No more free parking in Golden Gate Park. Charges for reserving tennis and pickleball courts. Higher fees at golf courses.
These are just a few of the ways that having fun in San Francisco will get more expensive under a plan approved by the Board of Supervisors last week, meant to cope with the city’s budget woes.
The board also approved higher surcharges on outdoor event spaces, picnic areas, and athletic fields. The proposed changes must be approved by Mayor Daniel Lurie.
Perhaps the most drastic change will be the launch of paid parking in Golden Gate Park. Starting in 2027, a spot in the park will cost about $3 per hour from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., seven days a week. The Recreation and Parks Department estimates that the park’s 3,100 parking spots will net $4.9 million in six months.
For the first time, there will be a $6 charge to play 18 holes of golf, and it will cost $1 per hour to rent athletic fields. Picnic areas will run $5 to $25, and a 10% surcharge will be levied on the price of outdoor venues. These surcharges — which would take effect 30 days after Lurie signs the ordinance — are expected to bring in about $1.2 million this fiscal year, which will go toward covering 10% of the costs of power, water, and wastewater for these areas.
Residents are not thrilled.
“It just doesn’t make sense to charge everybody more for everything,” said Oxama Arafeh, 26, who was visiting Golden Gate Park. “Everybody’s struggling to begin with to afford rent and afford parking everywhere else. This just seems like a cash grab on people who can’t afford it.”
“I feel like most things are cost-prohibitive at this point for an average family,” said Anne Keller as she returned with her children from a day at the park. “Just going out for little outings, everything, everywhere. You’re paying for every little thing, and everything is hiking up.”
The charges don’t stop there. Tennis and pickleball players will pay $5 for reservations at 28 of the city’s 66 locations. (Previously, only the Goldman Tennis Center in Golden Gate Park charged for reservations.) If players make reservations more than a week in advance, the price goes up to $20-$40 per hour.
Greens fees at some city golf courses are going up. A round of 18 holes at Sharp Park on the weekend will cost city residents $60, up from $43. At TPC Harding Park, the marquee course that hosted the 2020 PGA Championship, the weekend price for residents jumps from $91 to $109. Additionally, the more expensive weekend rate will be extended to Fridays at all six city courses. The added charges are expected to generate $4 million over two years for the Recreation and Parks Department.
“We understand there is a budget crisis, but the golfers are being hit very hard,” said Richard Harris, president of the San Francisco Public Golf Alliance. “There are real affordability problems.”
The alternative to these fees would have been drastic service cuts, according to the Parks Department. Closing pools, shortening rec-center hours, and reducing park ranger positions have all been on the table.
“These modest, targeted fees are a critical step toward protecting the services San Franciscans love and rely on, Parks Department spokesperson Tamara Barak Aparton said. “They allow us to maintain safe, well-kept parks in every neighborhood, preserve cherished programs like summer camps and senior classes, and continue offering affordable, enriching activities for families across the city.”
All this is particularly painful for residents contending with higher fares on Muni and higher costs for Recology to pick up the garbage.
The city has previously prioritized eliminating some fees, which are shown to disproportionately hurt low-income and minority communities, through its Financial Justice Project, which is part of the Treasurer & Tax Collector’s office.
San Francisco was the first county to eliminate fees for electronic monitors, probation, and jail bookings. Traffic fines can be reduced based on a person’s ability to pay.
The public library system stopped charging for overdue books, which has correlated with increased usage among lower-income and Black and Latino families, according to Amanda Fried, chief of policy and communications for the Treasurer & Tax Collector’s office.
But to counteract the city’s bleak fiscal situation, significant spending cuts will be likely in future budgets, according to Nicole Neditch, the government and economy policy director for SPUR.
“There are a lot of things that are hitting residents now in terms of increased costs,” said Neditch. “The biggest thing is that they’re going to do permanent cost-cutting, and that is going to be difficult.”