Is change in the skyline and transit of San Francisco slowing down? (Oakland: rental, insurance)

[checkup]

there's a fair amount of construction going on now, but I think there should be a lot more in view of demand for housing and office space. A lot of projects are getting bogged down in approval processes (e.g., Mexican Museum tower) and lost funding (Treasure Island). One also wonders if/when Hunter's Point, Candlestick will ever get developed in a meaningful way

it is frustrating that there isn't more construction and the process in SF takes so long. In some other cities (e.g., Miami, Houston), the mantra seems to be "build it, and they will come." In SF, it's more like "wait until demand is 10X supply and price:income ratios are 5X the nat'l average; then wait 2 more years while the neighbors oppose any development and non-profit groups raise other objections like the environment or need for low-income housing, or too many shadows; then slowly build for 2 years according to a scaled down design"

[andyadhi01]

Originally Posted by AngusHsu

The SF Giants ballpark transformed the South Beach neighborhood. I remember in 2009 the Rincon Hill and Millennium Towers going up and changing the skyline. Now we won't get the Transbay Terminal building for years to come. The muni metro extension through Chinatown is still many years away.

Compare that to other cities. NYC has multiple skyscrapers going up and more than just the One WTC. LA has a light rail line extending to Santa Monica as soon as 2014.

Why has San Francisco recently refused to change drastically?

This is SF and they don't build things here.. They just oppose it! This is the place where you make money from increasing value of crumbling rundown housing and there is no incentive to invest and improve when bunch of people with too much money and too little intelligence are dying to live here as it is.

[wooliemonster]

The buildings in Houston, with a handful of exceptions, aren't worth envy.

[Obamadon1]

Originally Posted by wooliemonster

The buildings in Houston, with a handful of exceptions, aren't worth envy.

Their housing costs are

[wooliemonster]

Originally Posted by Obamadon1

Their housing costs are

Lower wages and unlimited sprawl. Poor transit. Terrible weather. Most small towns and sprawl metros have the same pattern, and are basically interchangeable. And housing "inside the loop" in Houston isn't exactly cheap; maybe not SF, but think nice parts of Oakland. More premium areas, think Berkeley.

[ketch89]

Originally Posted by AngusHsu

Why has San Francisco recently refused to change drastically?

The whole premise of this thread is absurd, there's a TON of construction going on, and SoMa is about to be completely transformed in the next couple of years. Watch this video:

http://www.socketsite.com/archives/2...ine_fully.html

[andyadhi01]

Originally Posted by wooliemonster

Lower wages and unlimited sprawl. Poor transit. Terrible weather. Most small towns and sprawl metros have the same pattern, and are basically interchangeable. And housing "inside the loop" in Houston isn't exactly cheap; maybe not SF, but think nice parts of Oakland. More premium areas, think Berkeley.

Please refrain from the myth of lower wages in TX. Salries in TX are very good and you will make the same, if not more, for a similar position. Many professionals in high tech don't like to go to TX and that's why companies there pay really well to attract talent.

[checkup]

Originally Posted by andyadhi01

Please refrain from the myth of lower wages in TX. Salries in TX are very good and you will make the same, if not more, for a similar position. Many professionals in high tech don't like to go to TX and that's why companies there pay really well to attract talent.

? Salaries are lower in TX by every survey, including when you compare the same professions/industries

BLS puts the average salaries for all professions as follows (May 2012): May 2012 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
SF: 62k
SV/SJ: 69k

Dallas: 46k
Houston 48k

This site has the following numbers (Highest-Paid Cities by Average Income)
SF: 63k
SJ: 60k

Dallas: 49k
Houston: 51k

And then this ongoing C-D thread (2012 Combined Statistical Area Gross Product-Released September 17, 2013)

1. San Jose MSA | $90,528
2. San Francisco | $69,542

6. Houston | $62,438

11. Dallas | $55,612


Also anecdotally, in my industry and in the tech industry, salaries in CA are higher than TX by about 10-30% for the same position and level of experience

[wooliemonster]

I have recent first hand experience on the topic. I'd say the difference is about 30%. For my wifes job, the Robert Half salary guide publishes a 1.06 factor for Houston, and 1.35 for SF. She's just started looking, so we'll see how well that plays out. Federal GS local factors are in the same ballpark.

But that's not even the point I was making. Houston has always been a manufacturing and transportation center more than high tech and financial. Medical, yes, but remember the entire Texas Medical Center and all its members are not for profit institutions.

[andyadhi01]

Originally Posted by checkup

? Salaries are lower in TX by every survey, including when you compare the same professions/industries

BLS puts the average salaries for all professions as follows (May 2012): May 2012 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
SF: 62k
SV/SJ: 69k

Dallas: 46k
Houston 48k

This site has the following numbers (Highest-Paid Cities by Average Income)
SF: 63k
SJ: 60k

Dallas: 49k
Houston: 51k

And then this ongoing C-D thread (2012 Combined Statistical Area Gross Product-Released September 17, 2013)

1. San Jose MSA | $90,528
2. San Francisco | $69,542

6. Houston | $62,438

11. Dallas | $55,612


Also anecdotally, in my industry and in the tech industry, salaries in CA are higher than TX by about 10-30% for the same position and level of experience

Well the cost of living is half and housing cost is about 1/6 th of bay area in TX. But once again, averages don't mean anything....the average is high here because there is a higher proportion of professional,jobs. But for the same job, bay area has average salary and CA in general has lower salary. The snobby trust fund types in SF feel like they make more than people in other cities and that's because of the trust fund check daddy writes and not the one their employer writes.