Editor:

The westside upzoning proposal is extreme, unnecessary and destructive. It proposes towering zoning throughout the Richmond District, it ignores that huge westside development projects approved years ago have not been built, it ignores that we already have a massive construction pipeline with many more large projects to come and it ignores that 15% of SF housing units are currently empty. The proposal will outstrip our infrastructure and transportation resources, will destroy neighborhood character, and does nothing to help already-approved developments get built.

WESTSIDE UPZONING FACTS AND CONCERNS: 

1.  IMPACT OF WESTSIDE ZONING PROPOSAL ON THE RICHMOND
2. 85-feet on Geary and Point Lobos
3. 85-feet on Fulton
4. 65-feet on Clement
5. 85- to 65-feet on most of California
6. 65-feet on both sides of Park Presidio

(Source: Expanding Housing Choice (Housing Element Zoning Program) (arcgis.com))

• HOUSING UNITS, CONSTRUCTUON PIPELINE, UNOCCUPIED UNIT
• Housing:  2022: 415,000 units in existence
• Housing Pipeline: 74,000 units in permit or construction 
• Unoccupied Housing: 61,000 units (15% of all units)

(Source: Pipeline Report | SF Planning (last updated Q3 2023))

(Source: Tax looming for vacant San Francisco homeowners | KRON4)

• LARGE DEVELOPMENTS IN THE RICHMOND
• CPMC Campus, 3700 California:  273 units approved in 2000  —  not built
• UCSF Laurel Campus  3333 California:   774 units approved in 2019  —  not built 
• Lucky Penny, Geary and Masonic:  101 units approved in 2019  —  not built

(Source: Prado Group Buys Shuttered Medical Center for $50M (therealdeal.com))

(Source: Lucky Penny Diner in San Francisco Vacant for Years, Why? (sfstandard.com))

• SAN FRANCISCO POPULATION 
• 1980: 680,000
• 2000: 775,000
• 2020: 875,000
• Today: 850,000

(Source: San Francisco – Wikipedia)

(Source: U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: San Francisco County, California)

• IMPACT ON INFRASCTRUCTURE AND NEIGHBORHOOD CHARACTER
• The East Side has access to highways, BART, ferries; jobs; most mass transit; utilities-infrastructure (water, sewer, electricity); and opportunity for development.
• The west side has no access; far fewer jobs; limited mass transit; maximized utilities – infrastructure; existing residential housing; distinct neighborhood character.
• Rezoning the west side will create an inefficient hodgepodge of huge next to small.

• BUILD ALREADY-APPROVED LARGE DEVELOPMENTS
• Top 10 approved projects comprise about 33,000 units (Source: Pipeline Report).
• Large developments plan for infrastructure, transportation and open spaces.
• They use resource-conserving construction methods and very high energy standards.
• They are being built slowly or not at all due to City unhelpfulness.
• Huge downtown conversion-to-residential projects will soon be developed.     

• POSSIBE WAYS TO SPEED PROJECT CONSTRUCTION
• Streamline and expedite permitting, construction, inspection processes.
• Reduce permitting fees.
• Reduce inspection fees.
• Reduce impact review fees.
• Reduce market pricing requirements.
• Absorb some utility connection costs.
• Absorb some DPW construction impact costs.
• Absorb some financing costs.
• Remove requirements for union labor or union minimum labor payments.
• Remove preference requirements for certain contractors or materials providers.

Jason Jungreis