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Officials and Community Seek Clarity on Octavia Boulevard Parcel Sales and Redevelopment True-Up
Summary
An informational hearing on the disposition of Central Freeway parcels and Octavia Boulevard projects revealed disagreement about a redevelopment-era "true-up" owed to affordable housing, and the committee referred the matter to the Land Use Committee and requested a City Attorney briefing.
The Budget & Finance Subcommittee held an informational hearing on May 8 about the Octavia Boulevard project, the disposition of former Central Freeway parcels and the use of sale proceeds. OEWD and the Mayors Office of Housing outlined the project's history, funds expended and remaining obligations; community members pressed for clarity on a redevelopment-era "true-up" owed to affordable housing funds.
OEWD recounted that Caltrans transferred 22 parcels (lettered A through V) under a cooperative agreement that required the city to construct Octavia Boulevard and associated transportation improvements; Proposition I (1999) directed that sale proceeds be used to implement the replacement project and prioritize residential development. OEWD estimated total obligations between $41M and $45M and said about $18M to $21M remained to be spent on ancillary projects and Van Ness rehabilitation.
Redevelopment-era purchases (parcels A and C and an option for several others) were paid in advance by the Redevelopment Agency using affordable-housing (low/mod) funds. Community groups and housing advocates asked whether the expenditures by the Redevelopment Agency should be "trued up" (returned or adjusted) so the mayor's office of housing receives the funds it expects. Several speakers noted the language in Proposition I and state statute SB 798 and urged a formal legal accounting.
OEWD and MOH said prior agency investments enabled the boulevard construction and early affordable housing development (including Parkview Terraces and Richardson Apartments) and noted the redevelopment agency had invested roughly $36M and leveraged additional federal credits. OEWD said unsold parcels, existing leases and temporary uses (Hayes Valley Farm, pop-up retail) provide potential revenues to cover any remaining shortfall.
Multiple neighborhood speakers, housing advocates and business groups urged the Board to honor earlier agreements and to request a City Attorney opinion clarifying whether a true-up is legally owed to the mayors office of housing before proceeds are used for transportation repaving (Van Ness) or other obligations.
Action: The committee voted to refer the Octavia Boulevard/Central Freeway parcels matter to the Land Use Committee and requested a City Attorney briefing on the legal obligations and disposition of proceeds.
What happens next: The Land Use Committee will receive the item and City Attorney analysis to resolve outstanding legal questions about the true-up and allocation of proceeds.
