Labor Lifts Opposition to Building Taller Apartments along Transit Routes

"The State Building and Construction Trades Council, which represents union construction workers, agreed to drop its opposition to Senate Bill 79 in exchange for an amendment that would require some of the projects that make use of the bill to hire union workers. The bill, authored by San Francisco Democratic Sen. Scott Wiener, would be one of the largest state-imposed housing densification efforts in recent memory."

"On residential and commercial lots within a walkable half-mile of well-trafficked public transit stops, developers would be allowed to build taller and denser housing - as high as six stories. That would apply in neighborhoods where local regulations restrict new development to single-family homes. SB 79 still needs to be voted on by the entire Assembly and then once again by the Senate before this Friday's end-of-session legislative deadline."

SB 79 would allow taller, denser housing up to six stories on residential and commercial lots within a half-mile of major transit stops, including areas currently zoned for single-family homes. The State Building and Construction Trades Council dropped its opposition after securing an amendment requiring some projects using the bill to hire union workers. The measure must pass the Assembly and return to the Senate before the legislative deadline, and would require the governor's signature to become law. Supporters say transit-proximate density is needed to increase housing supply and lower costs, while critics object to limited affordable-housing mandates.

Read at San Jose Inside