Living in Hayward for example would make housing more affordable, but as you allude to, commute times would likely 4-5x (because bridges) and their kids' education would suffer due to school districts since they likely take advantage of the Tinsley Voluntary Transfer Program to attend schools in Menlo Park's school district (whereas Hayward schools are not good by any stretch of the imagination)
It's a tradeoff lost of people make. 1. Live in a garage, 2. Long commute, or 3. Live in an area with fewer job prospects?
Somebody has never negotiated a salary... The answer is yes, a lot more, you just go "This commute is unbearable and I won't move to your stupid neighborhood so if you want me, pay me 20k more" (not a joke, I did that, for a 45 mins commute).
Just think about all the stuff you've missed out by being so closed minded and not saying it, many people will pay you more if you complain about your commute, that's a fact.
"Stop grandstanding and take care of your own house first" is more of the message of this article, I'd say.
And I do see it as a lifestyle choice. You can't choose a lot of things in life, but you can choose where you live. I don't have a huge amount of sympathy for people who choose to live in the most expensive part of the US, and then complain about the cost of living. Despite making boatloads more money than me. I certainly don't feel like I should be forced to subsidize their lifestyle choice (I know that isn't the argument presented here, but it is an issue that often comes up with these issues. I don't think cost of living should be taken into account with regard to government programs and subsidies.)
"They" are easy to motivate, though. You just need to make it profitable and possible to do. "They" are actually very reliable that way.
Who is "they"?
How is $19/hour good money in California?
Are you saying that is the only thing that is keeping the bay area's cost of living high?
For example, we have a small public transit network resulting in few options for high density construction.
There's a construction labor shortage that will likely worsen.
There's a sudden surge in jobs.
All of the people who oppose residential development near work sites are to blame. Period.