Golden Gate Village Master Development Agreement (MDA)

Public Housing / Golden Gate Village Revitalization

For many years, Congress has failed to fully fund federal housing programs, including the Public Housing Capital Fund and Public Housing Operating Fund. Currently, public housing authorities ("PHAs") only receive about 70 percent of the amount of money the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development ("HUD") has determined is needed to administer the Public Housing Program responsibly. This chronic underfunding has resulted in 250,000 public housing units being lost from the program, with more disappearing each year.

Marin Housing Authority ("MHA") owns and operates Golden Gate Village ("GGV"), a public housing project. GGV is income and rent restricted.  Incomes at initial occupancy are limited to 80% of the area median income, adjusted for household size.  Rents are restricted to 30% of the household's adjusted income.  GGV includes a total of 296 units in 29 buildings, including 44 one-bedroom units, 132 two-bedroom units, 111 three-bedroom units, and 9 four-bedroom units.  The site is approximately 31.39 acres and located on a single parcel.

In 1957, MHA chose Frank Lloyd Wright's protege, Aaron Green, and another noted local architect, John Carl Warnecke, to design GGV. Construction was completed in 1961. In 2017, GGV was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  Significant deferred maintenance and capital improvements are needed at the property.  The age of the buildings and inadequate funding for operations and capital needs for public housing have led to the need for a comprehensive revitalization and recapitalization of the buildings.

In November 2022, the MHA Board of Commissioners approved the Golden Gate Village Redevelopment Framework to guide MHA and communicate the project's goals, requirements and approach.  Goals for the revitalization of GGV include:

1) No resident will lose their housing due to the revitalization and residents can return to their unit,

2) Complete a comprehensive revitalization of the buildings and grounds,

3) Honor the historic integrity of the "Marin City Public Housing" district (ie. GGV),

4) Implement green and sustainable measures as part of the revitalization, and

5) Preserve GGV as affordable rental housing.

As a means for achieving these goals, the Golden Gate Village Redevelopment Framework identified converting GGV from public housing to Project Based Vouchers ("PBVs") and leveraging Low Income Housing Tax Credits, permanent debt and other available sources of funding as the preferred financial plan.  MHA will utilize the HUD Rental Assistance Demonstration / Section 18 Construction Blend ("RAD/Section 18 Construction Blend") program to complete the revitalization. In addition, the Framework called for engagement of a developer partner to assist with the successful revitalization of GGV.

MHA previously selected Burbank Housing Development Corporation ("Burbank Housing") as the developer partner to aid in the revitalization of GGV.  This selection was made through a competitive Request for Qualifications ("RFQ"). The RFQ utilized the Golden Gate Village Redevelopment Framework adopted by resolution as a basis for selecting a developer partner.  Following prior Board approval, MHA and Burbank Housing entered an Exclusive Right to Negotiate Agreement ("ERNA") to implement pre-development planning and scoping of the revitalization project to determine feasibility. In April, the Board received a report which outlined the scope of the revitalization ad determined that the revitalization project is feasible. Following this feasibility, the ERNA anticipated a Master Development Agreement ("MDA") would be negotiated.

Prior Board Actions

The MHA Board of Commissioners has taken a series of prior actions all in support of the Golden Gate Village Redevelopment Framework and revitalization. These actions include:

• January 2022:  Established rehabilitation as the preferred option for revitalizing GGV.
• November 2022: Adopted the Redevelopment Framework for GGV and instructed staff to proceed with selecting a developer partner for the revitalization.
• November 2023: Selected Burbank Housing as MHA's developer partner for the revitalization of GGV.
• April 2024: Approved an ERNA with Burbank Housing that defines the predevelopment tasks and further formalizes the commitment to the revitalization goals.
• October 2024: Approved submission of a RAD application to HUD for GGV.
• January 2025: Approved an amendment to the ERNA with Burbank Housing to ensure frequent and clear communication with GGV residents.
• April 2025: Approved an Option to Lease and Purchase agreement, submitting a Low Income Housing Tax Credit application, forming all entities necessary to develop and finance Phase 1, and issuing California Environmental Quality Act ("CEQA") notice of exemption.

The tax credit application for the Phase 1 revitalization was submitted at the end of May. The next step in the revitalization process is to approve the MDA and begin the process of reaching out to households within Phase 1 to better understand their temporary relocation needs. This request to consider the MDA is consistent with the prior MHA Board of Commissioners actions.

Master Development Agreement

The MDA details the scope of the project, budget, and schedule for the redevelopment of GGV, with particular emphasis on Phase 1, and the business terms between MHA and Burbank Housing.  The MDA builds on the prior RFQ and ERNA that defined the project vision, goals and approach.  Attachment 1 provides the final version of the MDA as negotiated by MHA and Burbank Housing.