Jackson Toenges considered several neighborhoods in San Francisco for his new job, including North Beach, Ashbury Street, and Commercial Street. He ultimately decided on an apartment in North Beach at 2133 Stockton Street due to its proximity to downtown and access to public transportation. Toenges also explored surrounding cities like Oakland, Daly City, and San Jose. He was drawn to the San Francisco area for its technology industry, cultural attractions, and smart city initiatives around transportation and urban planning.

1. Unit 7 PBL: San Francisco
Jackson Toenges Hour 4

2. Day 1
San Francisco is an extremely expensive
city to live in; even low costing areas are
high priced. Since my new job is located
right next to the CBD, I considered living
in North Beach, an area just north of
Downtown San Francisco. Plus, it is
around the Golden Gate Bridge, which I
finally got to see in person. It was very
invigorating!
View of San
Francisco from
Golden Gate Bridge

3. Day 1
Other areas that I considered living in included
sustainably small apartments located on
Ashbury St and Commercial Street. Ashbury
street is still in the middle class area, but in the
center of the city and west of the CBD. It is
much less expensive than North Beach, but
there are countless missing benefits.
Commercial St is much more expensive, but
right next to the Central Business District. It’s
near the same street as the Transamerica
Pyramid, another sight that I want to see. I have
many options to review.
Transamerica Pyramid

4. Day 2
I decided to live in the North Beach
area, specifically 2133 Stockton Street.
It has great access to the buildings in
the CBD and it still offers services in the
area, especially ports on the bayside.
They are more expensive for a middle
class area than other places in the city,
but the benefits are impeccable and the
proximity to Downtown San Francisco
means that my transportation costs will
be lower than normal.

5. Day 3
Today, I decided to travel all around the
San Francisco Bay Area cities (suburbs
of San Francisco). This includes
Oakland, an industrial city, Daly City,
where more higher income residents
live, and to the south is San Jose.

6. Day 3
Oakland is an example of the working class sprawl. Many factory workers and
other demanding labor jobs are found in Oakland due to its industrial
opportunities. Daly City is the middle and higher class commute zone. It sits right
on the border of San Francisco and it expresses more large homes rather than
apartments and spread apart areas for communities. San Jose isn’t necessarily
a suburb of San Francisco (mainly because it has a larger population) but the
driving distance is under an hour away. This factor influences the types of
services that are found, including the interactions between these two larger cities
and the suburbs around them.

7. Day 4
San Francisco as a whole is one of the most
known cities that promote the use of smart
growth. More space is now being
accommodated for the residents so that they
have more room to do their individual
activities. The city is becoming a world leader
in efficient transportation, such as the BART,
which allows citizens to travel around the city
in an above-ground subway system that uses
more energy-efficient fuels. It also aims to be
a more walkable area and the city wants to
get more people out to exercise and not rely
on automobiles as much for transportation.

8. Day 5
The main pull factor that drew my
attention towards San Francisco and
the surrounding area is the extravagant
increase in the development of
technology. Silicon Valley, an area that
extends from San Francisco to San
Jose, is known for its numerous
technological business headquarters,
such as Apple, Google, Cisco, and even
Netflix.
Google headquarters

9. Day 5
Other activities include sports, such as the
San Francisco Giants (baseball) and the
49ers (football), not to mention the famous
Golden State Warriors (basketball). Popular
culture, such as movies like “Mrs. Doubtfire”,
“Inside Out,” and “Vertigo”, and television
shows like “Full House” and “MythBusters,”
are exciting forms of entertainment that
attract tourists. Iconic landmarks like the
Golden Gate Bridge, Transamerica Pyramid,
and Alcatraz Island additionally lure people
from other areas. All of these components
really did draw me to the city.