Committee advances four conduit housing bond measures totaling about $82.5 million; Vincentian Villa residents raise tenant concerns

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors Budget and Finance Committee on Sept. 25 advanced four separate measures that would permit issuance of tax-exempt conduit bonds to finance nonprofit and affordable housing projects across the city.

The measures before the committee would: allow a California Enterprise Development Authority issuance to refinance capital facilities at the Hamlin School (up to $22,000,000); authorize a $30,000,000 multifamily housing revenue note for Western Park Apartments (182 units in the Western Addition); approve an application for up to $30,000,000 in mortgage revenue bonds for the 121-unit Bayview Senior Housing project at 1751 Carroll Avenue; and seek a $15,500,000 bond allocation for acquisition and rehabilitation of Vincentian Villa at 1825 Mission Street. Chair Mark Farrell said the Hamlin School item was one he sponsored and moved it forward without opposition.

Why it matters: The four items would enable private-placement or mortgage-bond financing to support construction, acquisition and rehabilitation of affordable and senior housing across multiple neighborhoods. Officials said the transactions are conduit financings—project revenues, not the City’s general fund, would secure bond repayment—meaning the City does not pledge direct repayment.

Key details and quotes: Anthony Aberbond of the Controller’s Office told the committee Item 1 would approve tax-exempt financing for the Hamlin School and that borrower representatives and bond counsel were available for project questions. "The financing... approves the financing on a tax exempt basis for the Hamlin School," he said.

Connor Johnson, legislative aide to Supervisor Breed, and Kevin Kitchingham of the Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development described the Western Park transaction as a private placement with Citibank serving as the bond purchaser and Alliant Capital as the tax-credit investor. Kitchingham outlined the unit mix as "30 studios, 146 one bedrooms, 6 two bedrooms" and said 126 units will be targeted to households at or below 60 percent of area median income.

Pamela Sims, MOHCD project manager, briefed the committee on Bayview Senior Housing and said the project would set aside units for deeper affordability: "67 of the units will be restricted to households earning no more than 30% of area median income," and 23 units would be set aside for referrals of formerly chronically homeless individuals through the Department of Public Health program.

Vincentian Villa residents, including longtime resident Alan Shipley, urged clarity about how planned rehabilitation dollars will be spent and sought stronger tenant protections. Shipley asked why residents had not received management communication about seismic retrofits and testified that building systems such as elevators and the internal security tower "definitely needs to be replaced." He requested an independent ombudsman "to advocate between all parties on the bonds." Committee members suggested those tenant questions be addressed offline with MOHCD staff and project sponsors.

Committee outcome and next steps: Committee members moved each item forward without recorded opposition; no roll-call vote or tally was read into the record during the committee meeting. Several presenters said they would return to the Board later in the year if necessary—for example, Pamela Sims said the Bayview team submitted a California Debt Limit Allocation Committee application on Sept. 13 and would return to the Board if awarded an allocation.

What the measures do and limits on City liability: Presenters repeatedly described these as conduit financings, meaning bond investors rely on project revenues rather than the City’s general fund. Officials advised that closing schedules vary by project and that some items depend on external allocations (for example, CDLAC awards) before the Board would be asked to authorize issuance.

Reporting details: Committee staff noted there were no budget analyst reports available at the meeting for the items presented.