Opinion By Joe Jamil : sfstandard – excerpt
We need a return to pragmatic, bottom-up neighborhood and community planning that respects existing height limits and fosters community consensus for new development, says Mo Jamil
YIMBYs are demonizing San Francisco residents and small businesses with labels like NIMBY. But such smears can’t obscure the truth about the extreme housing policies of Mayor London Breed, state Sen. Scott Wiener and their allies.
Simply put, an “upzoning” plan to double height limits and disregard public input is radical and will not benefit the city’s residents or small businesses. Rather, such moves would destroy our neighborhoods and displace the people and local businesses that make San Francisco special.
Last week, the mayor appeared to shelve the most radical elements of the upzoning plan in favor of a more targeted and nuanced approach that I and other neighbors and merchants have advocated. Despite the mayor’s clear about-face, the radical fringe YIMBY elements rushed to social media to call for an even bigger plan that demolishes existing buildings and expands the scope of the rezoning plan. Did they get the memo from Room 200 or do a temperature check of residents and merchants? Clearly not…
I identify with the many residents and merchants who are best described as SHIMBYs: Sensible Housing in My Backyard advocates. We reject polarization and name-calling. We demand pragmatism and dialogue so we can be both pro-neighborhood and pro-housing.…(more)
Moe Jamil is a deputy city attorney, Russian Hill Neighbors board member and a candidate for District 3 supervisor in November’s election. His comments are his own and do not represent the views of his employer.