SF Standard – ‘It is insanity’: SF luxury condo owners fume over aggravating neighbors. (They’re Waymos)
Robotaxis are clogging garage entrances, getting stuck in tight quarters, and generally being a nuisance, say residents of the Soma Grand building.
See original article by Jessica Blough at SF Standard
On the fifth-floor terrace of the Soma Grand luxury condo complex, residents often gather for a glass of wine while taking part in a time-honored tradition: complaining about their neighbors.
They moved in last year. They take up too much space. They crowd building entrances and exits, with little consideration for those around them.
But the neighbors aren’t people. They’re Waymos. And for the humans who share garage space with them, they’re the source of endless headaches.
“It is not just minorly inconvenient. It is insanity,” said Jacob Thornton, a Soma Grand renter and garage tenant. “They brick up, crash out, and block the whole way for 10 to 15 minutes.”
When the Waymos leave for the day to pick up riders, there might be a line of a dozen robotaxis blocking real humans behind the wheel from getting out of the garage. When the Waymos go home for charging or cleaning, the rush causes traffic on Mission Street.
The autonomous vehicles often get stuck in the garage’s tight quarters, Soma Grand residents said. One will sit, immobile, until a worker arrives to navigate the cars back in line or get behind the wheel. Or the robotaxi will make tiny turns back and forth as it tries to free itself, only to end up more stuck.
Motorists who use the garage said the Waymo congestion has added time to their commutes, and they regularly have to plan to be blocked by a driverless car that’s navigating the garage at a crawl.
Thornton says he builds into his schedule an additional five to 10 minutes just to get out of the garage each day. Some neighbors put the estimates closer to 15 or 20 minutes.
“It’s almost like zombie cars coming back to feed,” said Jess Thompson, who has rented a spot in the garage for five years.
Many of the condo owners at the Soma Grand were around long before the Waymos arrived, when the first two floors of the garage were hourly parking spaces for visitors to the Orpheum Theater or other nearby attractions. Waymo representatives attended an HOA meeting in May 2025, according to the company.
In the process of moving in, Waymo added free parking for building visitors and additional electric vehicle charging stations for residents. The company also covered two months of parking costs for residents.
“We care deeply about the communities we serve and pride ourselves on being a good neighbor,” a Waymo spokesperson said.
After The Standard began inquiring about the issues, residents reported that Waymo pulled many of its cars from the garage.
Autonomous vehicle parking has been causing headaches for San Francisco residents since at least 2024, when SoMa residents complained of frequent late-night honking(opens in new tab) in the parking lot below their apartment building. Waymos have also nabbed coveted street-parking spots(opens in new tab) while between rides.
Meanwhile, drivers looking for a spot on the street are feeling the stress after the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency got rid of some parking spaces to prevent pedestrian deaths and cracked down on illegal street parking.
Garage parking is sparse near the condo building: A monthly spot can go for $300(opens in new tab) or $400(opens in new tab). Several Soma Grand residents have locked-in spots for less than $200, and a few purchased their spaces along with their condos.
“I use Waymos. I don’t have any negative feelings toward the company,” Thompson said. “But having to coexist with them has been frustrating.”
Ace Parking, which manages the garage and previously provided hourly parking, did not respond to requests for comment.
Thornton said the contract workers tasked with managing the Waymos often seem unhurried to do anything about the blockages — and can make the tight space feel even more crowded when they lurk behind blind corners. Additionally, Waymo has added safety mirrors and speed bumps for traffic control — a strategy one resident described as “aggressive.”
Richard Fink, who owns his parking spot and has lived in the adjacent condo building for two decades, worries that the nuisance will decrease the value of his property as word gets out about the self-driving tenants. Among the neighbors, there are whispers of how to stand up to their robotic co-residents, beyond just posting on the Facebook page.
“At some point, there’s going to be a revolt or a legal recourse,” Fink said. “They must think we’re a pain in the butt, but we’ve been here for 20 years. They just arrived.”
See original article by Jessica Blough at SF Standard
