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Bay Area's Housing Crisis
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The social problem I intend to address is how the technology firms drive up the housing prices in the Bay Area. For this executive summary, I will be acting as a research assistant in Human Resource department in Snapchat. My summary will be addressed to Evan Spiegel, the Chief Executive Officer of Snap Incorporation. Spiegel’s company has been searching for an office space in San Francisco, and I believe taking the homeless crisis into consideration when they relocate their office is crucial to their business development and employee retention. Spiegel therefore needs a thorough analysis about how their transfer will affect the critical situation of housing in the Bay Area and the homeless condition in San Francisco. Spiegel should also understand …show more content…
(2016, August 1). The San Francisco ‘Tech Tax’ Is Dead. Time US.
Retrieved from http://time.com/4434468/san-francisco-tech-tax-dead/
Eric Mar, ex-supervisor at City and County of San Francisco, proposed a 1.5% payroll tax directly to technology companies in the Bay Area in 2016, regarding to the housing prices driven by them. The goal of the “tech tax” was to allocate the money to fund affordable housing in the city. The City Council ultimately rejected the proposal before it made it to the November ballot.
Roland L. (2016, December 2). Facebook commits $20 million to fund affordable housing, job training in Silicon Valley. San Francisco Business Times. Retrieved from http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/news/2016/12/02/facebook- affordable-housing-menlo-park-e-palo-alto.html
Facebook made a $20 million donation to fund affordable housing, and job training in Silicon Valley to create close partnership with the residents, and to ease the tension between technology firms and local tenants, especially in East Palo Alto, which 16% of residents live in poverty. However, due to the rising construction and living cost in the area, more public funding is needed in order to put an end on the housing
This housing affordability crisis is stripping away it’s diversity at increasing rates and I feel that not enough is being done to restore it. Liz Pfeffer article “Is the Bay Area in a Housing Bubble or a Crisis?” describes the situation as, “San Francisco’s chronic problem is a lack of housing for middle and lower-income people. It’s not that they can’t afford it, it’s that it doesn’t exist”. Officials should collaborate on creating solutions to the root causes and offer alternatives that would release some of the pressure. I would suggest promoting micro-homes or smaller scaled homes, limiting foreign investors’s purchases of single-family homes, or expanding campuses of employers to areas that are not heavily populated. It is not too late to restore the balance but it will take collaboration and team work. I am urging these officials and activists to try and save the beloved culture of this area and help retain it as a place where social justice is recognized and
This short memo is being sent out to inform your office about the issues of homelessness and how homelessness is tied into our society. The topics that will be covered in the memo are, the definition of homelessness, how it affects society, the different causes of homelessness, and how it is going to affect society in the future if something is not done about it now. A homeless person is characterized as someone who does not have a stable or permanent residence and frequently sleeps in public or private monitored places. There are many causes of homelessness but the main ones are lack of affordable housing, addictions and long term mental issues. Homelessness is not just a burden upon a few people but on the society as a whole, incarcerations, hospitalization, medical expenses and emergency shelters are some of the expenditures society pays for from taxes. If this problem isn’t taken care of, there will be more people in poverty, more uneducated people and the gap between the rich and poor will grow tremendously. Homelessness is an issue that needs a long term solution.
There are compelling stigmas and stereotypes link with homelessness. There are stigmas link with human service utilization, as well as service provider. (i.e. people live off the system, and human service professionals are bleeding heart liberals. Homelessness is also facing stereotypes and stigmas link with their physical and mental capacity, their health, and even their life. These social factors encounter the way in which clients interact with their environment and will definitely influence service provision through Midnight Shelter Care. Technological factors will also impact Midnight Care, and the clients it serves. The connection and diffusion of information are driven by technology. Administering services to a homeless population who may not have access to technology or understand the technology being used will create a confrontation in service provision at Midnight Shelter Care. The use of technology will be imperative for clients for inter-agency communication and referrals, but to best serve Midnight Shelter Care, my program will need to construct some creative, non-technology based means to provide assistance to the homeless
Wells, E. (2009). Counterpoint: Solving homelessness requires more than housing . EBSCOhost . Retrieved February 5, 2011, from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=p3h&AN=28674968&lang=en-ca&site=pov-can
Therefore, the supply of housing that is affordable and accessible to low income people should be increased. Plus assistance that allows people to reach adequate stability should be regarded as a good investment in a productive society, in order to attain our objective. First we could start by introducing more productive assistance programs that actually focus on helping those in need of housing assistance. These programs will analyze how long people are homeless, what are their needs, the causes of homelessness, and in all how many are currently without a home. Subsequently, the City of Austin would begin building affordable housing according to the amount necessary.
Homelessness is a problem that happens in many different countries around the world. Definitions of homelessness are defined in different meanings by different people. However, the Stewart B. McKinney Act defines a homeless person as “ one who lacks a fixed permanent nighttime residence or whose nighttime residence is a temporary shelter, welfare hotel, or any public or private place not designed as sleeping accommodations for human beings” (McNamara 1025). It is impossible to find out exactly the number of homeless; however, the researchers can do a study to estimate that number. Based on different statistics from different researchers, the homeless population in America has been increasing as “an alarming rate” (Markos and Lima). Therefore, even though America is one of the most powerful countries in the world, homelessness, which has many common causes, has always been a big problem in society.
Homelessness in the United States has been an important subject that the government needs to turn its attention to. There has been announced in the news that the number of the homeless people in many major cities in the United States has been increasing enormously. According to United States Interagency Council on Homelessness reported that there was an estimation of 83,170 individuals have experienced chronic homelessness on the streets of the United States’ streets and shelters on only a single night of January 2015, which is a small decrease of only 1% from the previous year (People Experiencing Chronic Homelessness, n.d.). The United States must consider this subject that most of the people underestimate it and not pay attention
Although most people know what homelessness is and it occurs in most societies, it is important to define because the forces of displacement vary greatly, along with the arrangement and meaning of the resulting transient state. The Stewart B McKinney Homeless Assistance Act of 1987 defined a homeless person as “an individual who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate night-time residence or a person who resides in a shelter, welfare hotel, transitional program or place not ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation, such as streets, cars, movie theaters, abandoned buildings, etc.” Resent surveys conducted in the U.S. have confirmed that the homeless population in America is extremely diverse and includes representatives from all segments of society, including: the old and young, men and women, single people and families, city dwellers and rural residents, whites and people of color, employed and unemployed, able workers and people with serious health problems. The diversity among people that are homeless reflects how difficult it is to generalize the causes of homelessness and the needs of homeless people. Robert Rosenheck M.D., the author of Special Populations of Homeless Americans, explains the importance of studying homelessness based on subgroups, “each subgroup [of homeless people] has unique service needs and identifying these needs is critical for program planning and design.” Despite these diversities, homelessness is a devastating situation for all that experience it. Not only have homeless people lost their dwelling, but they have also lost their safety, privacy, control, and domestic comfort.
As the United States economy grows and technology advances, many areas such as San Francisco, Silicon Valley, and New York City embrace tech companies with open arms. However, it turns San Francisco, once an affordable place, into a luxurious and costly city for people who earn six digit pay checks. The Golden Gate City currently tops the chart for the most expensive homes in the nation. Even techies rent are increasing each month. The people moving into these cities are raising rental and property prices. The middle class is being squeezed out of their
Alejandrino, Simon V. Gentrification in San Francisco's Mission District: Indicators and Policy Recommendations. University of California at Berkeley, 2000.
Gentrification is a highly important topic that has not only been occurring all over the United States, but especially closer than we may have thought. San Francisco is home to hundreds of thousands of people who have been a part of how amazing this city has become. San Francisco is one of the most visited places in the world with many of its famous landmarks, endless opportunities not only for daytime fun but also has an amazing nightlife that people cannot get enough of. People come for a great time and could not be done without the help of the people who have grown up to experience and love this city for what it truly is. The cost of living in such an important city has definitely had its affect of lower income San Francisco residents. For decades we have seen changes occurring in parts of San Francisco where minorities live. We have seen this in Chinatown, SOMA, Fillmore district, and especially the Mission district.
...is to understand the factors that lead people into homelessness, that keep them homeless, and how they can recover from homelessness. Advocates for the homeless have proposed policies range from taking preventative measures, such as making housing and health care affordable, to policies that deal with individuals that are already homeless, such as rapid rehousing and redefining what it means to be homeless. Although many of the experts disagree on how the homeless epidemic should be handled, many acknowledge that the federal government plays an inexpendable role in helping the homeless. Homelessness is, obviously, a complex issue, but like all difficult issues it must be undertaken. It has become clear that homelessness is not something that will eradicate itself given time, homelessness will continue to grow and evolve unless an outside force stops it in its tracks.
Homelessness affects millions each year within the United States with poverty-stricken children roaming the streets, prostitutes on every street corner, and Vietnam veterans sick with mental illnesses. With today’s failing economy, homelessness is a common thing to see in massive cities such as Los Angeles where Central City East, more commonly known as Skid Row, contains the largest amount of homeless persons within our country. Inside this area, camping tents are frequently seen on the streets and cardboard boxes litter the sidewalk for use as makeshift beds for those without a roof. With this problem progressively getting worse, the homeless who reside at Skid Row will eventually overpopulate the district with a multitude not receiving the help they need for housing, mental illnesses and various other problems. A solution has been proposed for a suburb tucked in the mountains in the San Fernando Valley called Kagel Canyon, where the Hope Gardens Family Center intends to temporarily house homeless women and children at their facility for two years. This has led residents of Kagel Canyon to oppose the project (Covarrubias). Although citizens of Kagel Canyon believe that a homeless center would create dangers and more crime for the community, the settlement would essentially take people off the street and help them not turn into criminals. In addition, the approach to having a homeless shelter allows the homeless a way to acquire basic necessities and facilities and an opportunity to receive services such as mental illness treatment in order to refine their own lives.
Riefflin, L. (2011, January 14). Mark's new home just steps away from facebook headquarters. Retrieved March 19, 2014 from
This great nation of awesome power and abundant resources is losing the battle against homelessness. The casualties can be seen on the street corners of every city in American holding an ?I will work for food? sign. Homeless shelters and rescue missions are at full capacity. There is no room at the inn for the nation?s indigent. Anyone who has studied this issue understands that homelessness is a complex problem. Communities continue to struggle with this socio-economic problem while attempting to understand its causes and implement solutions. The public and private sectors of this country are making a difference in the lives of the homeless by addressing the issues of housing, poverty and education.