San Francisco Has Fallen

[Cuddles]

Ok, so here's my 2 cents after spending a few hours in San Francisco and driving around various neighborhoods.

The areas that have always been iffy until the big tech migration to the City in the early 2000s, like the Tenderloin, parts of Market and a couple of blocks around Valencia and Market are definitely significantly worse. Trash, tents, addicts, drugs, crazies... Extending from 5th and Eddy St all the way to Polk St to Geary Blvd and down Taylor St. That's about a 6x4 blocks area that no one unfamiliar with it should walk through and no one does, except the fools who bought apartments in the zone during the frantic property buying period.

On the other hand, I found the rest of the City pretty much like I left it in 2019. Bike paths are now clearly marked in the Mission, South of Market and upper Market street, including numerous streets designated as cycle streets. People walk about, parks are crowded, it doesn't seem like fear has taken over at all. Of course, this is a visual observation of a city I am very familiar with. I posted the article above to clearly show that looks aren't everything. In fact, on a couple occasions I saw guys with backpacks walking past parked cars, looking at what may be inside.

Another strange impression was how early restaurants close, even on weekends, most at 9:30 pm, a few at 10:00 pm. But this isn't limited to San Francisco. Oakland or Mill Valley, 2 opposites, also close early. When I asked I got various explanations, from people are afraid to walk at night, to labor laws make it too expensive to pay overtime, to customers are simply not going out as much... All of which may play a part in the early shut down. No fun.

Overall, I think conservative media is greatly exaggerating San Francisco's present situation. If you came to live in the city in the last 20 years you may be appalled by its downward spiral, particularly since COVID. But if you were familiar with San Francisco before tech moved in, what you see today is pretty much what was then. The difference is the homes look much cleaner, there are many more apartment buildings in areas that were once semi industrial. Tech kids bought properties at inflated values, remodeled and painted them, and now regret their decisions because the hood returned to what was prior to their move in. I don't know if property values are dropping, but I've seen a few for sale signs up this week, more than during all of 2019 when there were none.
Perhaps some are stoking FOMO, hoping to see an exodus and rapidly falling prices so they can swoop in with low-ball offers?

glad you can remain objective. Now to rub it in,

I told you:

The reality is the "picking and choosing" was done by 'the messenger', who took the chronicle's report and highlighted what fit their narrative and omitted the other arguments made by the chronicle counter to the narrative. Should come as no surprise given the founders.

Why would I just copy/paste text already covered in 'the messenger's' article if I'm pointing out the omissions? That makes no sense.

 

[VicBee]

glad you can remain objective. Now to rub it in,

I told you:

I just returned from another week in the Bay Area. While SF doesn't appear much different from when I lived there pre COVID, it remains that overall sentiment is that the City is in dire straights, this coming from most people I encountered, long time residents of the the Bay. The most mentioned is petty criminality and drugs running rampant coupled with lax policing. The consequence is many shopping centers shutting down and property values dropping to 2018 numbers.

 

[elderado]

Hope springs eternal!

https://babylonbee.com/news/to-mask...rays-san-francisco-with-giant-can-of-febreze/

 

[vanzandt]

Foreign TV crew robbed while covering APEC summit in San Francisco
By Aja Seldon
Published November 13, 2023 3:08PM
San Francisco
KTVU FOX 2
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco was allegedly robbed while working.

Journalists from a Czech Republic public television, who were in the Bay Area on assignment, were robbed of some of their equipment on Sunday evening while recording near the famed City Lights bookstore, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.



The San Francisco Police Department confirmed it is investigating an armed robbery of a production team at 4:56 p.m. in the area of Broadway and Columbus Avenue.

According to officers, a vehicle stopped on the street, and three armed men with firearms exited the car and approached the group. The suspects demanded their production equipment, and the victims complied.


The suspects returned to their vehicle and fled, police said.

 

[VicBee]

Foreign TV crew robbed while covering APEC summit in San Francisco
By Aja Seldon
Published November 13, 2023 3:08PM
San Francisco
KTVU FOX 2
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco was allegedly robbed while working.

Journalists from a Czech Republic public television, who were in the Bay Area on assignment, were robbed of some of their equipment on Sunday evening while recording near the famed City Lights bookstore, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.



The San Francisco Police Department confirmed it is investigating an armed robbery of a production team at 4:56 p.m. in the area of Broadway and Columbus Avenue.

According to officers, a vehicle stopped on the street, and three armed men with firearms exited the car and approached the group. The suspects demanded their production equipment, and the victims complied.


The suspects returned to their vehicle and fled, police said.

Sadly that happens fairly frequently...

 

[gwb-trading]

View attachment 327398

 

[Cuddles]

I just returned from another week in the Bay Area. While SF doesn't appear much different from when I lived there pre COVID, it remains that overall sentiment is that the City is in dire straights, this coming from most people I encountered, long time residents of the the Bay. The most mentioned is petty criminality and drugs running rampant coupled with lax policing. The consequence is many shopping centers shutting down and property values dropping to 2018 numbers.

 

[nitrene]

I've lived in the SF bay area since Oct 1981 (from central New Jersey) and certain areas of SF have really collapsed -- SoMa & FiDi. The Financial district has really collapsed mainly due to the rise of WFH since most of the jobs there are really jobs you can do over a phone line or fiber. The mayor bet it all on commercial property housing the tech industry and it didn't end well.

Its interesting that the South bay has a lot of empty buildings as well but no real crime or homelessness problem at least not more than pre-2020.

Oakland has gotten to be real bad as well probably worse than FiDi SF. The Lake Merritt area has become a zone of constant robberies & car break ins. The strangest thing I have read about is the rise of highway shootings mainly on I 880 in the east bay. The Oakland politicians are a real disaster. It's all been downhill since Jerry Brown was the mayor back in the early 2000s.

 

[gwb-trading]

Can someone explain why the homeless reject offers of free shelter. This includes both temporary housing when it is cold outside and permanent housing. Some people would point out that the housing offered is may be unsafe.

However let's take a look at the permanent housing situation in San Francisco, New York and other cities where the homeless are being offered permanent housing which is brand new in nice buildings -- each having their own apartment. Why do the homeless reject this and stay on the streets? Maybe it is mental illness, maybe it is to maintain their freedom to do drugs and drink alcohol to excess (which may be frowned on in the housing).

At this point -- the efforts to house the homeless no longer make sense when a majority reject the housing. The next step should be to pass ordinances clearing any homeless from the streets who refuse to go into housing. San Francisco and other cities can no longer put up with tent cities with needles lying all over the place. This is both unsafe and unfair to the responsible citizens in the community who pay rent, have jobs, and are trying to live peaceful lives without fear of crime.

60% of San Francisco’s Homeless People Who Were Offered Housing Refused It, Mayor Says
https://abc7news.com/sf-homeless-san-francisco-mayor-london-breed-shelter/14174539/

 

[Ricter]

Can someone explain why the homeless reject offers of free shelter. This includes both temporary housing when it is cold outside and permanent housing. Some people would point out that the housing offered is may be unsafe.

However let's take a look at the permanent housing situation in San Francisco, New York and other cities where the homeless are being offered permanent housing which is brand new in nice buildings -- each having their own apartment. Why do the homeless reject this and stay on the streets? Maybe it is mental illness, maybe it is to maintain their freedom to do drugs and drink alcohol to excess (which may be frowned on in the housing).

At this point -- the efforts to house the homeless no longer make sense when a majority reject the housing. The next step should be to pass ordinances clearing any homeless from the streets who refuse to go into housing. San Francisco and other cities can no longer put up with tent cities with needles lying all over the place. This is both unsafe and unfair to the responsible citizens in the community who pay rent, have jobs, and are trying to live peaceful lives without fear of crime.

60% of San Francisco’s Homeless People Who Were Offered Housing Refused It, Mayor Says
https://abc7news.com/sf-homeless-san-francisco-mayor-london-breed-shelter/14174539/

I once managed a crew of custodians and one of our properties was Calgary's nicest homeless shelter. The place is cross between a barracks and a prison (both places I've spent considerable time in, too), structurally and administratively. I'm not surprised at this.