Many housing developments were mothballed when the housing bubble burst several years ago. In states like California, they're being reanimated as demand for new houses increases.
The strike has laid bare a tricky cultural divide in the Bay Area, between traffic-weary tech workers who drive the local economy, and blue collar transit workers who feel left behind.
Residents of California's Central Valley are trying to stop a high-speed rail system that would connect San Francisco to Los Angeles from cutting through their land.