Weber: zoning, construction costs keep housing scarce despite YIMBY wins

Jonathan Weber addressed housing constraints in San Francisco during a Commonwealth Club discussion, framing the problem as a mix of policy, political resistance and economics.

Weber credited the YIMBY movement with success on state law reforms but said those changes do not automatically translate into more housing at the neighborhood level. He highlighted construction costs, permitting delays and local political resistance—particularly on the West Side—as obstacles. "His big challenge is gonna be to try to get approved a plan to build more housing on the West Side, and people on the West Side don't want it," Weber said, summarizing the political impasse.

Weber's account emphasized the practical limits local governments face when prices are rising quickly: even with legal reforms, the combined effects of land costs, labor and regulatory delays can keep development economically infeasible. He argued that solving San Francisco's housing shortage requires addressing both cost drivers and local political opposition rather than relying solely on state mandates.