Activists, councilmembers, policymakers, and others often cite “town character” as a chief reason not to construct affordable multifamily housing. In my hometown, Atherton, councilmembers run on platforms pledging to maintain the town’s rural character, meaning no sidewalks, few bike lanes and street lamps, and of course, no multifamily housing.

Thinking Bigger

Let’s zoom out. Out of Atherton, to broader California. Out of California, to the United States. Out of the United States, to the rest of the world. CNBC reported that out of the top 10 most unaffordable cities in the entire world, five were located in the U.S., four were located in California (the only four in mainland U.S.), and two were located just a few miles from Atherton. San Jose was found to be the third most unaffordable place to live, Los Angeles the fifth, San Francisco the eighth and San Diego the tenth.

I’m not the most athletic person in the world, but San Jose and San Francisco are so close that I could bike to either, come back home for lunch, bike to the other and be home in time for dinner if I really felt like dedicating a day to doing so. Two of the world’s most unaffordable cities sit just a few miles away from us.

What gives?

I think, frankly, that citing town character as a reason not to build housing in arguably the world’s most unaffordable area is an excuse. There’s really no other word for it. It’s an excuse used by wealthy homeowners like those in Atherton to keep poor people out. Poor isn’t even accurate, because not even an average, college-educated working individual could feasibly live in Atherton because of the costs.

Their idea of town character is one of affluence — several square blocks of pure, unbroken wealth. From country clubs to historic parks and the estates that lie in between, that is the current idea of town character. But to all the people fighting so hard to maintain that character, I urge them to think bigger. I urge them to realize that where we live is literally the most unaffordable place in the world, and that this isn’t something we should be proud of. It is a problem we need to solve, and in my eyes, this “town character” just doesn’t seem important enough to get in the way of that process.