The Balboa Reservoir is the perfect spot for housing in San Francisco, Nicole Lindler argues, and the notion that it should remain a surface parking lot shows badly disordered priorities.
The Balboa Reservoir could be the site of 500 affordable housing units. "The reservoir, which has never served its original purpose, has instead been used as a massive parking lot for decades, on loan to CCSF by the Public Utilities Commission even though it sits near Balboa Park BART Station and several high-frequency bus lines," Nicole Lindler reports for the San Francisco Examiner.
The coalition fighting against the development is acting against the wider interests of San Franciscans broadly Linder contends. She points out that "… when San Franciscans went to the polls in 2016, we overwhelmingly passed Proposition C to increase The City’s mandatory affordable housing requirements for new projects."
"No one likes to lose parking, but losing long time low- and middle-income San Franciscans because The City has nowhere to house them is much worse," Lindler contends.
FULL STORY: Homes for people are more important than homes for cars
San Francisco's Housing Crisis is Deepening, Despite Falling Rents
Despite the purported exodus of untethered Silicon Valley workers from the Bay Area, rents in the city are still the highest in the United States.
After Decades of Failure, 1,000-Plus Homes Coming to the Balboa Reservoir in San Francisco
Four developers tried, and four developers failed, until the San Francisco Board of Supervisors changed the story in August 2020.
1,100 New Homes Planned in the Middle of San Francisco
The prospect of a large mixed-use development on a 17-acre parking lot in the center of San Francisco took a substantial step forward this week.
What ‘The Brutalist’ Teaches Us About Modern Cities
How architecture and urban landscapes reflect the trauma and dysfunction of the post-war experience.
‘Complete Streets’ Webpage Deleted in Federal Purge
Basic resources and information on building bike lanes and sidewalks, formerly housed on the government’s Complete Streets website, are now gone.
The VW Bus is Back — Now as an Electric Minivan
Volkswagen’s ID. Buzz reimagines its iconic Bus as a fully electric minivan, blending retro design with modern technology, a 231-mile range, and practical versatility to offer a stylish yet functional EV for the future.
Healing Through Parks: Altadena’s Path to Recovery After the Eaton Fire
In the wake of the Eaton Fire, Altadena is uniting to restore Loma Alta Park, creating a renewed space for recreation, community gathering, and resilience.
San Diego to Rescind Multi-Unit ADU Rule
The city wants to close a loophole that allowed developers to build apartment buildings on single-family lots as ADUs.
Electric Vehicles for All? Study Finds Disparities in Access and Incentives
A new UCLA study finds that while California has made progress in electric vehicle adoption, disadvantaged communities remain underserved in EV incentives, ownership, and charging access, requiring targeted policy changes to advance equity.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
City of Albany
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research