Exceeding height restrictions to break a housing logjam in San Francisco

2015-09-30T15:00:00-04:00

Neighborhoods across the west side of San Francisco could see thousands of new housing units under a measure Mayor Ed Lee is proposing that would allow builders to exceed current height restrictions in exchange for including more affordable units.

The Mayor's proposal would allow builders to add two stories of additional height to the current building height restrictions to help the notoriously expensive metropolis of San Francisco become more affordable to middle-class denizens (unlike federal or state sponsored initiatives, which target low-income groups). To exceed the height restrictions, thirty percent of the new development's units would have to be affordable; for those projects that are fully comprised of affordable units, developers would be able to add a third story. In San Francisco, middle-class is defined as "families making between 120 and 140 percent of area median income, which is $122,000 to $142,000 for a family of four."

For more on San Francisco's housing crisis, do check out:

• Airbnb rentals cut deep into San Francisco housing stock, report says

• No room for affordable housing in SF? Build it in Oakland

• Markasaurus does the math on SF housing prices

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Exceeding height restrictions to break a housing logjam in San Francisco