Dear Mr. Shaw,
I read with great concern your recent editorial about the community’s response to the proposed affordable housing at 2550 Irving St. It appears that there is much information about the neighborhood response that you lack. While there have been a variety of responses to the proposed housing from members of the community: merchants, tenants, home owners, various ethnic groups who live here, you chose to present one monolithic response, based on a survey we gave our members back in January, 2021, when we first discovered TNDC’s plans. It is now late May. Our proposal, after much discussion with many neighbors, is to welcome affordable housing, with whomever it brings, no matter their ethnic background, no matter their financial status, no matter their past housing status. We support affordable housing, but it must be balanced with the concerns and needs of the community currently living in the mid-Sunset area. We must have answers to our questions about loss of sunlight, increase in traffic, and most important, responsibility for remediating the toxic nature of the soil and air around the site.
Perhaps you would like to come visit us and speak to the neighborhood association. We would welcome it. We can both learn from each other. But please do not tell us we “lack intellectual heft”. Please do not call us “anti-housing zealots”. We are neither ignorant nor unconcerned about the need to increase the amount of affordable housing in San Francisco. We wish to do our share and support our potential new neighbors. We believe our proposal could bring satisfaction to all involved. Please accept our invitation to hear our ideas and see our platform.
Sincerely,
Flo Kimmerling
Mid-Sunset Neighborhood Association
