Developers eye Transbay blocks
San Francisco Business Times, August 26, 2011

The developer that wins the competition to construct 450 units of mixed-income housing near the Transbay Terminal will have to pay the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency $18 million for the land, or $15 million if the builder is willing to work out a participation payment plan with the city.

About a dozen developers showed up at a Aug. 2 meeting with redevelopment officials to learn more about blocks 6 and 7, development parcels that are slated for 450 housing units — 300 market rate and 150 affordable. The project will include a 300-foot tower, a 50-foot townhome building, and 150 affordable family rental units in multiple buildings ranging from 35 feet to 85 feet. The Redevelopment Agency is committed to provided a $200,000 per-unit subsidy for the affordable part of the project.

The payment for the land is due when the building receives its temporary certificate of occupancy, or December 2016, whichever comes first.

Developers that showed up for a pre-submittal meeting included AvalonBay, Avant Housing, Legacy Partners    , and the Related Cos., all groups that have been active in the Bay Area for years. On the affordable side, the developers chasing the project include Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corp., Bridge Housing, and the Chinatown CDC.

There were also a few developers that have not built in the city. CityView, the group chaired by former HUD Secretary Henry Cisneros, had a representative at the meeting. Also present were executives from ONNI Group, a large Vancouver-based developer.

Blocks 6 and 7 are on Folsom Street, between Beale and Fremont streets. The project will be the first major development on the north side of Folsom Street, which is being redeveloped as a pedestrian-friendly “main street” linking Transbay district and Rincon Hill to the south.

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