San Francisco, CA — Mayor London N. Breed today announced legislation to purchase two properties, 685 Ellis Street and 333 12th Street, which would add 274 new homes for those who are homeless, including the first building dedicated for families. If approved by the Board of Supervisors, the acquisition of the two sites would be the seventh and eighth buildings purchased under Mayor Breed’s Homelessness Recovery Plan, which includes the largest one-time expansion of Permanent Supportive Housing in over 20 years.

Under the Mayor’s Homelessness Recovery Plan, the City set a goal of buying or leasing 1,500 new units of PSH over the course of two years by July 2022. There are currently 1,490 active units that have been added under the plan, and an additional 1,054 units are in the pipeline, which puts the City on pace to exceed the goals set in the plan. These units include a mix of properties purchased directly by the City, vouchers, as well other properties where the City has supported the purchase or master lease by a non-profit housing provider.

“We have made tremendous progress on adding new housing as part of our Homelessness Recovery Plan, but we know we still have a lot of work to do,” said Mayor Breed. “The acquisition of these two properties will not only add 274 new homes for those who are homeless, which will help us address the crisis we see on our streets, but for the first time we will have a building dedicated to helping families. Adding hotels and buildings with local and state funds has become a critical part of our strategy to create more housing for those struggling in our city and I’m proud of the work City staff has done to move quickly to make these purchases.”

333 12th Street: Providing PSH for families experiencing homelessness through 200 multi-bedroom units, which range from two-five bedrooms, the proposed acquisition would be the first exclusively family serving PSH building purchased through the acquisition process. The building, which was completed in 2021, includes a large lobby and community space, resident lounges on every floor, roof terrace, offices, bike storage, and a landscaped courtyard.

685 Ellis Street: Currently an active Shelter-in-Place (SIP) hotel, the property includes 74 units supporting adults exiting homelessness. Current amenities of the building include private bathrooms, a large lobby, a community lounge and commercial kitchen, office space, a laundry room, and additional space for support services. Existing residents will be engaged in the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing’s (HSH) housing process before the SIP program is closed.

“I am excited that these two acquisitions add 274 new homes to the City’s expanding housing portfolio under Mayor Breed’s leadership,” said Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing executive director, Shireen McSpadden. “Permanent supportive housing not only resolves homelessness and increases housing stability but also improves health and reduces the use of crisis services.”

“These acquisitions represent huge steps to provide desperately needed permanent affordable housing. City Gardens gives us an opportunity to finally increase our deeply affordable housing stock for families. And by converting the current Shelter in Place hotel at 685 Ellis into permanent supportive housing, we are following through on our commitment to get people out of shelters and into permanent housing,” said District 6 Supervisor Matt Haney.

These two buildings, if approved by the Board of Supervisors, would be the seventh and eighth properties added to the City’s portfolio through acquisition. These properties are available to purchase through a combination of local, federal, and state funding, including Governor Newsom’s Project Homekey. As of April 2022, HSH has already received approval to acquire six new properties for PSH. These include:

• Hotel Diva (130 units)
• Granada Hotel (232 units)
• Eula Hotel (25 units)
• Panoramic Hotel (160 units)
• Mission Inn (52 units)
• 835 Turk (114 units)

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