City staff and SHIP partners told the Planning and Community Development Committee that implementation of the city’s 10-year Strategic Housing Implementation Plan is on track in several areas, reporting 5,330 affordable homes completed since SHIP adoption and about 2,500 additional homes under construction.

Why it matters: The SHIP sets multi-year goals for affordable housing production, preservation and supportive services. Progress on the plan affects homelessness prevention, housing affordability across multiple income bands and delivery of voter-approved housing bond funds.

Key figures and progress: Veronica Garcia, director of the Neighborhood and Housing Services Department (NHSD), said the city and partners are about 34% of the way to the SHIP’s 10-year production target, with 9,604 homes completed or in progress in total. The presentation listed 477 permanent supportive housing (PSH) units complete, under construction, or in the pipeline, and NHSD highlighted 425 San Pedro (District 1), an 80-unit permanent supportive housing project scheduled to open in December. The department said it is on track to complete 1,000 homes by the end of next month and 2,000 homes by the end of the year, driven largely by housing bond investments and partner activity.

Funding and pipeline: Since the 2022 affordable housing bond passed, staff said $115 million in bond funds have been committed across multiple rounds and projects, and additional federal and county funds are layered into developments. NHSD said the department is in another RFP round and will present project recommendations in May. Pete Alaniz, executive director of the San Antonio Housing Trust, said the trust has 18 communities under construction representing about 4,400 homes, and a predevelopment pipeline of 12 communities; he also described recent land-acquisition activity to support new projects.

Programs and policy actions: NHSD briefed the committee on several SHIP strategies underway: a public-information campaign about housing and homelessness, a library of permit-ready accessory dwelling unit (ADU) plans to speed permitting, continued support for community land trusts (CLTs) to preserve affordable homeownership, and coordination with the transportation department on transit-oriented housing policy. NHSD said the most recent RFP increased minimum requirements for very-low-income units (30% AMI) in recognition of remaining gaps.

Partners and advocacy: Opportunity Home and the San Antonio Housing Trust presented project updates. Lorraine Robles of Opportunity Home described expanded homeownership closings and the agency’s use of vouchers to support new permanent supportive housing projects. Mark Carmona, the city’s chief housing officer, reviewed statewide and federal legislative issues affecting housing finance, including bills focused on housing finance corporations and heirs-property reforms; he also described a recent advocacy trip by local housing stakeholders to Washington, D.C.

Challenges noted: Staff and partners acknowledged continuing affordability pressures: rising home prices and rents, increased eviction filings, and a persistent shortfall in the lowest-income (30% AMI) units. NHSD said the city is prioritizing 30% AMI units in recent funding rounds because that band lags the most behind targets.

Next steps: NHSD will bring housing-project funding recommendations to the committee and council in coming months, continue public-information work and present additional implementation steps for the transit-oriented development framework. The housing trust said it will continue land acquisition and rehabilitation awards to preserve units at risk of loss from the affordable inventory.

Ending: Committee members praised the progress and reiterated interest in broader funding strategies, including additional bond measures, to scale the city’s affordable-housing response.