Uncommon Knowledge
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City authorities permitted the construction of only 16 housing units in San Francisco, one of the most expensive markets in the country, in 2024 as of June—a far cry from what demand would require and what Mayor London Breed has promised.
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Preliminary 2024 data from the States of the Cities Data Systems (SOCDS) Building Permits Database shows that the total housing unit building permits for San Francisco between January and now was 16, split between seven single-family homes, six 2-unit and multi-family homes and three 3- and 4-unit multi-family homes. Among all types of units, six permits were given in January, one in February, seven in March and two in April.
Joseph Politano, an independent writer at Apricitas Economics who first shared the data on X, commented on the data saying that “it’d be hilarious if it weren’t such a nightmare.” Newsweek contacted Politano for comment by direct message on X on Tuesday morning.
San Francisco permitted two (2) housing units in April. The city’s sum total of new housing was one (1) duplex.
It’d be hilarious if it weren’t such a nightmare pic.twitter.com/KD6RLOjfmU
— Joey Politano 🏳️🌈 (@JosephPolitano) May 30, 2024
The data will be subject to revision throughout the rest of the year and might change, but as they are now, they present quite a bleak picture for San Francisco.
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Home prices have been spiraling upward in San Francisco since the Great Recession of 2008-2009 followed the bursting of the U.S. housing bubble, making buying a home in the City by the Bay unaffordable for many. While home prices in the city dropped during the U.S. housing market correction of late summer 2022 and spring 2023, a chronic shortage of homes has kept them from totally plummeting.
As of April, according to the latest Redfin data, the median sale price of a home in San Francisco was $1,400,000, up 3.7 percent compared to a year earlier. It was considerably higher than the national median sale price, which in April was $432,903, up 6.1 percent year-over-year, according to Redfin.
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Last June, Breed introduced legislation boosting the building of new homes in the city by cutting fees and removing laborious requirements for conditional use permits and mandatory public hearings, among other moves. The legislation was designed to help the city meet the state-mandated goal of building 82,000 homes by 2031 to meet the serious need for housing in the city.
But in 2023, the city issued permits for the building of only 1,823 new units, according to the data from San Francisco Planning Department mentioned by the San Francisco Standard. That was about 1,000 short of the units authorized the year before, for a total of 2,701 in 2022.
The number of total new units completed in 2023 was slightly higher, at 1,983, down from 2,893 a year earlier.
In an update in April, Breed didn’t provide concrete details about how many housing units have been authorized in the city, but said that she was “proud to say that over the last year, we’ve started to move San Francisco in the right direction on housing.”
The mayor admitted that “we are not where we need to be, and there is much more work to be done,” adding that her administration continues “to encounter obstruction and delay as we push these solutions forward, but we have made progress. We will continue to make progress.”
Newsweek contacted Breed’s office and the San Francisco Planning Department for comment by email on Tuesday morning.
But the slow pace at which the city has approved new housing units permits this year doesn’t mean that it won’t pick up later in the year. In an article published in April, the SF Standard highlighted how in 2023, the city had approved only 12 units in the first two months of the year—but the number spiked later in the year.
Time will tell whether something similar will happen again this year.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — A ferry carrying passengers collided with Pier 31 while docking Sunday evening, breaking multiple windows and leaving some riders shaken.
Video of the incident shows the vessel striking the pier, with several passengers saying the impact knocked people off their feet and turned a scenic trip into a frightening experience.
“He’s like, ‘Mom, I thought this was going to be the best day, but this is just the worst day ever,’” said Olivia RiosAcuña, describing her young son’s reaction. She said she booked the City Cruises tour because of her son’s love of boats. The family spent much of the day on the deck before heading downstairs as the ferry prepared to dock.
“Next thing I know, I just heard a really loud noise and the whole boat shook,” she said.
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RiosAcuña said the vessel struck the pier multiple times, shattering windows and causing panic among passengers. One woman tumbled down a staircase during the incident, she said.
“I was terrified. I was like, what on earth is going on? And then I was like, okay, who on earth is driving this boat?” she said.
Genesis Alcocer, another passenger, said she did not immediately realize the extent of the damage but feared the worst.
“For me, I was like, oh my god, we’re gonna sink. I’m not the best swimmer,” Alcocer said.
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She said crew members did not initially communicate what was happening.
“The people that worked there were not making a big deal about it, but you could tell in their face that they were panicking,” she said.
Daniel Aburto, who was also on board, questioned the crew’s experience.
“Is it your first day? That was my thought. Like, this is your first day. There’s no way, there’s no way,” he said.
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Passengers said they were kept on board for about 20 minutes before being directed to exit the ferry. RiosAcuña said she was surprised by the tone of a staff member as they disembarked.
“This guy’s like, ‘Have a great day. You guys sure had an exciting entry,’ or something like that,” she said. “I was like, exciting? More like traumatic. My kid’s still crying.”
RiosAcuña, Alcocer and Aburto said they do not plan to take another City Cruises trip anytime soon.
No injuries were reported.
Alcatraz City Cruises provided a statement to ABC7:
On Sunday evening, an Alcatraz City Cruises vessel was involved in a docking incident upon return to Pier 31. There are no currently reported injuries, and an investigation of the incident will be conducted to determine it cause. Any impacts to service will be provided as additional information becomes available.
Copyright © 2026 KGO-TV. All Rights Reserved.
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — All lanes on San Francisco’s 19th Avenue have fully reopened ahead of schedule following the completion of a final, multi-round road repair project.
Northbound lanes reopened at 2:30 a.m. and southbound lanes at 6 a.m. on Monday, concluding work between Sloat Boulevard and Holloway Avenue.
The upgrades, which improved traffic flow after severe, temporary congestion, are expected to last for 20 years.
Caltrans repaves northbound 19th Ave. in San Francisco; locals, business owners brace for delays
Caltrans’s repavement project of 19th Avenue included repairing potholes and repairing unsound pavement. It was part of a third and final round of scheduled roadwork on the busy corridor.
This weekend’s closure affected 19th Avenue between Sloat Boulevard and Holloway Avenue, and crews worked on the northbound lanes during the day and then the southbound lanes at night.
One lane stayed open for public transit, emergency responders and local traffic.
Copyright © 2026 KGO-TV. All Rights Reserved.
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