http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/How-SF-compares-to-other-cities-in-density-10993207.php
Should the city welcome greater density to protect open space?
Updated 4:00 am, Monday, March 13, 2017
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San Francisco vs. New York in density.
San Francisco vs. New York in density.
Photo: Sparefoot.com
San Francisco vs. Amsterdam. San Francisco is about twice as dense as the Dutch city.
San Francisco vs. Amsterdam. San Francisco is about twice as dense as the Dutch city.
Photo: Sparefoot.com
San Francisco vs. San Jose in density.
San Francisco vs. San Jose in density.
Photo: Sparefoot.com
San Francisco vs. Los Angeles in density.
San Francisco vs. Los Angeles in density.
Photo: Sparefoot.com
San Francisco vs. Boston in density. SF is denser.
San Francisco vs. Boston in density. SF is denser.
Photo: Sparefoot.com
Manila vs. San Francisco in density.
Manila vs. San Francisco in density.
Photo: Sparefoot.com
San Francisco vs. Chicago in density.
San Francisco vs. Chicago in density.
Photo: Sparefoot.com
San Francisco vs. Dhaka in density.
San Francisco vs. Dhaka in density.
Photo: Sparefoot.com
San Francisco vs. Paris in density.
San Francisco vs. Paris in density.
Photo: Sparefoot.com
San Francisco vs. Houston in density.
San Francisco vs. Houston in density.
Photo: Sparefoot.com
San Francisco vs. Mumbai in density.
San Francisco vs. Mumbai in density.
Photo: Sparefoot.com
San Francisco vs. Jacksonville, Fla., in density.
San Francisco vs. Jacksonville, Fla., in density.
Photo: Sparefoot.com
San Francisco vs. Anchorage in density.
San Francisco vs. Anchorage in density.
Photo: Sparefoot.com
San Francisco vs. Phoenix in density.
San Francisco vs. Phoenix in density.
Photo: Sparefoot.com
Is San Francisco too dense? Not dense enough? The debate rages on among urban planners, open-space advocates, real estate developers, smart-growth proponents and NIMBYs.
High urban density is often associated with walkability, a cosmopolitan culture and easy transit. But too much density can bring congestion, pollution, filthy streets, noise and crowded sidewalks.
On the other hand, too little density tends to increase reliance on automobiles, aggravate gridlock and boost carbon emissions. It also contributes to sprawl as farmland and open space are bulldozed in order to make room for tracts of single-family homes.
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Greenbelt Alliance, a nonprofit dedicated to preserving the Bay Area’s open space, gave this assessment of the region’s housing situation in its 2017 At Risk analysis:
“The region desperately needs more homes people can afford: homes close to jobs, in existing cities and towns …
“The solution to the housing crisis is not to build on farmland and natural areas around the edges of the region. A better choice is to add new homes as ‘infill’ in existing cities and towns.”
Bloomberg columnist Justin Fox came to the same conclusion.
“If it is to keep growing — and it seems important for both the regional economy and the national one that it be able to — the Bay area needs lots more housing in cities that are already built-out,” he wrote in 2015.
But isn’t San Francisco already significantly dense?
SpareFoot, an Austin, Texas-based company that provides listings for self-storage units, took a look at how San Francisco’s density compares to that of other cities.
The site created maps illustrating how San Francisco’s boundaries would change if it had the same density of other cities. It then superimposed those maps over current boundaries of the city.
The American cities with the greatest growth potential in 2017 may not necessarily have famed skylines.
Media: MediaOS Video
By U.S. standards, San Francisco is indeed dense. For example, if San Francisco had the same density as San Jose, it would have to expand down the Peninsula nearly to Half Moon Bay to make room for its less-cramped populace.
By global standards, it’s a different story.
To see how San Francisco compares to other major cities — both national and international — click on the slideshow above.
Article source: http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/How-SF-compares-to-other-cities-in-density-10993207.php