The East Cut Community Benefit District formed in 2015 with a plan to assess the neighborhood’s properties with a nominal fee to deliver supplemental cleaning, safety, and basic public services to the neighborhood. That early plan still informs our current programs and services, but over the years our impact has grown well beyond our original mandate. We now oversee The Crossing, a signature public space that operates with minimal dedicated assessment support, alongside outstanding 24/7 Street Services and the ongoing care of Salesforce Park. We’ve launched neighborhood enhancement projects like East Cut Electric, added a community garden, and installed Big Belly trash cans throughout the district. We are also investing in a long-term model to reinvest in and revitalize downtown San Francisco and working with our civic partners to produce programs like Downtown First Thursdays.
These expanded programs are increasingly reliant on public and private support to be sustainable. Costs have risen faster than our assessment cap, which is limited to an annual 3% increase or the Consumer Price Index, whichever is lower. Labor, maintenance, and insurance costs, however, have surged well beyond that threshold. Development that was originally anticipated to help broaden our funding base has not materialized, and funding set aside for future spaces, including The Crossing and East Cut Park, is not enough to cover their ongoing maintenance and programming needs.
Simply put, the original 2015 assessment structure was designed in a pre-pandemic economy and built around a predictable assessment model to serve a narrow scope of work. It is no longer adequate to support the scale of public space operations and community programming the district provides today.
Renewing The East Cut assessment district now gives us the opportunity to align our resources with the reality of the work we do, and to ensure these public spaces and services remain strong for the next chapter of downtown San Francisco.
Resident Property Owner
BXP, Commercial Property Owner
Salesforce, Commercial Property Owner
Resident Property Owner
Kilroy, Commercial Property Owner
Gap Inc., Commercial Property Owner
Resident Property Owner
Office of Supervisor Matt Dorsey Legislative Aide
TJPA, Public Agency Property Owner
Resident Property Owner
The success of our programs and services, combined with rising core operating costs, has led to a service expectation gap — one that our current revenue stream cannot sustainably fund. Our signature spaces and services are at risk without a renewed and modernized assessment framework.
This renewal is guided by five core goals:
Preserve and sustain the programs, spaces, and services that have made a measurable difference in the district, from 24/7 street cleanliness and safety to the activation of beloved public spaces, ensuring they don’t erode due to funding shortfalls.
Update the district’s funding model to reflect the true scope and cost of today’s operations, moving beyond a decade-old structure that was not intended to support the scale of services now expected and delivered.
Give property owners confidence that their investment in the district continues to protect property values and sustain the vibrancy that makes the neighborhood a desirable place in which to own, work, and invest.
Ensure continued momentum in downtown San Francisco’s recovery by sustaining the clean, safe, and activated public services that support foot traffic, business vitality, and community confidence.
Oversee the successful completion of East Cut Park and ensure the delivery of long-term maintenance and programming of the district’s signature neighborhood parks.
Overview 