THE TODCO GROUP STORY

35 YEARS OF COMMUNITY ACCOMPLISHMENT AND NEIGHBORHOOD IMPACT

1971
TOOR Incorporates Tenants and Owners Development Corporation to Build Replacement Housing for Residential Hotels Demolished By the Yerba Buena Redevelopment Project
The idea of neighborhood-based housing development organizations – instead of public housing and church groups – was new, and TODCO was only the second "community-based housing development corporation" in San Francisco.

1973
Landmark "TOOR vs. HUD" Lawsuit Settlement Guarantees Yerba Buena Replacement Housing
Despite bitter political attacks against TOOR, the City and Redevelopment Agency were legally forced to provide four sites in Yerba Buena Center for new housing to replace demolished residential hotels, along with City Hotel Tax funds to finance their development.

1976
TODCO Begins Yerba Buena Housing Development Work
TODCO's first staff – organizers Steve Dutton, Sandy Marks, and TOOR’s co-founder Peter Mendelsohn – working with architect Robert Herman secured the initial project financing commitment from the California Housing Finance Agency to develop the first Yerba Buena TOOR site, Woolf House.

1979
Woolf House Phase 1 Opens in Yerba Buena
Named after TOOR’s co-founder and Chairman George Woolf who died in 1971, Woolf House opened with 112 new apartments for seniors at Fourth and Howard Streets in the heart of Yerba Buena Center.

1980
Dimasalang House Opens in Yerba Buena
A HUD-funded joint venture between TODCO and the Filipino-American Caballeros Dimasalang, Dimasalang House (since renamed San Lorenzo Ruiz Center) opened with 149 new apartments for seniors on the second TOOR housing site. TODCO withdrew from this joint-venture in 1986.

1981
TODCO Prepares the Yerba Buena Neighborhood Plan as a Community Vision for the Future
Working with the Yerba Buena Consortium neighborhood council, TODCO’s Plan first proposed creation of a real all-age, all-income residential Yerba Buena Neighborhood as one central goal of the Yerba Buena Redevelopment Area. 20 years later, the Consortium is as active as ever, and all but one of the Plan’s main recommendations – a local supermarket – have been achieved.

TODCO Buys Two Derelict Residential Hotels in the South Park Area to Prevent Their Demolition
South Park was a run down neighborhood a few blocks from Yerba Buena Center, and its Madrid Hotel and South Park Hotel had been shut down for public health violations. Ultimately these two hotels were renovated by Mission Housing Development Corp., and today provide rooms for the formerly homeless, even while South Park been transformed into a fashionable center of San Francisco's multimedia industry.

1982
Woolf House Phase 2 Opens
This first addition to Woolf House, also financed by the California Housing Finance Agency with additional City Hotel Tax funding, added 70 more new apartments for seniors.

TODCO's Civic Advocacy Secures a Commitment to Affordable Housing in the Future Rincon Point/South Beach Redevelopment Area
Working as a member of the Northeast Waterfront Citizens Advisory Committee, TODCO secured an overall goal that 50% of the new waterfront project's housing would be affordable. As a result, after 20 years over 600 affordable apartments have been developed, almost 30% of the total.

1984
Ceatrice Polite Apartments Opens in Yerba Buena
Named after stalwart TOOR advocate Ms. Ceatrice Polite, this HUD and City Hotel Tax -funded project added 91 new apartments for seniors on the third TOOR housing site.

1985
TODCO Starts the Resident Services/Activities Program To Provide Support Services for Tenants
Beginning with a small daily lunch Nutrition Program at Woolf House, TODCO's "RSAP" program has since grown to now provide each year over $1,000,000 of supportive social services, nutrition programs, special events, trips, arts programs, and activities for the almost 1,000 residents of TODCO housing.

TODCO Establishes Its Yerba Buena Housing Sites Trust Fund for Long Term Financial Self-Sufficiency
In setting up financing for the last TOOR Housing Site, TODCO and the City of San Francisco established a $1,500,000 Trust fund to provide support over all asset management of the three TODCO YBC projects and their 492 total dwelling units.

1987
Mendelsohn House Opens in Yerba Buena
Named in honor of TOOR co-founder Peter Mendelsohn who had died in 1985, this HUD and City Hotel Tax funded project added 189 new apartments for seniors on the fourth and last TOOR Housing Site. In 1990 it was awarded the national American Institute of Architects Honor Award for its outstanding design.

TODCO Starts its Neighborhood Development Program to Provide Community Facilities for All Yerba Buena Residents
Beginning with the new North and South of Market Adult Day Health Center in Mendelsohn House, over the years TODCO has provided storefront spaces within its Yerba Buena housing for Senior Health Drop-In Center, Senior Power, and other community projects.

Alice Street Community Gardens Opens in Yerba Buena
Also part of the Mendelsohn House project and Neighborhood Development Program, this beautiful garden/park replaced the earlier Clementina Street community garden where Ceatrice Polite Apartments was built, providing 250 planter beds for all Yerba Buena Neighborhood residents.

1988
TODCO's Civic Advocacy Leads to Permanent City Hotel Tax Funding for Senior Housing Development
Set to expire with the completion of the four TOOR Housing Sites, TODCO initiated City legislation that has since provided almost $50 million of City Hotel Taxes for development of affordable senior housing throughout San Francisco.

1990
TODCO's Civic Advocacy Supports Comprehensive South of Market Rezoning to Protect Neighborhood Residents and Businesses
After a decade of community organizing and planning, TODCO and the South of Market Problem Solving Council neighborhood coalition convinced the City Planning Commission to approve rezoning SOMA west and south of Yerba Buena to protect its low-income residents and small business from displacement by expanding downtown development.

TODCO's Civic Advocacy Leads To Creation of New Sixth Street Redevelopment Area
Within months of the Loma Prieta Earthquake, TODCO and the South of Market Problem Solving Council neighborhood coalition convinced the City and Redevelopment Agency to establish the South of Market Earthquake Recovery Redevelopment Project, focused on making SOMA's Sixth Street "skid row" a decent place to live and rehabilitate its residential hotels.

TODCO Establishes the TODCO Development Company to Expand Its Housing Development Efforts
Securing annual City Community Development Block Grant funding, TODCO moved beyond its original Yerba Buena mission to address the future of all of South of Market by developing more affordable housing and community facilities, focusing on implementing the new Sixth Street Redevelopment Project.

1991
TODCO Starts Its Inner City Arts Program to Mobilize the Power of Creative Expression for Community Benefit with the Sixth Photography Workshop for Homeless and Hotel Tenants
Recognizing the power of the creative arts to transform individual lives and build community consciousness, for more than a decade TODCO has sponsored community arts projects, programs, and exhibits for Yerba Buena seniors and SOMA hotel tenants, notably the nationally recognized SSPW which published Positively Sixth Street in 1995.

1992
TODCO's Civic Advocacy Leads to a Neighborhood-Oriented Update of the Yerba Buena Center Redevelopment Plan
To implement the 1980 Neighborhood Plan, TODCO and the Yerba Buena Consortium convinced the Redevelopment Agency to rezone one-third of Yerba Buena for residential development and provide sites for additional affordable housing development.

TODCO's Civic Advocacy Leads to the City’s Commitment to Implement the "Pedestrian Safety Mitigation Plan" for the Fourth Street Corridor in Yerba Buena Center
To implement the 1980 Neighborhood Plan, TODCO and the Yerba Buena Consortium convinced the City to widen sidewalks and change traffic lights to protect elderly and disabled pedestrians as "environmental mitigation measures" for the expansion of Moscone Convention Center.

TODCO's Civic Advocacy Supports Redevelopment Agency Financing for the Sixth Street Redevelopment Project and $50 Million Commitment for Citywide Affordable Housing Development from the Golden Gateway Redevelopment Project
Working with the citywide Council of Community Housing Organizations, TODCO convinced the Redevelopment Agency and City to use the Golden Gateway/Embarcadero Center's huge "tax increment" funding for low-income communities.

1993
The TODCO Senior Poets' "Dare We Dream In Concrete" is Engraved on the Cornerstone of Yerba Buena Gardens
Another longtime TODCO Inner City Arts Program for senior/disabled Yerba Buena residents, the Senior Poets have written and presented commemorative works for many Yerba Buena civic events, beginning with the Dedication of the beautiful Yerba Buena Gardens.

1994
Knox SRO Is Completed and Opens, Sixth Street's First "New SRO"
Named in honor of determined TOOR activist Walter Knox who had died in 1987, this State and Redevelopment Agency funded project, a partnership with the Federal National Mortgage Association, added 140 new "single room occupancy" apartments for local residential hotel tenants – including even children – on the site of a slum hotel destroyed by the Loma Prieta earthquake.

1995
As part of its Neighborhood Development Program, TODCO Acts As Sponsor of the Collaborative Treasure Island Homeless Development Initiative Federal Application to Acquire Housing and Property at Treasure Island Naval Station for Homeless Programs
Working with a broad group of homeless advocacy and service organizations to form TIHDI, TODCO provided essential organization startup and fiscal sponsorship. Since then TIHDI has independently grown to secure 385 affordable apartments for the formerly homeless at Treasure Island, combined with a highly successful employment and training program.

TODCO's Civic Advocacy Secures First Yerba Buena Neighborhood Hiring Commitment for the Sony Metreon Project
Working with the South of Market Problem Solving Council, TODCO convinced the Redevelopment Agency to require a substantial and detailed SOMA neighborhood employment program for the first time. This plan became the model for all major Yerba Buena projects.

TODCO's Civic Advocacy Leads to the Redevelopment Agency's Construction of the Bowling Center in Yerba Buena Gardens for Central City Youth
Working with the South of Market Problem Solving Council, TODCO convinced the Redevelopment Agency to provide popular recreational activities within the Gardens as a positive alternative for youth to hanging out on the streets of SOMA and the Tenderloin.

"INNERCITY HOME" Mural Boldly Expresses Sixth Street Community Pride
As part of TODCO's Inner City Arts Program, artist Rigo '94 worked with Sixth Street hotel tenants to create this powerful statement of community identity, painted on the Knox SRO and visible for miles.

1996
Woolf House Phase 3 Opens
This final addition to Woolf House, financed by the California Department of Housing with additional City Hotel Tax funding, added 30 more new apartments for seniors.

1998
TODCO's Civic Advocacy Secures Redevelopment Agency Commitment to Build Replacement Housing for Sixth Street Residential Hotels
Threatening a lawsuit to prevent loss of affordable residential hotels, TODCO convinced the Redevelopment Agency to focus on providing new housing in SOMA to make up for any reduction in Sixth Street hotel rooms.

Leland Apartments Opens Near Sixth Street
Named after longtime SOMA resident and activist Lee Meyerzove, this HUD, Redevelopment Agency and City Hotel Tax -funded project added 24 new two bedroom apartments for persons with disabilities and their families. In 2000 it was awarded the national American Institute of Architects/HUD Alan J. Rothman Housing Accessibility Award for its outstanding design.

1999
Rehabilitated Hotel Isabel Opens One Block From Sixth Street
Named in honor of longtime SOMA resident leader and TODCO President Isabel Ugat, this HUD and Redevelopment Agency funded project, a partnership with the California Equity Fund of the Local Initiative Support Corporation, offered 72 residential hotel rooms for the formerly homeless, preventing its conversion into a tourist inn.

TODCO's Neighborhood Development Program Provides Space for South of Market Community Services in the Hotel Isabel
Using $300,000 of TODCO's working capital for tenant improvements, the Hotel Isabel's ground floor now houses the offices of the South of Market Health Center and the Filipino World War II Veterans Equity Center.

TODCO's Neighborhood Development Program Assists Startup of the Serving Our Youth And Community Advocacy Network
As fiscal sponsor and fundraiser, TODCO helped SOMA youth advocates form an independent coalition that has helped start vital new SOMA youth programs.

TODCO Starts Its Community Economic Development Program To Generate Community Benefits from Yerba Buena and South of Market's Rapid Growth
Building upon the experience of the Hotel Isabel project and the increase in SOMA land values, TODCO is including retail storefronts that address community needs in every new housing development.

TODCO and the Yerba Buena Consortium Receive the national Rudy Bruner Award for Excellence in the Urban Environment
Shared with the Redevelopment Agency, the Award recognized the essential importance of 20 years of Civic Advocacy by TODCO and the Consortium in creating and building a vital new Yerba Buena Neighborhood.

2000
TODCO's Economic Development Program Ensures Permanent Funding for Woolf  House Resident Services Through Woolf House Retail Development
Taking advantage of Woolf House's 2,100 square feet of valuable storefronts, TODCO leased them to generate revenue that will permanently fund supportive services for its 350 residents, including the Phillipines Jollibee’s Restaurant U.S. flagship.

"Windwall" Public Art Gracefully Softens Yerba Buena’s Environment
As part of TODCO's Inner City Arts Program, artist Ned Kahn worked with local seniors to capture the timeless forces of nature – light and wind – upon Ceatrice Polite Apartments, softening the harsh concrete and steel cityscape of Yerba Buena.

TODCO Group Adopts Updated Mission as South of Market Neighborhood Builders
Facing the extraordinary pace of real estate development in SOMA, and the resulting rapid displacement of its Filipino-American community and the dramatic increases in hotel room rents and commercial space rents, TODCO adopted a new Mission Statement committed to the right of SOMA's longtime communities to always be a part of its future, and to benefit from their Neighborhood's development rather than be displaced by it – just as TOOR pledged 30 years earlier for the hotel tenants of Yerba Buena.

2001
Rehabilitation of Bayanihan House Begins at Vital Sixth Street Crossroads
Renovating the fire-ravaged Delta Hotel at the blighted intersection of Sixth and Mission Streets, this City and Redevelopment Agency funded project, a partnership with the Federal National Mortgage Association through the Enterprise Social Investment Corporation, will provide 152 residential hotel rooms for local hotel tenants, especially elderly Filipino WW II veterans.

AND MORE TO COME ….

2002
Construction of Howard Street Senior Housing Begins
Developed in cooperation with the San Francisco Housing Authority, this HUD and City Hotel Tax -funded project has added 85 new apartments for seniors on the parking lot of Clementina Towers public housing next door to Woolf House.

Phase 1 of TODCO's Neighborhood Development Program’s Renovation of Clementina Towers Landscape for Clementina Commons Will Be Completed
As part of the Howard Street Senior Housing project, TODCO will completely renovate the run-down grounds of Clementina Towers public housing with a resident-developed design, connected with the Woolf House Courtyard to create a lovely new Commons for local seniors.

2003
Rehabilitated Bayanihan House Opens
Dramatically restoring the old Delta Hotel, Bayanihan House has begun the transformation of Sixth Street's "skid row" into a decent place to live.

TODCO's Neighborhood Development Program  Provides Space for The Bayanihan Community Center
At the heart of Bayanihan House, on its ground floor the Filipino-American Development Foundation has built a new Bayanihan Community Center to serve the Central City's large Filipino immigrant population.

2006
Howard Street Senior Housing Opens
Targeting the 6,000 seniors on the Housing Authority waiting list, this new residence includes TODCO's state-of-the-art Yerba Buena Security Center for 24 hour coordination of emergency response and security at all YBC TODCO sites.

Phase 2 of TODCO's Neighborhood Development Program's Renovation of Clementina Towers Landscape for Clementina Commons Continues...
The second half of this complex project will be built after Howard Street Senior Housing development is completed, fulfilling  the transformation of the Clementina Towers public housing site.

TODCO's Economic Development Program Will Ensure Permanent Funding for Howard Street Senior Housing and Clementina Towers Resident Services with Retail Development
The most ambitious TODCO entrepreneurial effort yet, with $1,750,000 of Redevelopment Agency and TODCO Trust financing TODCO will build 8,000 square feet of high-value commercial space on the ground floor of the new Howard Street Senior Housing to generate revenue that will permanently fund supportive services for the 450 residents of both projects, plus provide 2,000 square feet for nonprofit senior services for all Yerba Buena residents.