SOMA's story—the evolution of a community

The South of Market Area (SOMA) has always been a mixed-use commercial, industrial and residential neighborhood. In 1847, early Gold Rush settlers and Chinese immigrants inhabited the area. These settlers pitched their tents and opened shops to serve the city’s growing residential and business community. Because of its easy access to shipping facilities, the SOMA waterfront became the city’s first major manufacturing and industrial district. SOMA flourished as a mixed-use community and by the early 1900s, there were nearly 62,000 people living in the area. The economic depressions in 1873 and 1893 brought many unemployed workers into the district. This was in sharp contrast to the mansions and elegant homes in the Rincon Hill, Nob Hill and South Park neighborhoods that were at their height in the 1860s.

The 1906 earthquake changed all of that. As post-earthquake reconstruction proceeded, most of the area’s residents moved into the Mission District and the SOMA population declined by 60%. Although some traditional housing was rebuilt, the area was predominantly residential hotels and boarding houses to accommodate the large numbers of unemployed workers and transients moving into the area.

From 1940 to 1950, workers in World War II-related industries increased the population of SOMA by 37% and by 1970, the population had begun to stabilize. Yet from 1970 to 1985, the population declined again by 42%.

Drastic change came to the area once again in 1990s. First, the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake caused widespread damage. The subsequent redevelopment plan provided funds to repair, restore, and replace damaged buildings and provide development assistance to neighborhood businesses. Then came the "dot com invasion" of the SOMA. All of the resulting new residential and commercial development quickly made one of the last affordable neighborhoods in the City unaffordable, displacing many low-income residents. Only after the City stepped in and helped secure 21 new affordable housing projects did the area witness a return of low-income residents. Of today’s SOMA residents, 83% of the population has moved in since 1990.