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by James Wernikoff
Volunteering at the LifeMoves homeless shelter opened my eyes to the harsh realities of affordable housing in the Bay Area. While working with LifeMoves, creating a sports camp for children, and speaking with residents, I learned that most were homeless because they could not afford to rent in one of the highest-priced markets in the nation. It was a startling realization: At that moment, I realized the housing crisis isn’t just a policy debate. Thousands among thousands struggle because of the unsolved problem we tend to push aside.
The problem is deeply rooted in systemic challenges. High construction, land, and labor costs, restrictive zoning laws, and the scarcity of land make it almost impossible to build enough affordable housing. California is just simply expensive. When housing does get built, it’s often luxury condos that many low to medium-income Bay Area residents can’t afford.
Through my research, I’ve explored innovative solutions. Converting empty office spaces into homes stands out to be the most effective one. Because of the high San Francisco office space vacancy rates of up to 40%, it’s established that 14,000 new units will be built when converting them to office spaces, which will be 30% more cost-efficient. It will serve to repurpose the many idle office buildings left unused due to remote work associated with COVID-19. However, solving the housing crisis will require more than out-of-the-box ideas for new construction. It will also need cross-county communication and cooperation. Today, when counties are given their goals of how much of each kind of housing they are supposed to build in a given time, towns often lack following through. What we really need is regional planning centered on equity among all communities. Each of the 11 Bay Area supervisors should interact and plan accordingly more often, and more efficiently for a fair, equitable, and efficient housing plan.
James Wernikoff is a Portola Valley resident and Menlo School student.
James, it’s so nice to see students like you getting into the community, talking to people, thinking about the problems and throwing out solutions. Just the act of interacting with unhoused folks, listening to their stories and showing some empathy can be impactful. I hope you continue to think about creative solutions and stay engaged!