8 ms·

As a San Franciscan, I am so happy to see this. SF needs negative feedback on the poor choices it makes, and so far the tech boom has somewhat obscured the cons

As a San Franciscan, I am so happy to see this. SF needs negative feedback on the poor choices it makes, and so far the tech boom has somewhat obscured the consequences.

fourstar 7y ago
The negative feedback is all the people who moved from other states to SF over the years, voted for politicians that virtue signaled loudly enough to attract said transplants’ votes, and then moved to another (likely conservative) state after saving enough money to live comfortably with their new families. That’s ultimately one of the biggest issues in the Bay Area that no one ever talks about.
- wpasc 7y ago
  What about all the longtime existing homeowners who make it very difficult to build new/denser housing?
  - fourstar 7y ago
    What about them? Those longtime existing homeowners are trying to maintain the current landscape and don’t want new construction obstructing their million dollar views. Yes many are NIMBYs, but so would most people if they grew up in a place that saw an influx of new people wanting to change the landscape with ugly high-rise all glass condos that blind you when the sun sets or change the feel of what they’re familiar with. In a way, I don’t blame them. The majority of newer construction in the past 20-30 years in SF particularly is horrid.
Reedx 7y ago
Yeah. The longer you live in SF and the Bay Area, the more apparent it becomes how much it skates on tech, history, and intrinsic advantages like the weather and beautiful geography. SF in particular has such incredible resources that it should be the most advanced city in the world.
- opportune 7y ago
  But the people in San Francisco have got what they wanted. Maybe in 20 years SF will be able to change but right now the majority of people are actually in favor of the way the city is being run: to stay stuck in time as long as possible
  - ergocoder 7y ago
    If I had most of my net worth tied to my SF house, I would be a NIMBY as well. Don't blame them though.
    - deleted 7y ago
      [deleted]
    - turk73 7y ago
      I have relatives in Oakland. They own a couple of houses, rent one out and due to home value, are multi-millionaires. They live a lifestyle of multi-millionaires as a result of their belief that they are multi-millionaires. If anything happens to property values there, they are screwed. I can only imagine most of the people who own homes there behave similarly using credit cards and other means to live a fancy lifestyle believing one day they will sell their property and pay everything off. I don't hate them, but the phrase "California values" has a deeply negative connotation to me. Everything they do screams of hypocrisy.
  - koheripbal 7y ago
    I lived in SF in 1999, and that mentality was exactly the same then as it is today. The long time residents of SF don't believe in _change_, and that isn't going to change. It is just happenstance that the initial San Jose tech explosion happened near SF. ...but maybe other parts of the country are better suited to it going forward...

As a San Franciscan, I am so happy to see this. SF needs negative feedback on the poor choices it makes, and so far the tech boom has somewhat obscured the consequences.

fourstar 7y ago

The negative feedback is all the people who moved from other states to SF over the years, voted for politicians that virtue signaled loudly enough to attract said transplants’ votes, and then moved to another (likely conservative) state after saving enough money to live comfortably with their new families. That’s ultimately one of the biggest issues in the Bay Area that no one ever talks about.

wpasc 7y ago
What about all the longtime existing homeowners who make it very difficult to build new/denser housing?
- fourstar 7y ago
  What about them? Those longtime existing homeowners are trying to maintain the current landscape and don’t want new construction obstructing their million dollar views. Yes many are NIMBYs, but so would most people if they grew up in a place that saw an influx of new people wanting to change the landscape with ugly high-rise all glass condos that blind you when the sun sets or change the feel of what they’re familiar with. In a way, I don’t blame them. The majority of newer construction in the past 20-30 years in SF particularly is horrid.

Reedx 7y ago

Yeah. The longer you live in SF and the Bay Area, the more apparent it becomes how much it skates on tech, history, and intrinsic advantages like the weather and beautiful geography. SF in particular has such incredible resources that it should be the most advanced city in the world.

opportune 7y ago
But the people in San Francisco have got what they wanted. Maybe in 20 years SF will be able to change but right now the majority of people are actually in favor of the way the city is being run: to stay stuck in time as long as possible
- ergocoder 7y ago
  If I had most of my net worth tied to my SF house, I would be a NIMBY as well. Don't blame them though.
  - deleted 7y ago
    [deleted]
  - turk73 7y ago
    I have relatives in Oakland. They own a couple of houses, rent one out and due to home value, are multi-millionaires. They live a lifestyle of multi-millionaires as a result of their belief that they are multi-millionaires. If anything happens to property values there, they are screwed. I can only imagine most of the people who own homes there behave similarly using credit cards and other means to live a fancy lifestyle believing one day they will sell their property and pay everything off. I don't hate them, but the phrase "California values" has a deeply negative connotation to me. Everything they do screams of hypocrisy.
- koheripbal 7y ago
  I lived in SF in 1999, and that mentality was exactly the same then as it is today. The long time residents of SF don't believe in _change_, and that isn't going to change. It is just happenstance that the initial San Jose tech explosion happened near SF. ...but maybe other parts of the country are better suited to it going forward...