San Francisco is a good case study in what happens when you don't build enough housing - people who were previously able to afford cheap apartments now can't and do all of their business out in the street.

Other cities and states have worse problems with drug use but don't have problems with homelessness because housing is more affordable there.

That's one way of looking at it, assuming you want to encourage needy people to take over your city. Or you could look at it the same way New York and Colorado are looking at it: https://www.voanews.com/a/new-york-mayor-says-no-room-in-his...

I'd like people with substance problems to get help for their problems, and I'd like for everyone in the richest country in the world to be able to sleep with a roof over their head, instead of in the cold and rain.

I can absolutely agree with you on both of those things. Until everyone in North America has adequate food, shelter, and medical care, we need to insist that our children and country-people come first.