SF Daily Brief for November 1, 2026

Welcome to SF Daily Brief. It's Sunday, November 1, 2026. Here is what's happening in San Francisco today. We begin with housing and the cost of building it.

The Standard reports on the real reason nothing gets built in San Francisco: new housing costs more to build than it can return in rent or sales. Because of that gap, projects do not get built. A policy group is working on ways to change that math. The group is looking for ways to close the gap between construction costs and what a finished project can bring in.

The goal is to make the numbers work. For renters, a new affordable building is open for applications. The nine-story building at 160 Freelon St. in SoMa will offer 62 affordable apartments. The apartments range from studios to three-bedrooms.

They are available to households of one to seven people. Applications are due Nov. 19 at 5 p.m., and a lottery is set for Dec. 4. Depending on income, rents run from $528 for a studio to $2,574 for a three-bedroom. Applications are open now, and the lottery follows the deadline.

Housing is one of the divides in San Francisco's congressional race. Connie Chan and Scott Wiener have taken opposite sides for years on housing, transit and parks. Mission Local reports those divisions carry into their campaigns for Congress. The two candidates present very different urbanist visions in the race.

Police closed Valencia Street between 17th and 18th streets for about an hour Thursday night while they investigated a suspicious package at the Mission police station, KTVU reported. The package was determined to be safe. The closure affected Valencia Street between those two intersections. At Chase Center, the Golden State Valkyries won Game 7 of the WNBA Finals.

The win gave the franchise its first championship in its second season. Gabby Williams took over the game, and Golden State shocked the WNBA. The Valkyries are champions after the Game 7 win at Chase Center. Around Chinatown, three projects will remove another 80 parking spaces.

The work involves Portsmouth Square, the Chinatown public health building and the Him Mark Lai library. The 80 spaces are on two levels of the Washington Street garage and will be out of service until late January 2027. The library closes Dec. 5, and a temporary branch opens Dec. 19 at 950 Grant Ave. The parking removals are tied to the work on Portsmouth Square and the two building renovations.

In the final days before the Nov. 3 election, Nancy Pelosi is making more appearances for Connie Chan. Pelosi chose Chan as the successor for her House seat. Mission Local reports that Pelosi, the speaker emerita, is making a final push to elect Chan to Congress. The appearances come as the election approaches.

San Francisco's public health department is urging residents to get flu and COVID-19 vaccines. The department says this year's flu season started early. A 48-year-old resident with an immune condition died after catching the flu. Uninsured residents age 4 and older can get free shots at 27 Van Ness Ave.

The department is asking residents to get both vaccines as flu season gets underway. Endorsements in the congressional race continue. Gary Locke, the first Chinese American governor and a former U.S. ambassador to China, endorsed Connie Chan in the race to succeed Nancy Pelosi in Congress, Mission Local reports. Locke is a former ambassador to China.

Gabby Williams was named the WNBA Finals MVP after scoring 28 points in the second half of Game 7, a playoff record for a half, the Standard reports. The MVP honor followed her record-setting performance in the final game. The Warriors beat the Lakers in their biggest comeback since 2015, holding Luka Doncic in check, the Standard reports. Luka Doncic came for revenge on Yaxel Lendeborg.

The Warriors had other plans. Golden State's comeback was its biggest since 2015. That's today's brief for Sunday, November 1, 2026. Thank you for listening.

For the full written brief, including all of today's stories, visit sfdailybrief.com.