[tedsuo]

This gets at my concern though - it is not that we don’t know how to build skyscrapers safely. It is that there is now positive evidence that those construction and engineering techniques are not being applied properly, at least in some cases.

For me, the question is not about whether high quality projects are going to be okay. The question is: on what basis do I believe there has been sufficient oversight to guarantee the soundness of new construction?

I can remember talking to SPUR members in 2001 about how problematic it was to extend downtown development into SOMA, etc, due to liquefaction and uncertainty. When the building craze hit, it felt like it brushed these concerns aside, rather than answer them. Now we have leaning buildings that don’t meet basic construction requirements. It doesn’t inspire a lot of faith.