After his multiple previous attempts to throw out zoning restrictions in areas near transit hubs have failed, state Senator Scott Wiener has a new measure to streamline larger housing projects near a more limited number of those hubs.

State Senator Scott Wiener has been on a crusade to pump up taller and denser housing projects near transit stations ever since his political career took him to Sacramento. He had a 2018 measure to allow five-story apartment buildings near public transit hubs, even if the area was zoned for only single-family housing, but that died in committee early on. His similar sequel 2020 measure SB-50, which would have essentially upzoned all of San Francisco to a five-story height limit, also died on the full state Senate floor.  

But Wiener has gotten closer to the finish line with each consecutive attempt, and now he’s trying again. Streetsblog reports that Wiener introduced yet another housing density near transit hubs measure, this one called SB-79. Under this new bill, apartment buildings could be up to seven stories high, though only closer to a more limited number of what Wiener calls the state’s “highest quality transit” stops.

This time around, that would not include Muni. Those higher limits would only apply to systems like BART and CalTrain, or SoCal systems like the LA Metro and Burbank’s Metrolink.

“It will offer more housing overall, and it will support our public transportation systems with increased revenue and increased ridership,” Wiener said Friday, according to KQED. “We really need more housing, more and better transit, and the two truly go hand in hand.”

This bill will likely not play well with many suburbanites — after all, think of all the Caltrain and BART stations where you do not see housing anywhere near seven stories. But this version of Wiener’s bill seems to single out land owned by the transit agencies, much of it used as parking lots, which may not be seeing as much use these days.  

And this version is also likely to draw concerns that it could actually drive up housing prices and aid displacement, concerns heard with that whole “Monster in the Mission” condo project that was slated for the 16th and Mission BART station.

But despite recent years’ momentum for easing restrictions on housing production, that housing is still largely not getting built. Supply-siders blame union work requirements, affordable unit requirements, and legislative carve-outs. But it may be more that construction costs and interest rates are just making this not a good time to build. And Scott Wiener may not be able to legislate his way out of that, no matter how many bills he introduces.

Related: Wiener’s Controversial SB-50 Housing Bill Dies for Third Consecutive Year [SFist]

Image: California YIMBY via Youtube