Budget committee continues $5 million supplemental for Geneva Car Barn; Onondaga decision delayed

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors Budget & Finance Committee on March 9 continued for one week consideration of an ordinance that would appropriate $5,000,000 from the city’s general fund reserve, splitting the money into two $2,500,000 supplements: one for Recreation & Parks to advance phase 1 at the Geneva Car Barn and one for the Department of Public Health for improvements at 35–45 Onondaga Avenue.

Supervisor David Avalos, sponsor of the supplemental, told the committee the city has owned the Geneva Car Barn since 2004 and that the property and nearby Onondaga buildings have sat vacant for years. Avalos said the Car Barn could become an anchor for District 11’s commercial corridor and that phase 1 work — focused on the powerhouse side of the building — has already attracted previous appropriations and tax credits. He said the supplemental is intended to ‘‘even the playing field’’ for District 11 amid citywide economic growth.

The city’s budget analyst presented a written review, noting projected funding sources for the phase‑1 powerhouse and reporting a difference between previously appropriated amounts and the estimated phase‑1 cost. The analyst recommended severing the $5,000,000 request into two $2,500,000 requests, approving the RPD (Rec & Park) $2,500,000 supplemental and placing those funds on committee reserve pending confirmation of remaining funding sources, and continuing the DPH ($2,500,000) request until additional funding and organizational structures are identified.

Several District 11 residents and neighborhood advocates urged the committee to support the Car Barn funding during public comment, calling the site a transit nexus and a neighborhood anchor. Rec & Park officials said the department has been shepherding the project for years, pointed to roughly $3,000,000 earmarked in a 2012 parks bond for the Car Barn and about $1,600,000 in historic tax credits, and described a phased approach intended to make phase 1 viable.

After discussion, Supervisor Yee moved to continue the item for one week so the sponsor and the mayor’s budget office could consult on a financing path; Supervisor Tang seconded. The motion was taken without objection and the committee continued the matter to its next weekly hearing.

Next steps: Committee staff and the sponsor plan follow-up conversations with the mayor’s budget office and the capital planning committee before the item returns for action.