Budget and Finance Committee Regular Meeting – April 3, 2024
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Budget and Finance Committee Regular Meeting – April 3, 2024
The Budget and Finance Committee of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors met on April 3, 2024, at 6:15 PM under the chairmanship of Supervisor Connie Chan, joined by Vice Chair Rafael Mandelman and Supervisor Myrna Melgar. The committee considered seven agenda items, including amendments to water supply agreements, retroactive grant acceptances, a Community Stabilization Fund expenditure, a lease continuation for an observation wheel, a Union Square revitalization grant, and a rent relief amendment for duty-free concessions at San Francisco International Airport. Public comment was called on each item but no speakers appeared. With the exception of item number five (SkyStar Wheel lease), which was continued to the call of the chair, all items were forwarded to the full Board of Supervisors with positive recommendations.
Discussion Items
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Item 1 – Santa Clara Valley Water District Intertie Facility Agreement – The committee heard from Angela Chung of the SFPUC, who explained that the second amendment designates the Santa Clara Valley Water District as the operation and maintenance party for the intertie facility in Milpitas from July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2029. The arrangement is more efficient due to the district’s proximity and will have little financial impact (shared O&M costs about $50,000–$60,000 annually per party). The committee voted unanimously to forward with recommendation.
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Items 2 & 3 – Retroactive Grant Acceptances (Mental Health and Tobacco Prevention) – Angelica Jernigan (ZSFG) and Jen Kallaward (DPH) presented two grants: approximately $909,095 from the San Francisco General Hospital Foundation for the Transform Mental and Behavioral Health program, and approximately $2,888,144 from the California Department of Justice for the Youth Tobacco Sales Prevention Grant. Both grants required retroactive authorization due to timing of award notices. Supervisor Mandelman and Melgar added themselves as co-sponsors. The committee forwarded both resolutions unanimously.
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Item 4 – SoMa Community Stabilization Fund Expenditure ($890,000) – Grace Lee of MOHCD presented the expenditure resolution for eight grants to community-based organizations serving SoMa, recommended by the Community Advisory Committee. The BLA reported that the amounts are continuations of this fiscal year’s funding. The committee forwarded unanimously.
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Item 5 – SkyStar Wheel Lease (Continued) – The Port requested a continuance to the call of the chair. The committee voted unanimously to continue the item. No public comment was heard.
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Item 6 – Union Square Park Revitalization Grant ($2,000,000) – Neil Patel (Rec & Park) and Jacob Bintliff (OEWD) presented a retroactive grant from the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development to modernize cafe spaces in Union Square. Discussion focused on a prior $444,000 activation grant to the tenant (The Greater Organization / Tyler Florence) and the scope of capital improvements. The grant term ends December 31, 2026. Supervisor Mandelman added as co-sponsor. The committee forwarded unanimously.
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Item 7 – DFS Group Lease Amendment (SFO Duty-Free) – Airport staff presented the fourth amendment to extend a reduced percentage rent structure (36% of gross revenues, down from 45.8%) and set a reduced minimum annual guarantee of $30 million through 2026. The BLA estimated $10 million annual rent relief, with a $1.5 million annual impact on the General Fund. Supervisors Chan and Melgar questioned long-term strategy and diversification of retail offerings, noting shifts in luxury shopping trends and the need to attract tourists from Latin America. The committee forwarded unanimously.
Key Outcomes
- Item 1: Forwarded to full board with positive recommendation (3-0).
- Items 2 & 3: Forwarded to full board with positive recommendation (3-0).
- Item 4: Forwarded to full board with positive recommendation (3-0).
- Item 5: Continued to call of the chair (3-0).
- Item 6: Forwarded to full board with positive recommendation (3-0).
- Item 7: Forwarded to full board with positive recommendation (3-0).
- The committee noted that the afternoon Budget and Appropriation Committee meeting was cancelled and that the next regular meeting would be on April 16, 2024, after the legislative spring recess.
Meeting Transcript
Good morning. The meeting will come to order. Welcome to the April 3rd, 2024 meeting of the Budget and Finance Committee. I'm Supervisor Connie Chan, Chair of the Committee. I'm joined by Vice Chair Rafael Mendelman and Supervisor Mirna Melgar. Our clerk is Brent Talipa. I would like to thank Kalina Mendoza for from SFGov TV for broadcasting this meeting. Mr. Clerk, do you have any announcement? Thank you, Madam Chair. Just a friendly reminder to those in attendance to please make sure to silence all cell phones and electronic devices to prevent interruptions to our meetings. Should you have any documents to be included as part of the file, they should be submitted to myself, the clerk. Public comment will be taken on each item on this agenda when your item of interest comes up and public comment is called. Please line up to speak on the west side of the chamber to your right, my left along those curtains. And while not necessary to provide public comment, we do invite you to fill out a comment card and leave them on the trade by the television to your left by the doors. If you wish to be accurately recorded for the minutes, alternatively, you may submit public comment in writing in either of the following ways. Email them to myself, the budget and finance committee clerk at B R E N T dot J A L I P A at SF G-O-V dot O R G. If you submit public comment via email, it will be forwarded to the supervisors and also included as part of the official file. You may also send your written comments via U.S. Postal Service to our office in City Hall at one. Dr. Carlton B got the place, room 244, San Francisco, California, 94102. And uh, Madam Chair, due to our legislative spring recess, items acted upon today are expected to appear on the Board of Supervisors' agenda of April 16th, unless otherwise stated. Madam Chair. Thank you, Mr. Clerk, and uh just wanted to remind the public and everyone and that for again today's on um item four and item seven are the ones that with our budget and legislative analyst report. And so for those items we'll go to department presentation, the budget and legislative analysts report, then we'll go to questions and then public comment. And with that though, um apologies. I would like to call um items out of order a little bit today. Uh so Mr. Clark, could you call item number five? Item number five. Is a resolution exempting from the competitive bidding policy set forth in the administrative code. The potential lease on a portion of the east end of seawall lot 301 with Sky Star Wheel LLC for the continued operation of an observation wheel and adopting environmental findings under the California Environmental Quality Act. Madam Chair. Thank you. Colleagues, uh SF Port is requesting a continuance to the call of chair. Um, and so I would like to uh contain this item, but before we do, um seeing no name on the roster, we do not have comments from this committee. Let's go to public comment on this item. Yes, uh, we now invite members of the public who have joined us today who wish to speak on this item with lineup now and speak along the windows to your right, uh, my left. And please come forward to the electorate and all speakers. We'll have two minutes to speak. Madam Chair, we have no speakers. Thank you. Seeing no public comments, public comment is now closed. Colleagues, I would like to make the motion to contain this item to the call chair, and with that, a roll call, please. And on that motion to continue this resolution to the call of the chair, Vice Chair Mandelman, Mandelman I, Member Melgar, Melgar I, Chair Chan. Aye. Chan I. We have three ayes.
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