► An Update on the Developer Selection Process
Wednesday, July 20, 2022, marked another milestone in the ongoing procurement process for the Potrero Yard Modernization Project. The period to receive revised proposals is now closed. The SFMTA plans to select a developer team by fall 2022.
Following selection of the preferred developer, staff will seek the approval of the SFMTA Board to award the project’s predevelopment agreement to the preferred developer. Work under the predevelopment agreement is expected to start by winter 2022.
We will continue to provide project updates to the public and SFMTA Board as we move forward.
► Next Potrero Yard Tour is Wednesday, August 17
Our tours of Potrero Yard continue to be the hottest transit ticket in town and fill up quickly. Reservations are now available for the next tours of Potrero Yard, scheduled for Wednesday, August 17, at 3:00 & 4:15 p.m. The tour offers an interesting behind-the-scenes look at how a transit yard works and shows why the 107-year-old facility needs to be rebuilt.
As you may have seen in San Francisco’s recent June 7 election, Proposition A, the Muni Reliability and Street Safety Bond, received an overwhelming majority of support at 65.11%. However, this was just short of the 66.67% required for passage. This type of bond measure needed a super majority to pass, not just a majority or even the 55% threshold required for school bond measures.
You may be wondering if the loss of Prop A impacts the Potrero Yard Modernization Project. Prop A would have provided $400 million for transportation infrastructure projects, including $250 million for the repair and renovation of SFMTA bus yards, facilities and equipment. Several transit facilities would have been eligible for these funds, including Potrero Yard.
Given Potrero Yard’s direct importance to the growth and electrification of the Muni fleet, the SFMTA is committed to upgrading this 107-year-old, obsolete facility with a new yard — despite challenges from the loss of Prop A. A modern Potrero Yard is needed to provide space for additional buses and to supply charging infrastructure for battery electric buses to transition Muni to a 100% zero-emission fleet.
Large facilities projects like Potrero Yard rely on a broad funding package and not a single source for funding. Additional funds for the bus facility are needed in about five years, after the new Potrero Yard is substantially complete. Funding would need to come from the SFMTA’s operating and capital budgets, as well as state and federal grant funding. The development of housing above the bus yard will not cost the SFMTA any transportation dollars. The developer is responsible for constructing, maintaining and operating the housing component.
The Potrero Yard Project continues to move forward, and the procurement process is ongoing. As mentioned above, we reached another milestone this week as the period to receive revised proposals closed. We plan to select a developer team by the fall.
While upgrading Potrero Yard is essential, it is one step in the SFMTA’s overall journey to improve transit facilities to support more reliable Muni service and further reduce its carbon footprint with a 100% zero-emission fleet. That overall path is now more difficult with the loss of Prop A. The SFMTA is aggressively pursuing state and federal funding to fill the gap for a number of these electrification and other projects. We are encouraged that earlier this month, the California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA) awarded the SFMTA $116 million for Core Capacity projects. This historic investment will be used to directly fund projects that will make Muni more reliable and dependable.
► July 9 Muni Service Changes
The 6 Haight/Parnassus is one of the Muni bus routes brought back into service July 9, 2022 after being temporarily suspended since March 2020.
The most recent Muni service changes went into effect on July 9, and the expanded bus service includes the 6 Haight/Parnassus. The 6 line comes out of Potrero Yard, and its return brings the total number of routes being serviced by Potrero Yard to six, matching the pre-COVID total. Read more about latest the service changes.
►Potrero Yard at Sunday Streets, July 10
Project staff had a blast on Sunday, July 10 representing the project and the agency at Sunday Streets on Valencia Street in The Mission. It was a glorious day, full of sunshine and music, and we made many connections with our community.
Members of the Potrero Yard Modernization Project team at Sunday Streets, July 10, 2022.