San Francisco is so expensive, the city is spending $44 million so its teachers won't be homeless

pulse

May 15, 2017 5:27 PM

San Francisco has committed $44 million for the city's first teacher housing development.

A teacher instructs a group of children at Brightworks, a primary school in San Francisco's Mission District.

San Francisco teachers are some of the worst-paid educators in the state, despite living in what is by far the most expensive rental market in California, according to an investigation by the San Francisco Chronicle in 2016.

Now the city is ponying up $44 million for San Francisco's first teacher housing development, so public school teachers can afford to live in the city where they work.

San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee picked a site in the

The announcement comes days after the Chronicle published a profile on

The average rent of a one-bedroom in San Francisco tops $3,300 a month. That figure has been steadily rising over the last six months, according to real-estate search engine Rent Jungle.

Teachers like Cheeks are struggling. Some teachers rent cramped spaces in other people's homes, drive for Uber, or commute from the far reaches of the East Bay, the Chronicle reports.

The mayor's proposal still requires the support of the city school district and the Board of Education to inch the project forward.

San Francisco is not the first city to consider such a measure.

The teacher housing solution in San Francisco is long overdue, according to Mayor Lee.

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