Committee reviews three BID/CBD annual reports; forwards Mission Miracle Mile, Union Square and Lower Polk to full Board

The Government Audit and Oversight Committee on Feb. 11 reviewed annual reports for three business improvement/community benefit districts and voted without objection to forward the resolutions to the Board of Supervisors.

OEWD project manager Richard Carrillo presented the Mission Miracle Mile review (calendar years 2010–2015), saying the small district generated $85,861 in assessment funding per its management plan, incurred tax-penalty payments for late filings ($4,237) in 2010, and purchased surveillance cameras totaling $21,619 in 2013. Carrillo told the committee the Mission bid expired on June 30, 2015 and was not renewed; OEWD recommended supporting the community in forming a larger, more representative district in the future.

Chris Korgas (OEWD) and Karen Flood, executive director of the Union Square BID, presented the Union Square fiscal-year 2014–15 report. Flood said the BID covers roughly 27 blocks around Union Square with more than 1,000 businesses and about 500 property owners. The assessment budget is approximately $3.3 million; with grants and donations the BID’s operating resources grew to about $6.6 million in 2014–15. Flood credited a major donor-advised gift administered through the Silicon Valley Community Foundation and said the district used roughly $1 million for added police presence and about $2 million to expand private security cameras. "And today we have over 250 cameras," Flood said, describing the expansion from an initial 38 cameras.

Flood also described day-to-day operations—cleaning, ambassador programs, a social-service outreach worker integrated with the HOT team—and said the BID is tracking service-referral outcomes; she reported roughly 10,000 SFPD officer hours supported in-district policing and said about 50 percent of individuals contacted resist social services. She raised continuing concerns about illegal vending, night-time scavenging and property crime and urged more coordinated city enforcement and services for people in active psychosis.

Korgas and Chris Shulman reviewed the Lower Polk Community Benefit District for fiscal 2014–15. Korgas said Lower Polk was established in 2014, assesses about 307 parcels, and had an initial assessment budget of about $846,000.54; the district did not receive regular assessment revenue in its first year and therefore did not meet some service benchmarks for 2014–15. Shulman said the CBD began limited services in December and drew on just over $10,000 in initial contributions and a carryover fund; he said the district would also use more than $1 million in CPMC mitigation funds for safety, health, cleanliness and streetscape work and that staff would focus on ambassador programs, clean streets and social-service outreach.

There was no public testimony on the items. Supervisors moved to forward each resolution to the full Board with positive recommendation and the committee approved each motion without objection. All three items were noted to appear on the Feb. 23 Board agenda.

Votes at a glance: Mission Miracle Mile annual-report resolution — forwarded to Board with recommendation (no recorded roll-call vote; committee approved without objection). Greater Union Square annual-report resolution — forwarded to Board with recommendation (approved without objection). Lower Polk CBD annual-report resolution — forwarded to Board with recommendation (approved without objection).

Committee members commended BID leaders and OEWD staff for program implementation and for moving long-pending annual reports to the Board.