How Has the Economic Crisis Affected San Marino?

We're excited to inaugurate a new series for our Patch Readers: "Dispatches: The Changing American Dream."

Every day, the national media is full of stories about how American families, businesses, and neighbors are adjusting to these trying times. There are so many changes happening so fast that it's dizzying: national debates about unemployment, foreclosures, debt, religion, government and private enterprise all touch on fundamental ways in which we see ourselves and our communities. At Patch, we want to explore that conversation on a daily basis so we can better understand how our neighbors are adjusting to the challenges and opportunities that surround us.

We don't think there's one American Dream, but a multitude of American Dreams, which a multitude of people are working toward.

Looking out across nearly almost 900 Patch sites, we see businesses holding their breath deciding whether to expand; college graduates returning home because they can't find jobs; and senior citizens bringing boarders into their homes to help pay their bills.

We also see bold new volunteer efforts, inspiring stories of local businesses that succeed because they innovated and locals who've taken these trying times as a signal to engage more, not less, in their government.

San Marino and the Economy

At the purely local level, we want to know where we, as San Marino neighbors, fit along these fault lines. While San Marino has not been as hard hit as other cities and local real estate prices have actually remained or increased, we all know of people and businesses that have been affected somehow by the economic downturn and in some way--big or small--we have felt it ourselves.

Nationally, cities are littered with vacant storefronts. Locally, San Marino's City Council amended San Marino's alcohol code to allow two restaurants to apply for a hard liquor license--meaning hard alcohol would be served in the city for the first time since the 1950s--in an effort to attract a top-notch dinner house to San Marino and fill vacant storefronts.

Nationally, there's a debate about the education system, which is at the center of our dreams of a better life for our children. Locally, and . Former Superintendent Gary Woods said at the time, "I do believe the economy is a leading factor for lower enrollment for all of California. A lack of jobs and the overall economy is pushing people to move out of the state.”

"Dispatches" will be built upon the compelling vignettes and snapshots we unearth across all of our Patch sites.

And, of course, we want your help: Tell us what issues and what stories in San Marino go to the heart of your American Dream. Email your thoughts and stories to jessica.hamlin@patch.com

This is a unique moment in the history of our country, and Patch is uniquely positioned to explore and amplify the stories that capture that moment.