What is VacanSee.org?

VacanSee is a map of commercial property vacancies in San Francisco made with public open data.

In 2020, San Francisco voters passed Prop D, creating a vacancy tax on certain commercial space in SF. Prop D requires owners and tenants to file annual returns. Self-reported data collection began in 2022. Prop D funds support the Small Business Assistance Fund, helping local businesses thrive.

The tax amount is based on the property's street-facing frontage: $250 per foot in the first vacant year, $500 in the second, and $1,000 from vacant year three onward. Although official frontage data was unavailable, this map estimates frontage using GeoJSON property data. All such estimates are unofficial.

VacanSee is a community-built tool and not affiliated with the city. This map complements existing official SFGov visualizations, letting users explore where vacancies were reported in the first years of data collection. With this map, users can:

• Browse: Discover vacant commercial properties across San Francisco.
• Report: Spot an error in the data? Use the map's links to contact the SF Treasurer.
• Contribute: VacanSee is an open-source project in development. Have feedback or a story about a property to share? Visit our GitHub or email at info@vacansee.org.