Special to the Vanguard
San Francisco, CA – On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors approved legislation that would remove barriers to make it easier and faster to approve new housing. They did so as the deadline to respond to a scathing report from HCD ticked down.
The passage brought the City into compliance with state housing law as enumerated in a recent report from the state housing department
The package includes over a dozen different reforms that expedite housing permitting and reduce the ability of opponents to obstruct new homes.
The Housing Constraints legislation, for instance, “amends the Planning Code to eliminate unnecessary processes and hearings, eliminate certain code requirements and geographic restrictions, and expand housing incentive programs for new housing that fits within the City’s existing zoning laws.”
According to the mayor’s office, the “approval of this legislation is one critical component to the Mayor’s broader strategy of advancing the City’s goals of allowing 
82,000 homes to be built in eight years. “
Earlier in 2023, Mayor Breed pledged to take immediate actions that “would provide groundwork for the City to unlock its housing pipeline, accelerate the approval of new housing projects, and create additional capacity for all types of housing across San Francisco.
“We’ve got to remove barriers to new housing in San Francisco, and this legislation is a key step in making that happen,” said Mayor London Breed. “If we are going to make San Francisco an affordable place for everyone to live, we need to be aggressive in reforming how we approve housing, reduce fees and get rid of all the obstructions that get in the way of building housing.”
The legislation meets obligations set out in the City’s Housing Element, which was unanimously approved by the Board of Supervisors in January and certified by the State.
“This legislation is only one step in this larger process, but a critical one,” said Supervisor Myrna Melgar, Chair of the Land Use and Transportation Committee.
The supervisor added, “It took a lot of thoughtful collaboration among diverse stakeholders to ensure that we were protecting tenants and rent-controlled housing while also being compliant with our Housing Element. We need to keep this momentum going and continue working collectively to preserve housing and make it easier to build new types of housing for families and seniors.”
“Today the Board of Supervisors took a big step towards meeting our housing element policy goals,” said District 6 Supervisor Matt Dorsey. “This legislation will make it easier to build the housing our city so desperately needs, and I applaud Mayor Breed’s leadership on ensuring San Francisco remains on track and compliant with our housing element.”
“I co-sponsored the mayor’s housing legislation because it will make it easier to build the kind of housing that Westside residents tell me they want and need,” said Supervisor Joel Engardio, who represents the Sunset neighborhood.
He added, “These reforms will help streamline new housing production like my Dom-i-city concept, which puts four or five stories of housing on transit corridors and corner lots above a neighborhood amenity such as a grocery, cafe, childcare, or senior center. It will make it easier to provide an elevator building that gives seniors an option to downsize and age safely in place without having to leave their neighborhood. It will provide homes that let adult kids and grandkids stay in San Francisco. And it will provide missing middle homes for our police, firefighters, and teachers.”
“When we passed the Housing Element at the beginning of the year we knew the difficult work would be in its implementation,” said Rich Hillis, Director of Planning. “We will need to continue to think boldly if we’re going to meet our Housing Element goals of building more housing, faster, in resource-rich neighborhoods and at all levels of affordability.”
The proposed legislation will make significant changes to the Planning Code to remove constraints on new housing across three main categories:
Eliminate Unnecessary Processes
This legislation would amend many existing code provisions that require the approval of a Conditional Use Authorization (CU) by the Planning Commission. A CU approval can add six to nine months to the housing approval process by requiring hearings and discretionary approvals for projects that already comply with zoning laws. By eliminating most CUs for code-compliant projects, this legislation would allow new housing to be approved faster.
Remove Restrictive Standards and Geographic Limitations
This legislation would eliminate requirements that limit the form or location of certain types of housing. This includes easing geographic limitations on senior housing, shelter and group housing, as well as reforming development standards like private open space and 1950s-era requirements for how far back a building must be offset from the property line, which will provide more flexibility for new housing proposals.
Expand Incentives for Housing
The legislation would eliminate certain restrictions to expand existing incentive programs for housing. This would expand access to the City’s HomeSF program and allow the City to waive fees for certain affordable housing projects.
Senator Scott Wiener, who was critical of the Board last week for attempting to water down the process with amendments, praised the board for the passage of the Bill.
He noted that San Francisco has the longer housing permitting time—by far—of any city in California.
He said, “This housing reform, combined with Senator Wiener’s SB 423—a new law that also accelerates permitting in San Francisco—will put an end to that badge of shame.”
The senator explained, “For a half century, San Francisco erected barrier after barrier to building the new homes we so desperately need. The tragic result is increased homelessness, the hollowing out of our middle class, and major housing struggles for so many. Today’s action by the Board of Supervisors, combined with our work at the state level, is the beginning of a new day for housing in our City.”
“SF YIMBY applauds the Board of Supervisors approval of the Constraints Reduction package,” said Jane Natoli, San Francisco Organizing Director for YIMBY Action. “It’s been a long time coming and while it came down to the wire, it’s great to see our leaders come together to pass vital legislation that we agreed to in the Housing Element. This will make a huge difference as we look to solve our housing shortage in San Francisco.”
San Francisco NIMBYs have been made to kneel down. They should have never been allowed to obstruct new housing construction in this city in the first place.