San Francisco, CA — Mayor London N. Breed and Board President Norman Yee today announced that they will co-chair the Affordable Housing Bond Working Group, which will be tasked with placing an Affordable Housing Bond on the November 2019 ballot. The Working Group will begin meeting in March, with a plan to introduce the Bond at the Board of Supervisors in the coming months. Mayor Breed and President Yee also announced the Community Co-Chairs who will help lead the effort.  

“I’m proud to be co-chairing this important effort to fund more affordable housing with Board President Yee,” said Mayor Breed. “It is important that we bring everyone to the table to help shape this Affordable Housing Bond so we can prepare the most effective measure possible to provide more badly needed affordable housing for the residents of San Francisco. By working collaboratively, we can explore all options available to maximize this effort while still working within the process of our Capital Plan.” 

“I am looking forward to this collaborative, solutions-led approach to the housing crisis,” said Board President Yee. “We have so many pressing needs we need to fulfill. It is invaluable to have the political will of both the Mayor and the Board so we can push for the most impactful bond measure possible and provide the affordable housing we need for the future of San Francisco. I am thankful for this opportunity to co-chair this Working Group with Mayor Breed along with our community’s best thought partners.” 

The Affordable Housing Working Group Community Co-Chairs will be Myrna Melgar of Jamestown Community Center, Tomiquia Moss of Hamilton Families, and Malcolm Yeung of Chinatown Community Development Center. The Working Group will consist of elected officials, housing experts, affordable housing developers, tenant advocates, property owners, labor leaders, community leaders and others to help craft the expenditure plan for the bond.

“This bond is a significant down payment on the deficit of affordable housing our City has accrued,” said Myrna Melgar, Executive Director of Jamestown Community Center and President of the San Francisco Planning Commission. “I am honored to help Mayor Breed in her efforts to build more affordable housing and build it faster.”

“I am happy to support Mayor Breed and President Yee’s leadership in prioritizing an affordable housing bond for the November 2019 ballot,” said Tomiquia Moss, Executive Director of Hamilton Families. “Working with community-based organizations and stakeholders is critical to ensure that the City and County of San Francisco are investing much needed resources in housing for our most vulnerable San Franciscans.”

“Affordability in San Francisco is an issue that isn’t going away,” said Malcolm Yeung of Chinatown Community Development Center. “Affordable housing needs to be treated like public infrastructure—something the city regularly invests in—not just in times of crisis. I applaud Mayor Breed for recognizing the long-term nature of this problem by including affordable housing in the City’s capital planning process.”

Mayor Breed will also be introducing the 10-Year Capital Plan at the Board of Supervisors today, which was approved by the Capital Planning Committee last week. Under the proposed Capital Plan, a $300 million Affordable Housing Bond is scheduled for the November 2019 election. Mayor Breed has expressed interest in finding ways to increase the amount of the bond while maintaining current property tax levels, following the policy constraint of the Capital Plan, which could include identifying extra bonding capacity as the City’s financial forecast is updated later this month.

Published every other year, the 10-Year Capital Plan is a fiscally constrained expenditure plan that lays out infrastructure investments over the next decade. The City Administrator prepares the document with input from citywide stakeholders that have put forth their best ideas and most realistic estimates of San Francisco’s future needs.