San Francisco and what to do in it

But what's this wealth tax everyone keeps talking about?

"My brother is working with a YIMBY group in Berkeley" is that with Daryl Owens (who I only know via twitter and nextdoor, occasionally)?

I've taken some very long walks around south berkeley this week. I've lived here since 1991. I'm glad to see more development but dismayed almost all of it is in my neighborhood and adjacent (ie: very south, very west berkeley). That entire area south of campus needs more apartments, more four plexes, etc. So much of it hasn't changed an iota since I moved here.

(by 'dismayed' I simply mean I think it should happen in other areas too, not just concentrated here; I'm pro development anywhere)

Not sure tbh, he's been really busy lately so we aren't in close touch. Plus I sort of tuned him out on social media right around Jan 5 when he was like "some of these Republicans standing up to Trump are kind of reasonable". Yeah the same guy who didn't give a damn when Stacey Abrams raised the issue of suppressing black votes with him last year? My brother T. is usually solidly progressive but he reads the Atlantic a little much for my tastes. (Our third cousin or something is also the first woman who went to the Citadel military academy in SC, she's the one who just flipped the House seat near Charleston back to red, and she briefly stood up to Trump then promptly backed down again. It's nonsensical imo.)

I can't speak to what areas they're focusing on building housing in now, it seems like in Oakland the development corridor is extending north along Telegraph and there's been some buildup along there in Berkeley already so it would make sense to continue expanding. I think the main goal should be that any development primarily focuses on providing genuinely affordable housing, particularly to marginalized populations.

Good luck with that.

I mean, I'm only writing that partially in jest, but given what's considered affordable, I don't see it happening...or I see the wait list being so long as to almost negate the impact of the affordable units.

Yes you're right that's the sad reality of course. I have another friend in desperate straights in Oakland, he's at retirement age and no chance of getting into subsidized housing.

You can't wait for private money to come in on affordable housing... oh they'll set aside two units in the back alley (that get 13 minutes of sunshine a day in the summer) but that's just so they can get the height limits waived.

I know people talk a lot of grief about the old housing projects, and there are some rough ones, but they're at least apartments and not pup tents.

I think commonly the issue is: where does the money come from to build affordable housing?

One answer is: market rate housing.

I spent years going to meetings in support of the Balboa Reservoir Project, which is this model. Lets see how it works.

As a tech worker since I showed up here twenty years ago, I argue that the problem isn't the salaries of the employees as much as the baseline profitability of the industry. Tax and regulate that folks.

Or you know, just have high income taxes!

When a small group of people can earn a huge amount of money, we should take a lot of it from them.

what thread was it where i sketched out a proposal to turn downtown office buildings into affordable efficiency housing units? I still think that idea has potential, as well as actually legalizing warehouse buildings for affordable live/work ... which good lord, it's been over 4 years and .... ugh.

That actually would be neat to have affordable residential downtown!

Personally though, I am sick of wfh and downtown office space is better for everyone than bayside landfill...

And by the way, CA state finances would be more stable of it came less exclusively from the income of folks like me.

in general, it's cheaper to renovate existing buildings than to build new ones.

I agree. I would like to argue, though, that while the popular press thinks everyone wants to work from home my experience is that lots of folks don't.

We should have way more residential downtown, but also its good to have offices where the infrastucture is.

I think unfortunately we just have too many single family homes.

This is happening across the Bay.

https://www.berkeleyside.com/2021/03/25/berkeley-single-family-zoning-city-council-general-plan-change

"the greatest trick the NIMBYs ever played was getting people to believe that tech employees were the problem"

You write this assured that a bunch of rich idiot engineers with no social skills wanting to build an almost entirely white and rich monoculture based on shit we don't need isn't a problem.

these dickheads would return to their natural habitats if the peninsula would ever allow more construction. it’s a regional issue and a state issue, and very SF to frame it as specifically driven by “new people”

so tech bros explain LA too? bc housing is just as out of control there.

"We don't want SF to turn into Manhattan."

well, i could afford to live in manhattan and i couldn't afford SF, so mission accomplished i guess.

There definitely is that element to it in SF and Berkeley (lol I love to lol at Berkeley) ... however, having lived in Oakland for 23 years, we have a lot of development, and when all the housing being built is market rate, and there are a significant number of people who make 50% or less of the AMI -- that market rate housing isn't gonna help those people. And developers here have the option of instead of having enough affordable units in their developments, they can pay "affordable housing impact fees" to the city, so in theory, the City has funds to build affordable housing ... but it doesn't get built. And I don't know if it's a specific-to-Oakland thing, but, they don't want to fund small affordable housing projects ... they're like, holding out for the perfect project, but meanwhile ...... we have some luxury Marriott hotel now on Telegraph and W. Grand ... and very little new affordable housing.

Basically, my feeling is, if the City can get over its rigidity and delusions of idk what and think, "you know, we're willing to make an effort to let you convert this small West Oakland warehouse that at one point was a storefront church into affordable housing for 5 people ... because that is 5 more people that have affordable housing than exists now" ... anyway, that's Oakland and it's predominantly the building department that's the block, not planning & zoning so much. San Francisco Planning Dept however ... whoa ... they are what you complain about re NIMBYism

Hey in the news this week, there's a plan here in SF to turn a bunch of the Stonestown mall parking lot into housing. Could be good. There's light rail right there. Article says the proportion of affordable housing is TBD tho.

Got the email from Kaiser today, requesting I make my vaccine appointment. April 5! Not sure which one I’m getting - I guess they just tell you when you show up?

That's my birthday! I bestow my royal favor. Go and be well.

Xpost, Kaiser. It’s whatever they have that day. I got Moderna.

I like it

I tried to find the DJ behind the Moscone Center vaccination site's piped-in music, and the story just kept getting better.

From "Sidewalk Talk" to "Sir Duke," here's S.F.'s upbeat vaccination soundtrack.

(Playlist included.)https://t.co/lfyZGtnJ6x

— Peter Hartlaub (@peterhartlaub) March 30, 2021

helpful info here for anyone looking for vaccine appointments

basically a compilation of sites & tips for navigating all the options

https://sfist.com/2021/03/30/advice-and-warnings-for-the-newly-almost-eligible-myturn-is-buggy-every-appointment-system-has-a-quirk/

ugh, this is so lame

The Lone Palm bar is now the No Palm Bar 😢@BrokeAssStuart @lucchesi @hknightsf pic.twitter.com/Qu4BgIHpl4

— Helmut the Schmidt (@sfhelmut) April 3, 2021

That's too bad. Always liked that bar.

Bob Wachter's COVID thread from yesterday was solid stuff re the likelihood of a fourth surge and how doesn't see it in the city. And certainly our stats remain pretty amazing.

1/ Covid (@UCSF) Chronicles, Day 383

Perhaps the most confusing time since the start of the pandemic – its easy to be overwhelmed. I’ll try to make sense of some of the key trends, particularly the “4th surge” & vaccines vs variants.

Bottom line: I’m still leaning optimistic.

— Bob Wachter (@Bob_Wachter) April 4, 2021

I just found out that Rainbow Grocery does curbside pickup!

Hmmmmm

BREAKING: San Francisco is developing guidelines that will allow indoor live events to resume on April 15, the mayor’s office announced on Thursday. 🙌

Read more here:
via @MusicSF and @LilyJaniak https://t.co/tehho9v8mj

— SFChronicle Datebook (@SFC_Datebook) April 8, 2021

Josie hamming it up:
If you live in the Excelsior, check this out!

https://hoodline.com/2021/4/neighborhood-serving-covid-vaccine-clinic-opens-in-the-excelsior/

Just got a shot scheduled for Saturday.

Sorry about that first sentence. Copy pasta.

Excelsior numbers doing really well in general too -- over half the neighborhood has at least one shot now.

My old neighborhood. People would always be like, "You live in the boonies," and I would respond, "It is very quiet at night, and my room opens onto a yard with a lemon tree and a koi pond," and they'd shut up.

Yeah we had a lemon tree and a beautiful Japanese maple tree at my old place in Mission Terrace.

Hello! My wife and I are planning a relatively last minute two-week road trip to the west coast, starting May 9. We have a two year old toddler in tow.

Don't want to try to pack too much in, partly because of the toddler and partly because only my wife has a driver's license. So though I'd love to go all the way down to southern California (and indeed start in Seattle), I think it makes more sense to just do Portland to SF.

This is a rough itinerary we came up with. How does it look?

✈️ to Portland, spend one night there
1.5hrs drive
2 nights Cannon Beach
4hrs drive
1 night Newport
4.5hrs drive
1 night Gold Beach
4hrs drive
1 night Arcata
3hrs drive
2 night Mendocino
4.5hrs drive
2 nights San Francisco
1hr50 drive
1 night Monterey (maybe time to venture to Big Sur?)
3hr20 drive
3 nights Tenaya Lodge in Yosemite (they have babysitters you can hire there!)
3hr30 drive
San Francisco ✈️

I'll be happy to help you with Monterey/Carmel tips, but unless you leave very early from SF you won't be able to get in to too much of Big Sur (but if you can, go to Nepenthe).

The general itinerary seems good on the California front, Mendocino's very lovely and I've heard good things re Arcata but haven't been to the area in many years. Yosemite is excellent and it's good you're taking the time there.

2 nights in SF won't allow you to do *everything* but of course we're still reopening cautiously so it may all balance out. Assuming things hold steady all around by then it may be a good time for an open air FAP -- then again, are you all vaccinated at this point or what's your plan here?

Thanks Ned! I was thinking of the Big Sur trip being from when we stayed the night in Monterey, but maybe if we have only one night there there's too much to see. Could always extend it to two nights in Monterey and reduce Mondocino or Cannon Beach to one night instead.

Vaccination: we should be fully immunized by May 9. The whole trip rests on this!

Re: Yosemite, be sure to get a pass ahead of time as they are limiting numbers of visitors. Your Lodge reservation may be sufficient but worth checking.

Good to hear re vaccinations (I'm already covered so yeah, some outdoor chat/drink somewhere should be fine). Arcata to Mendocino, if you're taking the 1, will take the day so two nights there is wise; Mendocino's a lovely area to enjoy with leisure. You can still do Big Sur, but I'd just leave early from SF, get yourself checked in to your Monterey hotel and then use the afternoon for Big Sur; alternately you can leave earlyish, just drive through Monterey and get down to Nepenthe in Big Sur for lunch (it gets busy really quick, so I'd be there before the restaurant itself opens; they have plenty of outdoor seating) and then backtrack at your leisure; I definitely would at least recommend maybe a Carmel Beach visit or spending the toll money to do the Pebble Beach 17 Mile Drive. Again, if you need specific food recommendations in Monterey or thereabouts, just ask.

Am now wondering if we might enjoy ourselves more by cutting the ground we cover right back by just flying to San Franscisci and spending four nights there (but going for day trips), five Monterey and four in Yosemite before flying back. If we didn’t have a kid it would be a different matter but we may be spreading ourselves too thin to really soak it all in by squeezing in Oregon too. Hmm …

I generally prefer more days in fewer places, but ymmv.

Yeah, I think you’re right. OK, conversation with my wife about incoming …

The romance of the long trip down the coast (seeing as we’ve definitely not got time go across the country) is strong but we’d probably just end up exhausted and arguing.

The trip from San Francisco to Santa Cruz is pretty stunning.

(on the 1, of course)

Yeah I was going to say, if you did something where you flew in to SF and did stuff (and yes, take a day trip through Marin or into Sonoma at least), then took the 1 down to Monterey and then settled in there for the day, then a day for Big Sur, another day for Carmel and Carmel Valley, a day in Monterey and Pacific Grove, well there are far worse ways to spend your time. I'm also thinking with a two year old that this may just be an easier time of it to do these kind of concentrated stops in three areas like you suggest! And if you have a Monterey/PG day that's perfect timing for the Monterey Bay Aquarium if they've reopened by then -- I think that's on the cards.