San Francisco has no shortage of problems demanding the attention of city government.
Homelessness remains highly visible. Families struggle with one of the highest costs of living in the country. Businesses and residents continue to raise concerns about public safety, property crime and the difficulty of simply making life work in an extraordinarily expensive city.
Apparently, we can add dads teaching their kids tennis to the enforcement list.
The San Francisco Standard recently reported that Sam Dogen took his 6-year-old daughter and 9-year-old son to Golden Gate Heights Park for an afternoon of tennis. The courts were empty. The family brought rackets and a basket of balls and started practicing.
About 20 minutes later, two Recreation and Parks Department rangers approached.
The issue? San Francisco prohibits tennis instruction on public courts without a permit. Dogen was reportedly told he could face a $192 fine before his children explained that their “instructor” was actually their father.
To be fair, the rule has a reasonable purpose. San Francisco doesn’t want commercial instructors effectively taking over public courts to run private businesses without permits. The Recreation and Parks Department told the Standard that rangers sometimes ask questions to distinguish paid instruction from parents coaching their children.
But this is where common sense should enter the conversation.
An empty public tennis court. A father. Two young children. A basket of tennis balls.
How does that situation require an enforcement encounter in the first place?
That’s why stories like this resonate far beyond a $192 potential fine. Residents watch government struggle with homelessness, crime, unemployment, affordability and the everyday pressures making California cities increasingly difficult for working families. Then they see government resources being used to investigate whether Dad needs a permit to teach his 6-year-old a forehand.
Rules matter. So does judgment.
Government earns public trust when residents believe its priorities reflect theirs. Enforcing regulations against businesses exploiting public property makes sense. Treating an afternoon of family tennis like a potential municipal violation does not.
San Francisco has plenty to police.
A dad playing tennis with his kids shouldn’t make the list.
