and offering a shuttle between Bayview and other City College campuses.
Community perspective Speakers from the Garden Project and area residents described how the program provides job readiness and steady income for neighborhood youth; Catherine Snead said the Garden Project employs 146 young people (about 70 from the immediate neighborhood) and reported significant food production and training outcomes. Commissioners and residents repeatedly urged that PUC hiring and contracting prioritize long‑term careers and local businesses rather than short‑term jobs — including asking that custodial, security and other services be procured with local hire thresholds and direct outreach to District 10 firms.
Next steps and support actions Staff said space plans could be completed by the end of the summer and that a phased tenant move‑in could begin the following January. The PUC committed to negotiate new month‑to‑month leases into longer arrangements where appropriate, begin providing custodial/security, pursue a shuttle service to City College campuses, and start building design work with the Department of Public Works. Separately, the commission approved grant agreements with three regional job‑training providers (San Joaquin YouthBuild, JobTrain, and Cypress Mandela) at $150,000 per year for two years per provider (total not to exceed $900,000) to help meet disadvantaged worker participation goals on related projects.
Why it matters The Southeast facility was created as a mitigation commitment when the treatment plant was sited in this neighborhood. With billions slated for sewer system upgrades next door, residents and commissioners said reinvesting in the facility and in career pathways is essential to ensure the large capital program yields community benefits.
