Bay Area’s Candlestick Heights to Offer Crucial Affordable Housing

By Jeffrey Steele, Contributing Writer

San Francisco—Financing is in place for acquisition and development of Candlestick Heights, a 196-unit affordable rental community just to the west of Candlestick Park in San Francisco. The 11-building project brings together New York-based L+M Development Partners and Bayview Hunters Point Multipurpose Senior Services (BHPMSS), a 42-year-old community-based non-profit working to improve quality of life in the Bayview Hunters Point district.

Oakland-based Holliday Development played a key role in the project‘s Phase I, having stabilized the property when the recession jeopardized the original financing and development plan. Prior to its recent acquisition, the existing property consisted of 66 complete, unsold apartments.

Those apartments began leasing immediately for spring 2013 occupancies. The remainder of the project has begun, with work expected to last 16 months. The general contractor is Cannon Constructors Inc. and the property manager is C&C Affordable Management LLC; the management affiliate of L+M. C&C will market the development’s apartments in cooperation with BHPMSS.

When complete, Candlestick Heights will feature 350,000 square feet of floor space, 280,000 square feet of which will be residential.

Demand for affordable housing in San Francisco is acute, and Candlestick Heights will in part address that need. The development will be comprised of one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom apartments earmarked for households with incomes less than 60 percent of Area Median Income (AMI) for San Francisco.

“The development of Candlestick Heights is a great opportunity for us to expand affordable living options in San Francisco, where reasonably-priced homes for working families are hard to come by,” says Ron Moelis, CEO of L+M Development Partners, an innovator in the development of affordable, mixed-income and market-rate housing. “We’re looking forward to broadening L+M’s work to California, and hope that Candlestick Heights will be our first of many successful, collaborative projects with local partners in the area.”

In accordance with California’s Tax Credit Allocating Committee regulations, Candlestick Heights will meet Title 24 energy efficiency requirements and offer a number of sustainable elements. Notable features will include landscaped gardens and play areas in between-building courtyards, ample garage parking and a BHPMSS-administered on-site after-school program.

The development of Candlestick Heights was made possible by one of the largest tax-credit deals in California, involving the collaboration of Citi Community Capital (Citi) and Wells Fargo.

Citi purchased $69.4 million in tax-exempt bonds issued by the City and County of San Francisco to fund acquisition costs and complete the construction of the development. Wells Fargo contributed substantial equity proceeds in exchange for low-income housing credits “as of right” to the project with the bonds.

Notes Cathy Davis, BHPMSS executive director: “Bayview Hunters Point Multipurpose Senior Services is thrilled to be a part of bringing workforce housing to people who live and work in the neighborhood. This project has been a long time in the making, and we know the future residents will make a positive contribution to the community.”