SAN FRANCISCO – After decades of restrictive zoning and rising housing costs, San Francisco is poised to embrace one of its most significant housing reforms in nearly 50 years.
On April 3, Mayor Daniel Lurie and the San Francisco Planning Department unveiled a draft rezoning map that aims to dramatically increase housing production citywide. The proposal is being praised by housing advocates as a critical step forward in reversing the city’s longstanding housing shortage and meeting state-mandated housing goals.
The rezoning map is designed to help San Francisco meet its ambitious target of 82,000 new housing units under the state’s Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) mandate.
YIMBY Action, a pro-housing advocacy organization that has pushed for housing expansion across the state, applauded the announcement, calling it a long-overdue course correction for a city that has historically lagged behind on housing development.
“For decades, our city shirked its responsibility when it came to building enough housing,” said Jane Natoli, San Francisco Organizing Director of YIMBY Action. “YIMBYs have pushed back, and we couldn’t be more thrilled that Mayor Lurie is answering the YIMBY call and putting out a strong rezoning plan.”
The plan represents the most substantial overhaul of San Francisco’s zoning laws since the city’s 1978 downzoning, which limited housing construction in many neighborhoods. YIMBY Action leaders describe the new rezoning plan as the culmination of years of grassroots advocacy, public testimony, and coalition-building with city staff and officials across two mayoral administrations.
“This rezoning is a huge victory for everyone who believes in a more affordable, welcoming San Francisco,” said Laura Foote, Executive Director of YIMBY Action. “It shows that our city is ready to lead on housing and move past the era of exclusionary zoning that held us back for too long.”
Foote noted that while the draft plan is a promising start, the fight isn’t over: “We’re not out of the woods yet—we will need to fight to keep this rezoning plan strong by the time we pass a final version in January. But this is an incredible start in laying the groundwork to house the next generation of San Franciscans.”
San Francisco’s new approach to zoning comes in response to changing state laws and mounting pressure from both the state government and housing advocates.
The RHNA process, overhauled in 2018 by State Senator Scott Wiener through legislation like SB 828, requires cities to set housing goals based on actual population needs rather than political compromise. As a result, San Francisco’s target of 82,000 homes is nearly triple what was required during the last RHNA cycle.
Senator Wiener, who represents San Francisco and has authored several key housing bills, praised the rezoning plan as a long-needed reversal of decades of harmful policies.
“This zoning proposal is an ambitious step forward for housing in San Francisco,” Wiener said in a statement. “By allowing the homes we need to finally be built, this plan paves the way for a more affordable and vibrant future for San Francisco.”
Wiener directly linked today’s housing crisis to the city’s past choices: “San Francisco has made it far too difficult to build homes, going all the way back to 1978, when the Board of Supervisors voted to drastically downzone the city… Our housing shortage is the main driver and root cause of the affordability crisis afflicting our city.”
He noted that the new plan, combined with statewide streamlining laws such as SB 423, has the potential to “move the dial” on housing construction. “Enacting this new vision for housing will be a massive step toward breaking San Francisco’s decades-long cycle of underbuilding and rising prices,” he said.
Mayor Daniel Lurie, who took office with a pledge to tackle the city’s housing and homelessness crisis, framed the rezoning plan as a central part of his administration’s vision for a more inclusive San Francisco.
“San Francisco should be a city with space for more families, more workers, and more dreams,” Lurie said in a statement. “Our administration wants to build enough housing for the next generation of San Franciscans, so that kids who grow up here have the same opportunity to raise their own children here.”
Lurie acknowledged that outdated zoning laws have long hindered housing development. “For too long, San Francisco has made it easier to block new homes than to build them,” he said. “And while our needs have changed since the 1970s, much of our zoning hasn’t.”
Beyond zoning reform, Lurie highlighted other efforts to cut red tape and speed up the construction process. “We know zoning alone cannot solve our housing shortage,” he noted. “That’s why our administration is also doing critical work through initiatives like PermitSF to cut red tape and build housing more quickly.”
Calling the draft map “a strong starting point,” Lurie said it reflects the leadership style San Franciscans voted for—“practical leadership rooted in openness, dialogue, and a deep love for this city.”
As other California cities face enforcement actions for failing to comply with Housing Element laws, San Francisco’s proactive approach could serve as a model. Jurisdictions like Lafayette, Rancho Palos Verdes, and even Los Angeles have drawn scrutiny for missing deadlines or proposing insufficient plans.
“We’re finally seeing broad recognition that building more homes is critical to keeping our city livable for all,” Natoli said. YIMBY Action sees San Francisco’s plan as both a local win and a broader message that state housing laws are beginning to shift the landscape across California.
Still, significant hurdles remain. The rezoning map must go through a public input process and be approved by the Board of Supervisors by the end of 2025. Advocates expect pushback from neighborhood groups opposed to denser development or changes in local character.
But the stakes, say housing proponents, are clear. Without substantial new housing, affordability will continue to deteriorate, and more residents will be priced out of the city.
“This is about giving people a chance to stay in the city they love,” Foote said. “It’s about teachers, service workers, artists, and families. It’s about making sure San Francisco isn’t just a playground for the wealthy, but a city where everyone has a home.”
“YIMBY Action leaders describe the new rezoning plan as the culmination of years of grassroots advocacy . . . ”
That sentence contradicts itself . . . ‘
“This is about giving people a chance to stay in the city they love,” Foote said. “It’s about teachers, service workers, artists, and families. It’s about making sure San Francisco isn’t just a playground for the wealthy, but a city where everyone has a home.”
What a load . . .
From article: “San Francisco should be a city with space for more families, more workers, and more dreams,” Lurie said in a statement. “Our administration wants to build enough housing for the next generation of San Franciscans, so that kids who grow up here have the same opportunity to raise their own children here.”
I was priced-out of there decades ago. Good riddance.
But if you want to keep current renters in place, San Francisco already has a powerful tool to do so (rent control). And it works to do just that – I’ve personally witnessed some examples.