Background

In January 2007 a Steering Committee of 26 individuals representing 40 properties in the Yerba Buena Neighborhood formed to identify challenges facing the community and creative, appropriate, and thoughtful solutions to strengthen the Yerba Buena Neighborhood and San Francisco. Creating a Community Benefit District (CBD) was determined critical to the ongoing success of the area. Guided by a Mission Statement this group worked for 20 months to assess specific issues of importance to the area's residents, businesses, and property owners. By May 2008, 2,000 members of the Yerba Buena community had been invited to attend a community outreach event.

A CBD, also known as a Business Improvement District (BID), is a specific geographic area (like the Yerba Buena Neighborhood) where funds are raised through private property or business assessments to pay for special services that enhance, but do not replace, existing municipal services to the area. Nationwide there are approximately 2,000 districts; of these, 400 are in California and nine are in San Francisco.

In the Yerba Buena Neighborhood, CBD funds will increase safety, security, and pedestrian safety; improve the cleanliness of the sidewalks and streets; institute a district-wide greening plan that includes tree planting and hanging flower baskets; and ensure that the area's reputation better matches its reality through concerted marking and branding activities, as outlined in the CBD Service Plan. A non-profit organization with a Board of Directors will govern the CBD.