Church Lot Becomes Affordable Housing Complex

SAN FRANCISCO-Today, San Francisco planning commissioners approved a plan to turn a church parking lot in San Francisco’s Bayview District into 22 below-market housing units.

As part of a master plan to grant off-site affordable housing credits to a developer who has a large project going up in a more expensive area, the housing project co-sponsored with True Hope Church of God in Christ.

If this pilot project is successful, developer Martin Dalton of Union Property Capital, Inc., is offering to build 160 units on church-donated land — instead of his expected 80 affordable units — in an 800-unit structure he wants to build on Spear Street near the Embarcadero.

The vote came as commissioners are considering upping the affordable housing required for all residential developments, whether on-site or off-site, to help keep San Francisco from falling further behind in that area.

Dalton has prepared a proposal that suggests building off-site units could lead to a 50% boost in affordable housing production, just in case developers were required to meet a goal of 15% instead of the current 10% required for on-site units.