Mayor Lee Announces HUD’s $30.5 Million Choice Neighborhoods Grant for Alice Griffith Hope SF Transformation Plan
8/31/11— Mayor Edwin M. Lee today announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has selected San Francisco’s HOPE SF transformation plan for Alice Griffith Public Housing Development and the surrounding Bayview neighborhood as a recipient of the $30.5 million Choice Neighborhoods Implementation Grant. The Alice Griffith Plan was one of six finalists submitted by communities nationwide competing for HUD Choice Neighborhoods funding.
“Revitalizing the Alice Griffith Public Housing Development and transforming the surrounding Bayview and Hunters Point neighborhood is the type of investment our City needs to improve public housing, create jobs and build sustainable communities. We are also supporting educational opportunities and expanding economic development in a community where we need it most,” said Mayor Lee. “I thank the leadership of HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan for choosing the Alice Griffith community and the larger Bayview neighborhood as recipients of the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative Grant, Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom for starting the job of rebuilding our public housing under HOPE SF, and Senator Dianne Feinstein and Leader Nancy Pelosi for their ongoing support of this project and stewardship in our communities and our City.”
“The revitalization of Alice Griffith is critical to San Francisco’s long-term goals for the Bayview neighborhood,” said U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein. “This $30.5 million investment from HUD is a vote of confidence in San Francisco that will spur economic development and create more than 1,200 units of affordable housing, while leveraging resources to build infrastructure, improve the community and put Californians back to work.”
“Today, San Francisco has secured more than an investment in new housing; our City has begun to transform a neighborhood, revitalize a community, strengthen our economy, and provide a fresh start for the families of Alice Griffith,” said Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi. “It is a source of pride for all San Franciscans that the federal government has placed this down payment on this new development. We look forward to working together to ensure the success of this effort in the future.”
“Building sustainable public housing for our communities is one of the best investments we can make, and that is why we started HOPE SF,” said Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom. “Today is another historic step for the Bayview as we are not just building public housing, but revitalizing the whole community. HUD’s $30.5 million grant for Alice Griffith will help California create jobs and invest in our community.”
“The Choice Neighborhoods Initiative expands on the bipartisan success of the HOPE VI program by recognizing that we must link affordable housing with a mix of incomes and uses with quality education, public transportation, good jobs and safe streets,” said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan.
“This new and important federal HUD grant will provide San Francisco with the financial leverage to rebuild and improve the 50-year old Alice Griffith public housing development and the surrounding neighborhood in the Bayview District,” said HUD Region IX Administrator Ophelia Basgal. “The Choice Neighborhoods program funding recognizes that San Francisco had in place strong long-range plans for the Bayview neighborhood and committed community partners. Now the partnership can move forward to accomplish our shared goal of creating and fostering sustainable communities.”
HUD’s Choice Neighborhoods Initiative promotes the transformation of impoverished areas into viable, mixed-income neighborhoods with access to economic opportunities. Choice Neighborhoods focuses on the public and private sectors working together to revitalize severely distressed public housing and generate investments in well-functioning services, effective schools, public assets, public transportation, and improved access to jobs.
The Alice Griffith Plan implements the mission of the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative through a public-private partnership between the City, the San Francisco Housing Authority (SFHA), San Francisco Redevelopment Agency (SFRA), San Francisco Unified School District, and the development team comprised of McCormack Baron Salazar, Lennar Urban, and Urban Strategies, Inc. Together, this team is leveraging the benefits of the Redevelopment Agency’s and Lennar Urban’s development plan for Hunters Point Shipyard-Phase 2 and Candlestick Point, which includes the complete revitalization of Alice Griffith, over 10,000 new market-rate and below-market housing units, new parks, retail, and transportation improvements, and investments in job and workforce development, education, and community health and wellness programs.
“HUD’s decision to support the Alice Griffith revitalization demonstrates that the Candlestick Point redevelopment is not only a local priority, but that the plan is also of national significance and scope,” said McCormack Baron Salazar’s Tony Salazar. “With the Choice Neighborhood Initiatives grant, the residents of Alice Griffith and people of all incomes are assured a place in the new community. The grant would not have been awarded without the hard work of our exceptional team, led by the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency and with our partners at the Mayor’s Office, Housing Authority, Lennar Urban, Urban Strategies, the School District, and the many service providers and organizations who stepped up to support the application.”
“We want to thank HUD for selecting us for the grant award,” said SFHA Executive Director Henry Alvarez III. “This will be essential in furthering our goals to build and strengthen communities by integrating public housing and its leaseholders into the larger social, economic and physical fabric, and thereby creating a seamless community in San Francisco.”
“The Redevelopment Agency is thrilled to receive the generous grant of $30.5 million in Choice Neighborhoods funding from HUD to support the revitalization of the Alice Griffith Public Housing Development, the City’s HOPE SF Initiative and the larger transformation plans for Candlestick Point and the Hunters Point Shipyard,” said SFRA Director Fred Blackwell. “The new housing, community facilities, social services and economic opportunities for the residents that are supported by this grant are critical elements to transforming this historically underserved community into a vibrant and thriving San Francisco neighborhood.”
“I am thrilled that SFUSD is working together with the City and community agencies to bring more resources to the Bayview community,” said SFUSD Superintendent of Schools Carlos Garcia. “The Federal government’s investment in the Bayview will help us create a national model for neighborhoods in which children and families live, learn and thrive.”
“Alice Griffith residents have been waiting for this moment for far too long,” said District 10 Supervisor Malia Cohen. “After more than a decade of community based planning and advocacy, with HUD’s Choice Neighborhood’s Grant funding, we will finally be able to move forward in implementing the revitalization of this community. This is truly and exciting day for the residents of Alice Griffith and the Bayview community as a whole.”
“Revitalizing the Alice Griffith Public Housing Development and transforming the surrounding Bayview and Hunters Point neighborhood is the type of investment our City needs to improve public housing, create jobs and build sustainable communities. We are also supporting educational opportunities and expanding economic development in a community where we need it most,” said Mayor Lee. “I thank the leadership of HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan for choosing the Alice Griffith community and the larger Bayview neighborhood as recipients of the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative Grant, Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom for starting the job of rebuilding our public housing under HOPE SF, and Senator Dianne Feinstein and Leader Nancy Pelosi for their ongoing support of this project and stewardship in our communities and our City.”
“The revitalization of Alice Griffith is critical to San Francisco’s long-term goals for the Bayview neighborhood,” said U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein. “This $30.5 million investment from HUD is a vote of confidence in San Francisco that will spur economic development and create more than 1,200 units of affordable housing, while leveraging resources to build infrastructure, improve the community and put Californians back to work.”
“Today, San Francisco has secured more than an investment in new housing; our City has begun to transform a neighborhood, revitalize a community, strengthen our economy, and provide a fresh start for the families of Alice Griffith,” said Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi. “It is a source of pride for all San Franciscans that the federal government has placed this down payment on this new development. We look forward to working together to ensure the success of this effort in the future.”
“Building sustainable public housing for our communities is one of the best investments we can make, and that is why we started HOPE SF,” said Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom. “Today is another historic step for the Bayview as we are not just building public housing, but revitalizing the whole community. HUD’s $30.5 million grant for Alice Griffith will help California create jobs and invest in our community.”
“The Choice Neighborhoods Initiative expands on the bipartisan success of the HOPE VI program by recognizing that we must link affordable housing with a mix of incomes and uses with quality education, public transportation, good jobs and safe streets,” said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan.
“This new and important federal HUD grant will provide San Francisco with the financial leverage to rebuild and improve the 50-year old Alice Griffith public housing development and the surrounding neighborhood in the Bayview District,” said HUD Region IX Administrator Ophelia Basgal. “The Choice Neighborhoods program funding recognizes that San Francisco had in place strong long-range plans for the Bayview neighborhood and committed community partners. Now the partnership can move forward to accomplish our shared goal of creating and fostering sustainable communities.”
HUD’s Choice Neighborhoods Initiative promotes the transformation of impoverished areas into viable, mixed-income neighborhoods with access to economic opportunities. Choice Neighborhoods focuses on the public and private sectors working together to revitalize severely distressed public housing and generate investments in well-functioning services, effective schools, public assets, public transportation, and improved access to jobs.
The Alice Griffith Plan implements the mission of the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative through a public-private partnership between the City, the San Francisco Housing Authority (SFHA), San Francisco Redevelopment Agency (SFRA), San Francisco Unified School District, and the development team comprised of McCormack Baron Salazar, Lennar Urban, and Urban Strategies, Inc. Together, this team is leveraging the benefits of the Redevelopment Agency’s and Lennar Urban’s development plan for Hunters Point Shipyard-Phase 2 and Candlestick Point, which includes the complete revitalization of Alice Griffith, over 10,000 new market-rate and below-market housing units, new parks, retail, and transportation improvements, and investments in job and workforce development, education, and community health and wellness programs.
“HUD’s decision to support the Alice Griffith revitalization demonstrates that the Candlestick Point redevelopment is not only a local priority, but that the plan is also of national significance and scope,” said McCormack Baron Salazar’s Tony Salazar. “With the Choice Neighborhood Initiatives grant, the residents of Alice Griffith and people of all incomes are assured a place in the new community. The grant would not have been awarded without the hard work of our exceptional team, led by the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency and with our partners at the Mayor’s Office, Housing Authority, Lennar Urban, Urban Strategies, the School District, and the many service providers and organizations who stepped up to support the application.”
“We want to thank HUD for selecting us for the grant award,” said SFHA Executive Director Henry Alvarez III. “This will be essential in furthering our goals to build and strengthen communities by integrating public housing and its leaseholders into the larger social, economic and physical fabric, and thereby creating a seamless community in San Francisco.”
“The Redevelopment Agency is thrilled to receive the generous grant of $30.5 million in Choice Neighborhoods funding from HUD to support the revitalization of the Alice Griffith Public Housing Development, the City’s HOPE SF Initiative and the larger transformation plans for Candlestick Point and the Hunters Point Shipyard,” said SFRA Director Fred Blackwell. “The new housing, community facilities, social services and economic opportunities for the residents that are supported by this grant are critical elements to transforming this historically underserved community into a vibrant and thriving San Francisco neighborhood.”
“I am thrilled that SFUSD is working together with the City and community agencies to bring more resources to the Bayview community,” said SFUSD Superintendent of Schools Carlos Garcia. “The Federal government’s investment in the Bayview will help us create a national model for neighborhoods in which children and families live, learn and thrive.”
“Alice Griffith residents have been waiting for this moment for far too long,” said District 10 Supervisor Malia Cohen. “After more than a decade of community based planning and advocacy, with HUD’s Choice Neighborhood’s Grant funding, we will finally be able to move forward in implementing the revitalization of this community. This is truly and exciting day for the residents of Alice Griffith and the Bayview community as a whole.”