When you go for a walk in your neighborhood and you’re a YIMBY

I’m still learning about stuff like vacancy taxes, but buildings like these are just screaming for one. More than 8,000 people in SF are homeless or unstably housed.

See, construction like this is cool, useful and contribute to a housed and thriving community. I want to see even more places like this in my backyard!

There’s only so much space in this city and a reprehensible amount of it is spent worrying about cars. How does a parking lot this big make more sense than abundant housing?

Can you believe a gorgeous fourplex like this that houses four families in a highly desirable area is illegal in some parts of this town? Until we change zoning laws in racially, socio-economically exclusive neighborhoods we won’t be able to enjoy more beautiful homes like these.

All housing is essential because housing construction of all kinds creates more room for more families of all income levels. Market-rate housing creates taxes that fuel affordable housing construction costs. Hope this project, deemed “inessential” atm, is restarted soon.

Here’s what it looked like before. The damaged building next to it is sitting on the market, probably because it was low income housing where tenants have the 1st right of return. It takes more city & state revenue to incentivize someone to purchase it and make it livable again.

Housing construction breathes life into neighborhoods. Denser — not overcrowded, there’s a big difference — neighborhoods make communities inclusive, more affordable, walkable and environmentally friendly.

Here’s some data-backed research about density v. overcrowding if you’re skeptical and / or curious:

https://twitter.com/shfo/status/1252970744587247629?s=21 https://twitter.com/shfo/status/1252970744587247629

NIMBYism stems from decades-old paranoia that developers only want to tear down old buildings and put up projects like this. There are more sensitive ways to infill, and YIMBYs love working with architects and tradesman who get that. I don’t like this design either, tbh!

A well-executed dense development gives dozens of otherwise left-out families a place to live in opportunity-rich areas like San Francisco, with lots of amenities like public parks, childcare, good schools and a vibrant arts & cultural community. All cities need them!

Everybody needs a place to live and everybody deserves one, even in a pandemic. Housing construction gives people good paying jobs, tradesman apprenticeships and brings economy-stimulating workers to cities that will be soon desperate for budget relief. We always need more homes!

I sacrificed a lot of likes and reposts (ty all!) to get this thread just right but I know in my heart there’s lots of folks just like me who want to see California — and all states — building more homes in their neighborhoods to cultivate the kind of society we love to see.