SAN FRANCISCO—The city of San Francisco is looking to turn the Granada Hotel, located in Nob Hill, into a permanently supportive housing property. The city is hoping to use a type of state grant that would allow acquisition of the property, and yield up to $45 million, the San Francisco Examiner first reported.
The Granada Hotel is a 232 unit, single-room occupancy building on Sutter Street, with primarily senior residents. The building was sold last year, which created fear among residents that they could be evicted or displaced. This led San Francisco Board of Supervisor, Aaron Peskin, to introduce a resolution to introduce the grant, which would buy the building and therefore protect the residents’ housing.
The grant is being sought for San Francisco’s Episcopal Community Services, which would buy the building. The money would come from California’s $600 million HomeKey program.
According to the city of San Francisco, if the grant comes through, the Episcopal Community Services would be required to buy the building by December 30, and the occupancy requirements must be satisfied within 90 days after the purchase. The grant would protect current residents, but because the grant is looking to turn the building into supportive housing, it means the building could become another property the city is using to house homeless residents.
HomeKey, the program providing the money for the grant, has acquired numerous other properties across San Francisco and converted them into housing for homeless populations.
“HomKey is the first effort of its kind in the nation and is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to protect the most vulnerable people in our state,” said Governor Gavin Newsom in a press statement earlier in the week.
