San Francisco, CA– Mayor Edwin M. Lee today announced the award of four predevelopment loans to support the creation of up to 529 affordable rental homes for San Francisco’s low-income and homeless families and seniors.

The nearly 11 million dollars of loans will be made with funds from the voter-approved 2015 Affordable Housing General Obligation Bond to expand opportunities for low-income San Franciscans. These predevelopment funds will jumpstart the construction of over 500 affordable housing units, adding to the ongoing effort to achieve Mayor Lee’s goal of constructing or rehabilitating 10,000 homes affordable to low-income San Franciscans by 2020.

“San Franciscans came together last fall to approve the largest affordable housing bond in our City’s history,” said Mayor Lee.  “These funds present a historic opportunity to add much-needed affordable housing and community-based services to neighborhoods across the City.  Together, the four selected projects will serve a wide range of San Franciscans – from seniors to families – and each will include homes for our homeless residents.”

The projects that have been awarded funds are located in neighborhoods throughout the City including in the Mission, the Excelsior, Forest Hill, and the Tenderloin.  The four projects include: 1990 Folsom Street, located in the Mission neighborhood and jointly proposed by the Mission Economic Development Agency (MEDA) and the Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation (TNDC) that will provide up to 143 homes for families and will include a childcare center and art space on the ground floor; 4840 Mission Street, located in the Excelsior neighborhood is proposed by Bridge Housing Corporation will provide up to 114 homes for families and will include a community-serving health center or childcare center on the ground floor; Christian Church Homes and Northern California Presbyterian Homes and Services proposed a project with up to 150 homes for seniors and will include a ground floor community center located on Laguna Honda Road in the Forest Hill neighborhood; and, TNDC proposed a development in the Tenderloin neighborhood with up to 122 homes for families and neighborhood-serving retail as well as a community center on the ground floor.

“We are pleased with the high quality of the proposals that we received, and are thrilled to be at the stage of putting the 2015 Affordable Housing General Obligation Bond to work to build more than 500 new affordable homes in San Francisco,” said Director of the Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development, Olson Lee.  “In addition to affordable housing for families, seniors and homeless households, these projects will add much-needed new community resources such as childcare and community centers, in the four neighborhoods where these homes are located.” 

Funding from the 2015 Affordable Housing General Obligation Bond is currently assisting San Franciscans with housing affordability through an expanded Down Payment Assistance Loan Program, a replenished Teacher Next Door funding pool, acquisition and rehabilitation money for the preservation of rent-controlled buildings as permanently affordable housing, and new funds to transform public housing in San Francisco.