Housing with no parking spots is good for S.F.

Regarding “New housing will add 160 affordable units to S.F.’s Haight — but no parking spots” (San Francisco, SFChronicle.com, Jan. 28): As San Francisco battles a dueling housing and climate crisis, the 160-unit affordable housing complex at 730 Stanyan St. is a project to praise.

Eliminating parking enabled developers to save an estimated $75,000 per unit on this project. If developers were forced to build parking spaces for each unit, this project likely wouldn’t have penciled out.

Opponents say that new residents will still own cars and will crowd out crucial parking spots in the neighborhood. UC Santa Cruz and UCLA researchers found that residents of affordable housing in San Francisco without parking are less likely to own cars.

Haight Street is lined with parking meters where visitors pay to park, resulting in spots that turnover often, which is good for nearby businesses.

Several Muni lines service the area. One block over is Page Slow Street — one of San Francisco’s most popular corridors for pedestrians and cyclists.

If city supervisors are concerned about residents having reliable transportation options, they should make investments to improve public transit.

High frequency, reliable public transportation, car-free streets and equitable parking reform will encourage folks who don’t need them to ditch their automobiles.

We should view 730 Stanyan for what it is: an unlikely climate and housing success story in a city that needs far more of them.

Taylor McNair, San Francisco