Debate over proposed 800-unit tower in San Francisco reveals generational divide in the housing crisis

Opposition to a proposed 800-unit residential tower in San Francisco's Marina District highlights a generational divide over new housing between older, established homeowners and younger residents, reports Owen Tucker-Smith in the Wall Street Journal.

According to Tucker-Smith, "The tower that Align Real Estate wants to construct above the Safeway on Marina Boulevard is among San Francisco’s most recognizable buildings these days, and it hasn’t even been built yet." The building would tower above its neighbors in a neighborhood where the number of housing has actually dropped since 2010. The developer of the building is using a state law that mandates expedited approvals for mixed-income projects along commercial corridors. 

While some residents say it will bring much-needed housing to the area, others say it is out of scale for the neighborhood. The Marina Community Association, which opposes the project, says that "the development is on the site of hazardous waste and that its approval cannot be streamlined according to the state law," and that the new units would overwhelm the sewage system. 

"It does feel like a fight between people whose housing is settled for decades, versus people who are worried that they may never be able to own a home," said resident Konrad Posch.