$100M gift for affordable artist housing

Two San Francisco nonprofits are submitting plans to city officials on Friday to construct approximately 100 affordable housing units dedicated for artists at a prime Market Street location, thanks to a $100 million gift from an anonymous benefactor.

Artists Hub on Market and Mercy Housing of California are collaborating to redevelop the site at 1687 Market St., currently home to the McRoskey Mattress store, into a mixed-use building.

The planned development will include apartments, a community center, studios, rehearsal and practice rooms and a 99-seat black box theater. Additionally, there are plans for a ground-level cafe.

The building will offer 100% affordable housing, with studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom units tailored for artists, individuals in arts administration and their families whose household income falls at or below 80% of the San Francisco Area Median Income.

Randall Kline, leading the effort through Artists Hub on Market, drew inspiration from his experience overseeing the construction of the $64 million SFJazz Center at Franklin and Fell streets, which opened its doors in 2013 as one of the only major venues in the country devoted to jazz programming.

Kline, who built SFJazz from a modest two-night festival to one of San Francisco’s most esteemed cultural institutions, retired as executive artistic director on the organization’s 40th anniversary in November. Since then he has shifted his focus to realizing an affordable housing project for the city’s artists.

The project has gained substantial momentum with the recent passage of Assembly Bill 2011, which streamlines approvals and in some cases relaxes height and density limits.

Upon submission of the application to the planning department, the first in the city under AB2011, the nonprofits anticipate a decision within 90 days. The goal is to begin construction by fall 2025, with completion estimated to take about 18 months.

San Francisco architect Mark Cavagnero, chosen by Kline for his work on the 35,000-square-foot SFJazz Center, is poised to oversee the new project.

The organizers hope it will play a role in the revitalization of San Francisco’s beleaguered Mid-Market neighborhood. It will also help the city meet the state’s mandated housing development goal to approve 82,000 new homes by 2031.

“SFJazz was built to serve the local artist community,” Kline said. “Over the past 40 years, as I saw more and more artists leaving the city, I talked with potential funders about this idea to see if we could provide affordable housing. One donor stepped forward.”

The departure of artists from San Francisco began during the initial dot-com boom in the late ’90s but has since sped up due to inflation and soaring housing costs. A 2017 survey by the Arts Commission revealed that around 70% of the artists residing in the city in 2010 had either left or were planning to relocate. The COVID-19 shutdown, which shrank performance revenues, exacerbated the situation.

The project draws inspiration from successful developments in New York, such as Westbeth and Manhattan Plaza, which collectively nurtured talents like singer-songwriter Alicia Keys, photographer Diane Arbus, comedian Larry David, musician Charles Mingus and playwright Tennessee Williams, as well as the Hollywood Arts Collective in Los Angeles.

Several other organizations provide affordable housing for artists in San Francisco, including the Goodman 2 Arts Complex in Potrero Hill, which has five rental units for low-income artists and 18 city-subsidized condos allotted to lottery winners; Project Artaud in the Mission District, with 79 live/work spaces; and Monument, with 22 private bedrooms and a shared community space.

The McRoskey Mattress Co., a fixture in the city since its founding in 1899, will continue operating its three-story showroom until construction begins. The two-story-plus building from 1925 will be demolished for the new development.

The company’s high-end mattresses, which are no longer manufactured inside the building, will still be available through various retailers, including Williams-Sonoma Home stores and its showroom locations in Palo Alto and San Rafael.

Artists Hub On Market/Mercy Housing An artist’s depiction shows the proposed building located at 1687 Market St. in San Francisco, which aims to offer 100 units of affordable housing specifically tailored for artists and their families.

Michaela Vatcheva/Special to The Chronicle Randall Kline has shifted his focus to finding ways to create more affordable housing since retiring from SFJazz, which he founded.