Balboa Reservoir

The notice of preparation of an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the Balboa Reservoir has been published and can be viewed here.
Visit the Balboa Reservoir CAC page for the latest updates and community events.

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What Is the Public Land for Housing Program?

To combat the challenges around affordable housing, San Francisco voters approved Proposition K in 2014, supporting citywide affordable housing goals, and a different Proposition K in 2015, calling for more affordable housing on public land. In 2014, the Mayor created the Public Land for Housing program, in which City agencies identify underutilized sites that could be used for housing. The City's goals are to develop these sites through community engagement; to deliver benefits to the public by using these sites; and to fulfill the public mission of the City agencies that own the sites. For more information, visit the Public Land for Housing page.

Project Overview

Planning is underway to develop the Balboa Reservoir site with mixed-income housing, open space and community amenities. This site is owned by the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) and located immediately west of City College's Ocean Campus, east of the Westwood Park neighborhood, and south of Archbishop Riordan High School.
After a 2-year outreach, visioning, and selection process, a developer team was chosen to partner with the City on the development of the Balboa Reservoir site. To learn more about the selection process, visit the SFPUC and the selected development team, led by BRIDGE Housing and AvalonBay, along with Mission Housing, Habitat for Humanity, and Pacific Union Development Company.

See Frequently Asked Questions on the Balboa Reservoir under Materials and Resources.

How can I participate?

Public Meetings and Tours

The Development team is currently refining a draft master plan, or "base plan", for the Balboa Reservoir site. The base plan will be used to begin the City's technical analysis of the potential impacts of developing the site. To see the currently proposed site plan, visit the April 9th presentation to the CAC

During this environmental review process, the City and the development team will continue with community design workshops and tours, providing the opportunity to discuss open space, streetscape, and architectural designs in more detail. Considerations like the types, designs, and activities of the Reservoir's parks will not affect the environmental analysis and will continue to be refined to ensure the project serves existing neighborhoods well.

See CAC meeting and community workshop schedules here.

Project Timeline

2009

Balboa Park Station Area Plan adopted

Nov 2014

Balboa Reservoir site identified for the Public Land for Housing Program

April 2015

Balboa Reservoir Community Advisory Committee (CAC) established 
Aug 2015 – Sep 2016 Development parameters established over the course of 16 CAC meetings
2017 Development team selected: AvalonBay Communities and BRIDGE Housing with Mission Housing, Pacific Union Development Company, and Habitat for Humanity of Greater San Francisco. To learn about the selection process, visit http://sfwater.org/balboa/community
2018-2020 Refinement of draft master plan, environmental review, and project approvals

Click on image to enlarge.Balboa Reservoir Project Timeline

Balboa Reservoir Community Advisory Committee (CAC)

The purpose of the CAC is to provide a community voice and function as a central clearinghouse for community input. The CAC serves in an advisory role, providing feedback to City staff reporting to the Mayor, the Board of Supervisors, and City departments.

Balboa Reservoir Community Advisory Committee (CAC) members are appointed by the Mayor and the District 7 Supervisor. CAC member biographies can be found here. The CAC is composed of the following community representatives:

  • Sunnyside Neighborhood Association Designated Representative: Amy O'Hair [email]
  • Westwood Park Neighborhood Association Designated Representative: Michael Ahrens [email]
  • OMI Resident: Maurice Rivers
  • City College Employee or Trustee: Brigitte Davila [email]
  • Member of Balboa Park Station Area Plan CAC: Robert Muehlbauer [email]
  • Ocean Avenue Business Owner: Howard Chung [email]
  • SFPUC CAC Member: Mark Tang [email]
  • At-Large Seat #1: Christine Godinez, Lick Wilmerding HS [email]
  • At-Large Seat #2: Jon Winston, Sunnyside Resident [email]

CAC Resources

Project History

In late 2014, the Mayor's Office of Economic and Workforce Development, the Planning Department and the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission initiated a study of the SFPUC-owned Balboa Reservoir site, located off of Ocean and Phelan Avenues in Balboa Park. It is among the first sites   slated for San Francisco's Public Land for Housing Program, which utilizes City-owned land to address the City's most pressing housing issues. Download the initial study's existing planning conditions report here and existing transportation conditions report here.

The Balboa Park Station Area Plan, adopted in 2009, supports developing the Balboa Reservoir site for housing (Objective 4.4) and includes policies designed to increase affordable housing for a variety of incomes; create open space; knit together isolated areas of the neighborhood; integrate diverse land uses with the area's commercial and transit corridors; design streets for walking, biking and public transit; and otherwise strengthen the Balboa Park area. Now, through a public process, San Francisco is working to utilize the 17-acre SFPUC property to achieve many of these objectives. 
The Balboa Reservoir project is coordinated with several concurrent planning and construction projects in the Balboa Park Station Area, including City College of San Francisco's Facilities Master Plan process. City of San Francisco projects include:

Materials and Links

Contact

To submit questions or comments to City staff or members of the CAC, please contact:

Thomas Shanahan
Office of Economic and Workforce Development, City and County of San Francisco
City Hall, Room 448, 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, San Francisco, CA 94102-4653
Direct: 415-554-6512
Fax: 415-554-4565
BRCAC@sfgov.org

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