The Frisc

Two years ago, we launched The Frisc to amplify voices and narrate the evolving stories of our city. You could describe it as being "in crisis." At a time when local news was declining, our city required more thorough reporting, diverse stories, and various perspectives. We have been addressing this gap by producing over 120 articles, features, and photo essays focused on San Francisco, all created by just two part-time journalists and a handful of freelancers who are dedicated to this mission.

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Free CCSF Tuition Was Meant to Last 10 Years. It Might Need a New Deal

1 week ago | thefrisc.com | Ida Mojadad

After a two-year trial run, San Francisco agreed in 2019 to cover all City College tuition for SF residents, a notable move that drew national attention. The 10-year deal was meant to stabilize the beleaguered school, which had recently avoided a potential death blow from a state agency and was suffering from a years-long erosion in enrollment.
On Daniel Lurie's New Housing Map, Tall Buildings Aren't the Biggest Thing

2 weeks ago | thefrisc.com | Adam L. Brinklow

Last week, San Francisco planners unveiled a new map meant to make room for tens of thousands of new homes, especially in low-rise western neighborhoods and along busy commercial corridors. The plan comes two years after officials promised to make room for more than 80,000 new homes by the end of 2031, more than half of them affordable.
SFUSD’s Replacement For Its Stressful School Lottery Is Delayed Again

2 weeks ago | thefrisc.com | Ida Mojadad

San Francisco families have hoped for years that their youngsters entering kindergarten would soon have a better shot at getting into their neighborhood public elementary school. But a long-awaited overhaul to the assignment system, notorious for leaving families in the lurch, is being delayed again, The Frisc has learned.
Taller Buildings Are Coming to SF. So Are Sneakier Evictions, Tenant Advocates Warn

3 weeks ago | thefrisc.com | Adam L. Brinklow

San Francisco is about to draw a new map. After two years of work, city planners will reveal tomorrow which streets and neighborhoods will be open to taller buildings. The citywide redesign — or upzoning, in planning parlance — is a big step in SF’s pledge to make room for tens of thousands of new homes, more than half of them affordable. The upcoming map is also prompting opponents of a denser city to raise a new alarm.
Section 8 Helps Thousands of Low-Income SF Renters. Trump’s HUD Cuts Have Already Begun

1 month ago | thefrisc.com | Adam L. Brinklow

As we saw in Part 1 of this report, the largest affordable housing subsidy in the country is a federal tax credit, according to SF’s Planning Department. It’s a crucial piece of a complex financial puzzle to build new homes for low-income residents. But Washington’s largest housing expenditure in San Francisco – nearly $400 million in 2024 – is all about keeping people in their homes: the Section 8 renter assistance program.
SFUSD Budget Pain Prompts Talk of PTAs Sharing Funds Across Schools, Like Portland

1 month ago | thefrisc.com | Ida Mojadad

Some San Francisco public schools are fundraising powerhouses, with parents who bring in hundreds of thousands of dollars a year to beef up staff and supplies. Other schools’ parent associations raise far less, and some schools don’t have PTAs at all. Many schools were counting on PTA funds to buffer against staff shortages, which the pandemic and a payroll system meltdown have exacerbated. On Haight Street, the Chinese Immersion School at De Avila PTA raised $390,000 last year.
Trump Cuts Hit IRS, HUD. Is SF's Affordable Housing Next?

1 month ago | thefrisc.com | Adam L. Brinklow

San Francisco has pledged to make room for some 82,000 new homes by the end of 2031, and more than half must be affordable. Meeting that housing goal is unlikely, and will grow even more so if federal subsidies vanish – or if the federal agencies that supply key subsidies are cut to shreds.
With SFUSD Budget Cuts Ahead, Schools Must Combine Two Grades Into One Class

1 month ago | thefrisc.com | Ida Mojadad

Teachers, parents, students, and others with close ties to San Francisco’s public schools know that the district has $113 million in budget cuts on the near horizon, and that hundreds of teachers and other staff could be laid off. But they might not know about another controversial cost-cutting measure on the table: doubling up two grades in one classroom.
This Rookie SF Supervisor Has Chinatown, Downtown, and a Citywide Recovery to Navigate

1 month ago | thefrisc.com | Adam L. Brinklow

San Francisco housing developer Patrick McNerney recently said a remarkable thing. For more than five years, McNerney’s firm has been working on a residential project on the southwest side of Nob Hill. Last month, its fate was in the Board of Supervisors’ hands. The proposal, a 22-story tower with 303 new homes — about one third of them priced below market rate — would rise at the site of a former funeral home on Sutter Street.
This Favorite SF Arts and Crafts Warehouse, a ‘Candy Store for Teachers,’ Is Losing Its Sweet Lease

1 month ago | thefrisc.com | Ida Mojadad

Balboa High School special education teacher Ian Williams is a pro at scrounging for pencils, old newspaper comics, and other funky trinkets to give to his students. He finds them at SCRAP, the arts and crafts recycling shop that was cofounded 50 years ago by iconic SF sculptor Ruth Asawa.