Assessor-Recorder Torres to Step Down from Housing Authority Commission after 12 Transformational Years as President

SAN FRANCISCO – San Francisco Assessor-Recorder Joaquín Torres today announced he will step down from the San Francisco Housing Authority Commission after 12 years serving as President.

During Torres’ tenure, the number of San Francisco families and individuals housed by the Authority increased by 20%, now serving 16,545 households and over 30,000 individuals.

“For more than a decade, it’s been my honor to serve and be held accountable to our residents with the promise that their dignity, resilience, and respect deserve our fullest attention. Stable housing lays the foundation for so much in our lives,” said Torres. “Leading the Commission during a time of transformation and restructuring has been both humbling and urgent work. I’m proud of how far we’ve come and I’m hopeful that the Authority will continue pushing forward, delivering for residents and building a future where public housing is treated not as a last resort, but as a launchpad for equity and success.”

“Whether it’s the big issues like restructuring the Authority, how it functions, and where its money comes from, or simply being there for residents and listening to our everyday needs, Assessor-Recorder Torres has always been there, building trust and working with us to create better living conditions and prevent displacement," said Joyce Armstrong, Madam President of the Public Housing Tenants Association. “He is a leader who shows up, follows through, and is willing to take on any problem, no matter how large or small.”

“Thank you to Joaquín Torres for more than a decade of service to the thousands of San Franciscans who live in public housing. The Housing Authority has grown successfully under Joaquín’s leadership, and we appreciate his dedication to the diverse communities it serves,” said Mayor Daniel Lurie.

Appointed by Mayor Ed Lee in 2013 while serving as Deputy Director of the Office of Economic and Workforce Development, from his earliest days on the Commission, Torres has been a guiding force as the Authority has undergone massive changes, including a complete restructuring of the organization and its assets to address a looming financial crisis. When Torres joined, the Authority had more than $270 million dollars of unfunded capital needs and the agency was running a multi-year budget deficit.  

Since then, the Authority has restructured programmatic and administrative functions, which led to increased efficiencies and more people housed. The Housing Authority has been recognized nationally for its Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program, which over the past decade saw the Authority transition management of its remaining public housing portfolio in San Francisco to affordable housing developers and non-profits—while simultaneously investing desperately needed funds into longstanding building needs. An added component of RAD transition was a requirement for onsite services to be available at each building for all households.

“Joaquín Torres has shown extraordinary dedication and passionate service on the Housing Authority," said District 10 Supervisor Shamann Walton. “His deep love for San Francisco and its residents has touched countless lives and inspired us all. His leadership has not only brought real change, but has also shown what it means to truly care. We are so grateful for the heart, energy, and vision he poured into making sure our public housing residents have the support they need to thrive. He’s made a lasting impact—and we celebrate him.”

RAD has led to more than a billion dollars going directly into the rehabilitation of thousands of public housing units throughout the city, with increased subsidy being applied to each unit. Additionally, as a result of RAD, the Authority has provided more housing for San Franciscans through the Housing Choice Voucher Program (HCV), also known as “Section 8.” Between 2020 and 2024, the number of families admitted to the HCV program annually grew tenfold. Waitlists for housing vouchers that once exceeded 10,000 households have been exhausted, making way for new applicants.

“In his 12 years on the Commission, Joaquín shepherded this agency through some monumentally challenging times, but with transformative victories,” said Malcolm Yeung, Executive Director of Chinatown Community Development Center. “His leadership during the RAD conversion and improvement of nearly half of the public housing portfolio has changed the lives of tens of thousands of San Francisco’s most vulnerable residents.”

While driven by HUD, which provides roughly 96% of the Housing Authority’s funding, implementation and oversight for these changes has been driven by Torres’ commission, Authority Executive Director Tonia Lediju, PhD, and a new era of partnership with City departments.

“Realizing resilience at the Authority has been a key focus. Due to the unfortunate and fundamental tension between the financial needs of public housing and the shifting approaches and funding decisions at the federal level, it’s become a necessity. I’m proud that today, much more so than when I first joined, the Authority can confidently face the inevitable challenges ahead, said Torres.

Amid all the changes and challenges, Torres consistently prioritized building trust, first between the Authority and its residents, and also across key partners in government and the nonprofit sector, including HUD, the Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development, affordable housing providers, and tenants' rights organizations.

Also during his tenure, Torres has overseen the implementation of the Authority’s nationally recognized HOPE SF, the U.S.’s first large-scale community development and reparations initiative aimed at creating vibrant, inclusive, mixed-income communities without resident displacement. HOPE SF continues to transform the most dilapidated public housing sites in San Francisco, improving quality of life for longtime residents and renewing our public housing stock for future generations.

Torres was a key proponent of the Authority’s Single Room Occupancy program, which utilized housing vouchers to move families living in SRO hotels into private apartments better sized and equipped to house those families.

“Joaquín, along with Dr. Lediju and Mayor London Breed, was a significant driver of the city’s use of housing vouchers to move hundreds of Chinatown families with children from overcrowded SRO hotels into housing fit to raise children,” CCDC’s Yeung said.

He also championed moving commission meetings from Turk Street to City Hall and to air all meetings on SFGovTV to ensure public housing residents would be seen and heard.
In 2013, Mayor Lee initiated a “Re-envisioning Process,” asking residents, experts, and community stakeholders what the Housing Authority should become, resulting in four key recommendations:

• SFHA should retain possession of Housing Authority land to ensure its mission over time,
• affordable housing nonprofit developers should be brought in to develop or rehabilitate properties,
• private sector operators should take over property management,
• the Mayor’s Office of Housing should implement these changes, with the Authority Commission providing ongoing oversight.

A decade later, under Torres’ watch, all four goals have been achieved.
Throughout his tenure, Torres remained committed to supporting Housing Authority staff, especially during periods of great uncertainty, including the shifting of property management from the Housing Authority to private non-profit companies. As this shift led to significant layoffs, Torres championed a ballot measure allowing former Authority employees to get retiree health care benefits.

“The Authority's transition out of property management was a time of great uncertainty for our members and Joaquín was the one we could talk to. He worked with us to ensure we found City jobs for our Housing Authority members who otherwise would have been laid off,” said SEIU 1021 Executive Director David Canham.

Torres also worked to make the Authority the first agency to bring back staff to work on vacant units and make emergency repairs, ensuring residents continued to receive essential services during the pandemic while also keeping employees working and earning.

“San Franciscans and the Authority have been fortunate to have a strategic leader who puts thoughts into action, resulting in true impacts as reflected above. Whether it be increased housing opportunities to improved service connections or sitting down one-on-one with residents and staff to discuss obstacles and issues; Joaquín has risen to the challenge and for that, we are grateful for his service to our residents and the Authority,’ said Dr. Tonia Lediju, Executive Director of the San Francisco Housing Authority.

Torres’ final Commission Meeting will be on May 29.

“This work requires a tenacious, consistent and whole city approach. I’m encouraged by this administration’s determination and resolve to do what’s right for residents. As I step down to make way for new leaders who too are committed to the rigorous approach necessary to best serve those most vulnerable, I’m proud of how far the Authority has come these past twelve years and hopeful that San Francisco will deliver on its promise to build a better future for its residents,” said Torres.