Commission moves HCO amortization ordinance to Board of Supervisors amid fierce public comment

The Building Inspection Commission on June 17 recommended that the Board of Supervisors consider an ordinance adding an amortization period to the Residential Hotel Conversion Ordinance (HCO), a step DBI and the city attorney prepared in response to appellate court rulings that the 2017 change from a 7‑day to 32‑day threshold constituted a compensable change of use.

Chief Housing Inspector James Sanbon Matsu framed the ordinance as a tool to preserve affordable single‑room occupancy (SRO) units, which serve elderly, low‑income and disabled residents. Deputy City Attorney Andrea Ruiz Esquide said the amortization period is intended to give hotel owners who lawfully invested in short‑term uses time to recover their investments; the ordinance adds a process for owners to request extensions and lists factors drawn from case law that the city would consider, such as investment amount, length of time investments have been in place, and suitability of investments for…