San Francisco spends $70,000 per homeless person on tents
San Francisco has a homeless problem. The city has grappled with human feces and discarded drug needles littering the street.
In the past, the city’s government has tried to solve the problem by funding round-the-clock public restrooms with security. The cost came to about $30 per toilet flush.
Now San Francisco’s government is back in action, spending $18 million on “safe sleeping villages” that provide bathrooms, showers, meals, and security for sites where the homeless can pitch their tents.
This seems like a noble enough goal. The problem, however, is that the camps house only 260 tents. That brings the cost to a grand total of about $70,000 per tent.
San Francisco’s budget plans to spend an additional $1 billion on homelessness over the next two years, on top of the $300 million per year already spent.
With a homeless population of about 18,000 that comes to about $44,400 per homeless person per year, to pay for all of these tents and toilets.
What’s interesting is that, according to rental website Zumper, the average rent for a 1-bedroom apartment in San Francisco is $35,580 per year.
So the city is actually spending 25% MORE on tents and toilets for homeless people than it would cost to give every one of them their own apartment.
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