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Where is the YIMBY Movement in Hawaii?
After getting involved with the YIMBY movement on a much deeper level this year, coming back home to Hawaii and seeing my hometown with a renewed lens was somewhat of an interesting experience. Honolulu (and as a result, much of Hawaii) often finds itself at the top of the “most expensive places to live” rankings in the US, which explains why it usually finds itself on the “worst of” charts regarding the housing crisis in the States.
At the risk of oversimplifying things, here are the impressions of San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Honolulu I have had of each city, as of 2018. I used to live in SF until mid this year, currently live in LA, and Hawaii is where I was born and grew up.
San Francisco
Housing Stock — Severe Shortage, Trending Worse
Politics — YIMBY/NIMBY Groups Openly Hostile
Mayor — London Breed (D), Very Supportive of YIMBY Policies
Homelessness— Trending Worse
Population — ~0.87 Million
Los Angeles
Housing Stock — Serious Shortage, Prices Have Stabilized For Now
Politics — YIMBY/NIMBY Groups Disagree, but Cordial
Mayor— Eric Garcetti (D), Mildly Supportive of YIMBY Policies
Homelessness — Slightly Dipped in 2018
Population — ~4 Million
