Here's a question that perfectly encapsulates San Francisco's housing dysfunction: Should politicians block new housing because it might obstruct someone's view of the Bay?

District 2 candidates are weighing in on this perennial SF debate, and how they answer tells you everything about whether they're serious about fixing this city's housing crisis or just angling for votes from wealthy homeowners in Pacific Heights and the Marina.

Let's be blunt. San Francisco has spent decades prioritizing the aesthetic preferences of existing property owners over the basic need for more housing. The result? Median rents that make your eyes water, a hollowed-out middle class, and young professionals fleeing to Austin and Miami. But sure, let's make sure nobody's kitchen window view of Alcatraz gets slightly less panoramic.

Views are lovely. Nobody's arguing otherwise. But they are not a property right, and treating them as a de facto veto over development is exactly the kind of NIMBYism that has strangled housing supply in this city for generations. Every unit that doesn't get built because of "view concerns" is another unit that keeps prices elevated for everyone else.

The candidates who deserve your vote are the ones willing to say something uncomfortable: your sight line of the Golden Gate Bridge is not more important than someone else's ability to afford a home in this city. Period.

This doesn't mean we should greenlight ugly, poorly planned towers with zero regard for neighborhood character. Good design, smart density, and thoughtful planning can coexist. But the baseline assumption should be yes to housing — not let me check if the neighbors' view corridor is affected first.

District 2 covers some of the most expensive real estate in America. The political incentive to cater to view-protectors is enormous. Any candidate brave enough to push back against that impulse and champion more housing deserves serious consideration.

San Francisco doesn't have a view shortage. It has a housing shortage. Let's get our priorities straight.