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OCII authorizes $16 million loan for Transbay Block 8 affordable housing; commissioners seek stronger outreach to certificate holders
Summary
The Commission approved a $16 million permanent loan to support affordable housing at Transbay Block 8, while commissioners and staff discussed marketing, certificate of preference outreach and SBE participation; transcript shows a discrepancy in the unit count between the agenda text and the presentation.
The Commission on Community Investment and Infrastructure voted Aug. 4 to authorize a $16,000,000 loan agreement to TB‑8 Housing Partners LP to support development activities for the affordable portion of Transbay Block 8.
Ben Brandon, a development specialist with OCII, presented the request and described the Block 8 affordable project as an 80‑unit development (including one manager’s unit) with a unit mix of 41 one‑bedroom, 16 two‑bedroom and 24 three‑bedroom units. Brandon said the OCII subsidy is consistent with the RFP and the Disposition and Development Agreement (DDA) and that the maximum OCII subsidy is $200,000 per unit. He said the $16 million request will be funded from Transbay developer fees and tax increment and is intended as the gap financing that will enable the development team to proceed with Low Income Housing Tax Credit and tax‑exempt bond applications.
Why it matters: Block 8 is part of the Transbay Redevelopment Project Area; OCII staff said enforceable obligations (including an Assembly Bill reference cited in the presentation) require the agency to ensure a share of new housing is affordable, and this loan is part of meeting that commitment.
Staff described loan terms and next steps: the loan was described with a 3 percent interest rate that staff recommended the Executive Director and the Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development be allowed to reduce to 0 percent if needed for project feasibility, and a term tied to the air rights lease (presenter cited a 55‑year term). The development team is expected to close on land purchase in October and begin construction in January 2016, with resident move‑ins beginning in early 2018.
Commissioners focused on marketing and outreach. Jeff White, Housing Program Manager, said OCII has revamped early outreach and marketing requirements and is coordinating with the Mayor’s Office of Housing to implement DAHLIA as a centralized registration and notification tool; staff said there are approximately 665 active Certificate of Preference (COP) holders on the list as of a recent data pull (staff described this number as approximate and subject to further verification) and that OCII will request regular reports on outreach and lease‑up protocols.
Public commenters raised concerns about contractor selection and the ethnic breakdown of firms participating in the project and urged stronger local hiring and transparent community benefit distribution; commissioners asked staff to provide project‑specific biographical information for major consultant firms when available.
The commission approved the loan authorization on a roll‑call vote (4 ayes).
