Mayor London N. Breed today announced the groundbreaking of a new housing complex at 1064 Mission Street for adults and seniors who are exiting homelessness. The new site will be the largest Permanent Supportive Housing facility in San Francisco, adding 256 units to San Francisco’s affordable housing portfolio, including 103 units specifically for seniors. Once completed in late 2021, 1064 Mission will also house the City’s new Homeless Services Center, including the San Francisco Homeless Outreach Team, the Street Medicine Team, and the relocated Department of Public Health Urgent Care Clinic.
“1064 Mission Street will provide stable housing and supportive services for hundreds of our most vulnerable residents. Permanent Supportive Housing is an integral part of our Homelessness Recovery Plan, and every new unit we add helps people exit our shelter system and makes more space available in shelter for people who are currently on the streets,” said Mayor Breed. “In addition to housing, this site will offer much-needed workforce development and will provide a centralized location for our City’s homelessness services. Thanks to Episcopal Community Services and Mercy Housing for working with the City on this exciting project.”
This project is part of Mayor Breed’s Homelessness Recovery Plan, which will expand capacity in the City’s Homelessness Response System and make 6,000 placements available for people experiencing homelessness over the next two years.
The lot at 1064 Mission Street was formerly the parking lot for the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. In 2017, in collaboration with San Francisco’s federal delegation, the City acquired the site from the federal government for $1 for the purposes of developing housing for people experiencing homelessness.
“For San Franciscans, solving homelessness is not an issue, it’s a value,” said Speaker Nancy Pelosi. “I was proud to play my part in helping secure this federal property for just $1. Today, we are one step closer to transforming this parking lot into permanent, supportive housing to ensure compassionate solutions to aid people experiencing homelessness and housing insecurity.”
1064 Mission Street is a collaborative partnership between the Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development (MOHCD), the Department of Public Health (DPH), the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing (HSH), Mercy Housing, and Episcopal Community Services (ECS). Mercy Housing is developing the property, which ECS will own, operate, and provide wraparound services to the site’s future residents. Both Mercy Housing and Episcopal Community Services have a decades-long history of commitment to housing the most vulnerable San Franciscans.
“I’m thrilled that we are breaking ground on 1064 Mission Street,” said Supervisor Matt Haney. “This project will directly help people find housing and stability. Not only will this be the largest permanent supportive housing site in District 6, we will have on-site services to ensure that residents in the 256 units here are cared for and have access to life-saving resources. This work is more important than ever and I want to thank ECS and Mercy Housing for their leadership in making this happen.”
“If 2020 has taught us anything, it’s how critical it is to have a home,” said Doug Shoemaker, President, Mercy Housing California. “We also know that if we want to end homelessness, we have to find new strategies like modular housing which dramatically reduces cost and saves time in construction. With Factory OS as a partner, we saved money while maintaining quality and paying workers a union wage.”
In addition to providing Permanent Supportive Housing to 256 formerly homeless San Franciscans, 1064 Mission Street will support a 6,000 square foot commercial kitchen space for ECS’ signature social enterprise program: Conquering Homelessness through Employment in Food Services (CHEFS). CHEFS is a no cost, 12-week training program that combines classroom instruction, case management, in-kitchen hands-on training, employment auditions, and paid internships at local restaurants and institutional kitchens for people who have experienced homelessness.
“The new CHEFS Kitchen at 1064 Mission St. will allow an additional 300 people per year to participate in job training through the CHEFS program, developing skills that will enable them to alleviate poverty through careers in the food industry,” said Beth Stokes, Executive Director of ECS. “This facility will allow ECS to demonstrate its deep investment in workforce development programs that are instrumental in providing our clients with meaningful and rewarding employment to support their long-term stability and wellbeing.”
“The Homeless Services Center is the new clinical home of San Francisco’s Whole Person Care program, a collaboration of multiple City departments that can link people experiencing homelessness to housing, benefits, and health care,” said Dr. Grant Colfax, Director of Health. “DPH will provide primary care, urgent care, behavioral health, and dental services in the new Center. Our vision is to connect more people to more of the services they need, all under one roof, with wraparound care.”
“Housing is the solution to homelessness and is a critical component of our Homeless Response System of care, which moves thousands of people into stability every year,” said Abigail Stewart-Kahn, Interim director of San Francisco’s Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing. “Throughout this public health crisis, it is imperative to protect the most vulnerable in our community with the Mayor’s long-term Homeless Recovery Plan and to ensure that San Francisco is a livable city for everyone.”
“Under the leadership of Mayor Breed, and as part of the Homelessness Recovery Plan, breaking ground on 1064 Mission realizes our commitment to invest in and develop housing for our unhoused neighbors most in need,” said Eric Shaw, MOHCD Director. “We are thrilled to move forward with the largest permanent supportive housing site in San Francisco, and recognize that safe affordable housing with wraparound services are crucial in these turbulent times.”
ECS is currently engaged in a capital campaign to raise $2.5 million to build the new CHEFS Kitchen at 1064 Mission Street. Construction funding for 1064 Mission was secured through a $76 million loan from the Community Development Division of JP Morgan & Chase Co. Century Housing provided the developers with a $1.5 million loan, and $53 million in funding was provided by the National Equity Fund through tax credit syndication proceeds.
Major financing for 1064 Mission Street was provided by a $72.9 million investment from MOHCD, including $27.8 million in financing from the California Department of Housing and Community Development’s No Place Like Home Program which the City applied for, and $13.5 million from DPH and HSH to support the operations for the new Homeless Services Center and Urgent Care Clinic.
About Episcopal Community Services
Episcopal Community Services (ECS) has provided essential services to homeless San Franciscans since 1983, utilizing a holistic approach that addresses the complex causes leading to homelessness. Last year, they served more than 13,000 people, guided by their mission to help homeless and very low-income people every day and every night obtain the housing, jobs, shelter, and essential services each person needs to prevent and end homelessness.
About Mercy Housing
Mercy Housing is a national nonprofit organization and one of the nation’s largest affordable housing organizations, working to build a more humane world where poverty is alleviated, communities are healthy, and all people can develop their full potential. Mercy believes that affordable housing and supportive programs improve the economic status of residents, revitalize neighborhoods, and stabilize lives. Mercy Housing develops, preserves, manages and/or finances affordable, program-enriched housing in 41 states and serves a variety of populations with housing projects for low-income families, seniors and people with special needs.
