If you are talking about Aloysia virgata, yes it can be grown in the SF Bay Area. Most of the Aloysia species can get pretty big and rangy, and are not the most attractive shrubs in the garden, so I would suggest you use it someplace as a background shrub with enough room, rather than a front of the border year round good looker. Most Aloysia will be only semi-evergreen in winter here, and can also be cut back to the ground if frozen back. Not that often seen in nurseries here in the Bay Area, good luck finding one...

Thanks for your reply; can they be kept attractive if cut back? I was thinking of this kind of up against the side of the house, but it would be in the front of the house, in the back of a bed.