Committee recommends mayor’s nominee Ruby Balaria Shiffrin to Treasure Island Development Authority

The Rules Committee on July 29 recommended Mayor London Breed’s nomination of Ruby Balaria Shiffrin to the Treasure Island Development Authority (TIDA) and forwarded the recommendation as an amended committee report to the Board of Supervisors.

Ruby Balaria Shiffrin, who described a background in environmental advocacy, urban and regional planning (UCLA) and current work on housing affordability at the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, said she would prioritize resident engagement and transparency if appointed. “One of the things that I’ve been able to do is work with Supervisor Haney’s office to identify some of the community leaders and activists on the island,” she said, and described plans for one‑on‑one engagement and third‑party peer review of environmental reports.

Supervisors asked how she would protect residents’ rights post‑DDA, whether tolling or congestion pricing should exempt existing residents, and how she would address soil and radiological concerns. Shiffrin said congestion‑pricing models elsewhere include low‑income exemptions and stressed the need for independent peer review of environmental testing and stronger community engagement.

Public comment during the item included multiple endorsements of Shiffrin from colleagues at nonprofit and philanthropic organizations, while other public speakers pressed for more testing and expressed skepticism about how affordability percentages are applied. The committee amended the motion to delete language that would have rejected the nomination and recommended approval as an amended committee report to the board.