Though expected, we now know that the Board of Supervisors' December vote to kill the proposed new jail means that San Francisco will definitely turn down $80 million in state grant money that had been allocated toward the project. At the time, the Supervisors voted to reject the jail but they explicitly did not vote to reject the state funding — perhaps hoping that even though the money was specifically tied to the proposed jail, it could maybe be used to construct mental health facilities. That hope has now officially been dashed.

In a letter addressed to the Board of Supervisors, the Chronicle reports that San Francisco Public Works Director Mohammed Nuru made it clear that we had forfeited the money.

"The bottom line is that the city most likely will be deemed ineligible for the grant funding if the project scope is significantly altered,” he wrote. “I plan to inform the state that San Francisco is turning down the $80 million grant. I want to make certain the Board of Supervisors supports this decision.”

The current San Francisco County Jail No. 4 has been deemed seismically unsafe, and both Mayor Lee and Sheriff Vicki Hennessy supported the project. Those opposed, including Supervisors London Breed, John Avalos, Eric Mar, Jane Kim, and David Campos, argued that with the jail population steadily declining the money would be better spent on mental health care and rehabilitation programs.

Supervisor Mark Farrell, who supported constructing the jail with its estimated $380 million price tag, told the Chronicle that it was a mistake to let that cash go.

"I continue to believe we should have leveraged the state funds for this project," noted Farrell, "because ultimately we are going to need to build a new jail.”

Previously: [UPDATE] Supervisors Set To Tank New Jail Project With Vote Today