The SBCF is the nonprofit organization created by the City of San Bruno to administer the $70 million in restitution funds received from PG&E after the devastating 2010 gas pipeline explosion in San Bruno’s Crestmoor neighborhood. On September 9, 2010, tragedy struck San Bruno when a high-pressure natural gas pipeline owned and operated by Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) exploded in the ci
ty’s Crestmoor neighborhood, hurling a 3,000 pound segment of pipeline 100 feet through the air. Ultimately, the explosion and fire destroyed 38 homes, damaged 70 others, killed eight people, injured 66 more, and devastated a previously peaceful suburban community. In the initial aftermath of the disaster, the City of San Bruno pursued a settlement with PG&E to establish a $50 million trust fund, administered by the City, to cover the costs associated with response, restoration, and recovery from the explosion and fire. The City also successfully secured a restitution settlement from PG&E. In April 2012, the City reached a settlement agreement with PG&E for $68.75 million in cash and five vacant property lots then-valued at $1.25 million. Three of the five lots have since been sold for nearly $1.25 million. The City plans to convert the remaining two lots into a small park in the neighborhood. The terms of the agreement called for the City to establish a not-for-profit organization charged with determining the use of the funds and administering them for the long-term benefit of the San Bruno community as a whole. As a result, in 2013 the City Council founded the San Bruno Community Foundation and appointed seven community members as its first Board of Directors. With the hiring of the Foundation’s first executive director in early 2015, the Foundation is now a fully functioning nonprofit organization dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for the San Bruno community.
