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Residents, advisory groups press commission after news report on SoMa stabilization payments
Summary
Commissioners heard an addendum on SoMa Stabilization Fund payments after a weekend newspaper report flagged a late payment. Staff said the final payment is due at final certificate of occupancy and expected within months; community groups said delays paused local requests for funding and urged stronger tracking and public accounting.
At the San Francisco Planning Commission on April 23, officials and community advocates pressed staff for clarity after a weekend report raised questions about payment of the SoMa Stabilization Fund tied to a Rincon Hill project.
Planning staff said the ordinance calls for payment of the stabilization fee at the final certificate of occupancy (CFC). Department representatives told the commission they expect the CFC to be sought within two to three months and described enforcement options—such as liens—if a payment deadline were missed.
Advocacy groups and neighborhood organizations told the commission they had halted an RFP and other work because the fund balance was uncertain. Jazzy Collins, chair of the SoMa Stabilization Citizen Advisory Committee, said the committee’s community planning work was paused without the CFC: “We are at a standstill, and we cannot move forward unless we have that certificate of occupancy.”
Representatives of the project sponsor and the sponsor’s counsel told the commission the sponsor has paid most fees and intends to pay the remainder. Project counsel said the sponsor had paid more than $16.6 million in fees to date and characterized the balance as not delinquent because the ordinance ties the fee to CFC issuance rather than an earlier permit stage.
Commissioners asked for a clearer public accounting of which fees have been paid on each Rincon Hill project, and several requested a nexus study—an analysis the original Rincon Hill agreements contemplated—to show whether the stabilization fee was appropriately targeted. Staff agreed to follow up with the commission and to provide more detailed accounting and next steps on enforcement and timing.
