Stricter housing quotas could cost jobs, union says
With four months to go until the June election, Mayor Ed Lee’s administration is taking aim at a ballot measure that would more than double the amount of below-marketrate housing units developers would be required to include in projects.
On Wednesday, the mayor’s Office of Economic and Workforce Development floated a report suggesting that increasing the affordable housing requirement from 12 to 25 percent would, at a minimum, kill a quarter of applicable projects by making them financially infeasible — about 2,100 units.
That in turn would mean that 2,433 full- time construction jobs would be lost, according to the office, which put together the information at the request of San Francisco Building and Construction Trades Council Sec-retary-Treasurer Michael Theriault.
The housing pipeline now includes 8,400 units located in parts of the city that fall under the 12 percent requirement. If increasing the requirements were to stop more than 25 percent of the units, it would lead to even steeper job losses in the building trades, according to the development office.
In a letter to Supervisor Jane Kim, who is sponsoring the ballot measure with Supervisor Aaron Peskin, Theriault said the building trades support higher affordable- housing requirements “to the fullest extent it is financially feasible.” The construction unions are part of a working group — along with builders, policy wonks, affordable- housing groups and residents — that is trying to put together a more devel-oper-friendly proposal for increasing the current requirements.
“We agree fully with your intent,” Theriault wrote. “We remained convinced, nonetheless, that the initiative will produce an effect opposite to what you intend and what we, our families, and the city need.”
While the Kim- Peskin legislation would require developers to build 25 percent affordable housing on site or 33 percent off site, Kim emphasized that it would be modified with “trailing legislation” more palatable to builders. The legislation will spell out what pipeline projects will be grandfathered in and could include provisions that could provide lower requirements for smaller projects or developments located in less expensive, outlying neighborhoods.
“I would never put forth a measure that would halt development,” Kim said. “I want to maximize the amount of affordable housing built. We want to stretch and push developers, who do exceedingly well in our market, to build as much affordable housing as possible. That is the only intent.”
Kim said several developers have told her that 25 percent affordable is workable, as long as the requirements are clear when the land is purchased and the project financed.
The trailing legislation could be introduced as soon as March.
— J. K. Dineen
Talk about a fake- out: Joaquin Castillo Arana appeared to be on his way to an appointment to the Entertainment Commission. The Board of Supervisors’ Rules Committee had endorsed his nomination and forwarded it to the full board Tuesday for a vote.
That’s usually the end of the story. Not this time.
When the time came for the board to vote on Castillo’s appointment, Supervisor Jane Kim asked that Laura Thomas be named to the commission instead.
The seat is reserved for someone who works in the public health field. Thomas spent two decades working on HIV and public health policy and is the deputy state director for Drug Police Alliance, which seeks to end the war on drugs. She is also co- president of the Harvey Milk Democratic Club, a longtime player in local politics.
“This seat was made for her,” Kim said. “Not only is she someone who is a passionate advocate of nightlife, she is someone who understands the public health component of this seat.”
But replacing Castillo at the last minute irked Supervisors Scott Wiener and Malia Cohen.
Cohen said that Thomas had just been appointed to the Cannabis State Legalization Task Force and that the board should give someone else a chance.
Wiener pointed out that Castillo is a gay Latino who has worked in nightclubs and now works at Genentech as a contract analyst.
“He is ideally suited for this seat. In terms of bringing maximum diversity to our commissions, this is an opportunity for us to put our money where our mouth is when we talk about Latino representation in our commissions and support a highly, highly qualified Latino LGBT candidate.”
Apparently, not even Wiener’s Latino colleagues, David Campos and John Avalos, agreed. They threw their support behind Thomas, who came out ahead in a 7- 4 vote.
— Emily Green