Growing up in San Francisco, I thought I was the luckiest kid in the world. A beautiful city built right on the bay. Nice views and water within a drive about 20 minutes in any direction. Most of the people I knew or interacted with, were locals and had been here for generations. A small-town feel within the big city. A place where we were able to play in the streets until dark; when I was nine my parents had no problem letting a friend and me walk to the corner store alone. In a time before cell phones, we could disappear all day with just a “Mom, I’ll be at Joe’s house,” and the house phone would eventually ring to call me home.
I knew that one day when I grew up, I wanted the same experience for my children. It took a lot of effort but in 2010, I was able to buy a house. Two short years later, my wife and I were blessed with our first child. Then in 2016 we had our second child.
But in that time my city has continued to rapidly change and seemingly deteriorate. Although my wife and I both work and make good money by any typical standard, in San Francisco it is never enough. The constant tax increases, in property tax, sales tax, property tax levies, and continually burdensome regulation has made it almost impossible to live and raise a family. So, I started to look at where all the money really goes…
The City of San Francisco, a city of 870,877 people and only 49 square miles, is slated to spend $10.1 billion dollars next fiscal year, which started July 1.