“Permitting, zoning, cost per square foot, and relationships with local cities and counties: In every one of these areas, we have to move with urgency.”
SAN FRANCISCO – In a conversation released today, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Steyer joined Chamber of Progress’s Tahra Hoops and Gary Winslett to discuss housing, electricity, clean energy, innovation, and what the next governor of California can do to lower costs and build more houses. This discussion was released after Steyer published a sweeping, ambitious plan last week to lower the cost of housing and build one million homes.
The following are excerpts from their conversation.
From Housing Crisis to Energy Revolution: The Rebuild Conversation with Tom Steyer
On new building technologies:
“I’m talking about technologies that can easily build nine to twelve stories, the ability to build apartments much cheaper, as well as houses… This is about building walls and floors offsite and assembling them on site.
“The technology is here. The question is how we get it moving, and making sure the jobs that come out of this are good-paying, organized jobs.”
On why Los Angeles and California has been slow to build bouses:
“I went down to L.A. to look at a low-income housing site and it took three to four months after the building was fully built to get hooked up to the grid.
“There has to be a sense of urgency. Including ADUs. Let’s get going, get units built, and make them at a price point people can actually afford.”
On his focus bringing down costs:
“Affordability is at the center of our campaign because it’s at the center of the mind of every Californian, all the time. If we solve affordability and also deliver the services people need, education, health care, home care, we actually become the model for the world.”
On California as a national model:
“We absolutely have the ability to create the best society in the history of the planet. We are rich enough and smart enough to deliver everything we’re talking about. We just need to drive down costs and be smart. If we do that, we restore the California dream, and we show what a society is supposed to look like: inclusive, dynamic, entrepreneurial, and forward-thinking. California invents the future. This is our chance to invent a really bright one.”
You can watch the full interview here.
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