Mayor Daniel Lurie’s sweeping “Family Zoning” plan to allow taller and denser buildings across much of San Francisco’s western and northern neighborhoods went to a final vote on Tuesday after the Board of Supervisors Land Use and Transportation Committee approved it Monday afternoon.
The 2-1 vote, with Supervisor Chyanne Chen in opposition, comes after four lengthy committee hearings with many longtime homeowners and rent control tenants arguing that the plan would destroy the city’s charm and attract speculative development. Meanwhile, younger residents said increasing density would create more housing opportunities, lower rents and home prices, and allow young families to remain in San Francisco.
The contentious rezoning is San Francisco’s effort to comply with state housing goals that require the city to expand capacity to allow for 36,000 additional units by 2031, mostly along busy transit corridors in neighborhoods that have not allowed for much new housing in the past, like the Sunset, Richmond and Marina districts. San Francisco has until Jan. 31 to pass the rezoning, or risk losing local control over land-use decisions as well as funding for housing and transportation projects…