San Francisco, CA – Mayor London N. Breed today joined community leaders to celebrate the groundbreaking of future affordable housing at 1950 Mission Street. Once completed, the project will offer 155 affordable apartments for families, with 40 of those units serving families that have previously experienced homelessness.

“I am committed to making sure that all of our residents, especially families and children, have a safe, dignified place to live, which is why I am so excited for this project,” said Mayor Breed. “I will be introducing a Charter Amendment to streamline the production of affordable and teacher housing and pushing a bond to fund new affordable housing in the upcoming election to ensure we continue building more housing like this in the City.”

Formerly Phoenix Continuation High School, the site was later abandoned and listed as surplus property by San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) in 2002. The Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development purchased the property from SFUSD in 2015 and the site became the temporary home of the City’s first Navigation Center prior to the start of construction of the permanently 100% affordable housing.

“This is a perfect example of how we should be using publicly owned land. The community and my office joined forces with members of the Board of Education to say YES to using this long-abandoned former school site for affordable housing,” said Supervisor Hillary Ronen. “I can't wait for the day when families -- and especially Mission district children who attend neighborhood schools -- can move into their new homes.”

The 155 apartments at 1950 Mission will be affordable to households with incomes between 45% and 60% Area Media Income (up to $71,050 for a family of four), with 25% of the apartments set aside for 40 formerly homeless families.

“We are proud to be breaking ground at 1950 Mission, which has served many key purposes for the City over the years,” said Kate Hartley, Director of the Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development. “We look forward to welcoming 155 families to their new, permanently affordable homes next year.”

Planned amenities for residents include a rooftop garden, a courtyard, a community room with kitchen, and a workshop operated by PODER that will provide bike-maintenance training to youth from the property and the surrounding community. On-site supportive services funded by the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing will be provided to residents by Mission Housing Development Corporation and Lutheran Social Services. Another partner, Mission Neighborhood Centers, will operate a new Head Start & Early Head Start youth space. Neighborhood-serving retail space will be available for local nonprofits and entrepreneurs, and affordable gallery and work spaces will cater to the Mission District artist community.

“1950 Mission represents hope and rebirth for a Mission Community long displaced and disenfranchised,” said Sam Moss, Executive Director, Mission Housing Development Corporation. “Mission Housing is proud to usher in the Mission District’s first new 100% affordable housing development awarded to a community-based nonprofit in over 10 years. This community-driven development should be the standard model for anyone who truly cares about high quality affordable housing and community services.”

“We’re proud to be part of this collaborative effort to deliver affordable family homes and an array of community services that will help the neighborhood maintain its vibrancy and diversity,” said Cynthia A. Parker, President and CEO of BRIDGE Housing.

Financial partners include the San Francisco Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development, the California Climate Investment Program (funded through the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund) Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities Program through the Strategic Growth Council and the California Department of Housing and Community Development, Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., BNY Mellon, California Community Reinvestment Corporation, California Tax Credit Allocation Committee, and California Debt Limit Allocation Committee.

“1950 Mission will address the urgent need for affordable housing right in the heart of San Francisco,” said Vince Toye, head of Community Lending and Investment for Wells Fargo. “Wells Fargo is committed to providing financial solutions for the development of affordable housing in areas where there are the biggest needs, and we’re proud to support BRIDGE Housing and Mission Housing’s development of this unique project with both equity and debt financing.”

The architects are David Baker Architects and Cervantes Design Associates, Inc., and the general contractor is Swinerton Builders. Visit www.1950mission.org for a virtual tour and additional details.

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