San Francisco elected officials are poised this year to consider two more steps aimed at removing financial obstacles to office-to-housing conversion projects — one to exempt them from development fees and affordable- housing requirements, the other to take advantage of a new state law allowing property taxes to go back to such projects .
The mass adoption of remote work in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic had a devastating impact on downtown San Francisco’s economy , with an estimated 147,303 fewer office workers visiting the area than they once did, according to a 2023 city report.
With many office buildings still standing largely empty, particularly older ones lacking amenities, city and state officials have been trying through various means, like waiving planning code and tax requirements, to make it easier to convert underutilized office buildings into housing. The goal is not only to house more people but also to diversify the economic life of downtown…