With Soaring Rents and a Vanishing Middle Class, San Francisco Becomes a City for the Rich

[Gormy Cuss]

39. As an urban planner you must know that inclusionary zoning, construction, financing, and tax

incentives are tools used successfully by municipalities to preserve and expand affordable housing options.

The biggest problem in SF is that too much of the city is still low density housing because of decades of opposition to higher density development. That attitude is starting to change as formerly working waterfront areas are being transformed into high density multi-use areas.
As is often the case though, the spillover effect into adjacent low and moderate income neighborhoods is causing massive displacement, so much so that businesses in the city are struggling to find and retain workers for low wage jobs. Moving to where rents are more affordable here is a daunting as it is in NY metro: commute times and costs become prohibitive and workers who can, find employment closer to home.