Tiny Apartments in San Francisco
Your questions regarding the impact on local utilities is a good one. The tiny apts being considered for SF are near public transportation. Public transportation in SF is pretty good and runs 24x7.
There are pluses and minuses for small apartments. For singles, fresh out of collage and starting a job; then this can make working in a city more affordable. On the negative side, these tiny apartments would be too easy to outgrow as space for personal items (including clothes and seasonal items) is very small. Another negative is that the space is too small for a couple unless their relationship is strong; and it is definitely too small for one or more children.
I am hoping that these micro apartments are not allowed, it fixes a housing problem but only for a short time. The apartment design is not bad for young adults but would be a stressful lifestyle change for older adults. Since the SF apartment market has more demand than supply then this is a bandaid that is only good for near term.
As the article stated, housing can be built up vertically (apartments and condos), subdividing current housing or expect people to commute from nearby cities. One of the nearby cities, Oakland, is currently going through the same housing problems due to the demand for local housing.
San Francisco is a nice place to live; the weather is generally mild. It is a walkable city for a lot of places and it has good public transportation. It is a friendly multicultural city with events that are inclusive. The drawbacks are the congested streets, it is expensive for housing and less variety of jobs.
