‘It’s been a long road, but the city is still sinking further down’
By Evan Symon, California Globe
The decline of San Francisco continued this week as several high profile robberies, store closures, and attacks have occurred since Monday, sparking new concerns over the ongoing serious crime and compromised economy in San Francisco.
Crime in San Francisco, which has been rising in the city since the late 2010’s, has brought about new concerns in recent months. An August poll found that over half the country no longer views the city as safe, while the crime rate, as well as rampant homelessness and drug use, have threatened the economic well-being of the city. This was seen through recent conventions, with the large Dreamforce convention mulling not returning to San Francisco next year because of the poor reception of the city by convention goers this year, and even some attacks happening to some attendees. Next month’s APEC conference in the city has also worried many, with many city leaders viewing it as a ‘make it or break it’ point in convincing large events to come to the city in the coming years.
On Monday, matters were not helped by a man driving a car into the Chinese consulate building in a possible attack, with the man later being shot and killed by the SFPD. Early Thursday, yet another major vehicular crime occurred, this time at the Dior store in Union Square. Using a car to ram the building and break glass, several thieves ran in and robbed the store. A total of three vehicles were involved in that robbery, with only one vehicle, and subsequently three suspects being apprehended following a crash later near the Bay Bridge.
“So there were reports that there were up to three vehicles involved,” said SFPD Sgt. Kathryn Winters on Thursday. “The car that rammed into it didn’t go completely into the business. When our officers were responding they did locate one of the vehicles involved, that vehicle fled and got into an accident on the bridge, the occupants ran on foot, but we were able to make some arrests and recover a substantial amount of merchandise.”
An uptick of Crime in SF
Meanwhile, an uptick of store closures were also reported this week. For several years, large chains and small businesses have been leaving San Francisco – either closing permanently or relocating operations outside the city. In the case of small businesses, some have left the area entirely, moving out of state or to other areas in the state.
Walgreens has closed more and more stores in the city because of the massive amount of crime within its stores. Higher-end stores have also cited break-ins and crime as major reasons for leaving. And Since the beginning of the year, all Amazon Go stores, Anthropologie, several high-end Union Square stores, several department stores, and the flagship Whole Foods store have all announced that their doors will be closing, along with multiple non-chain stores throughout the city.
While the closures have been across the retail spectrum – pharmacies, food stores and other places with small but pricey merchandise – have been noticeably harder hit by a mix of crime, high rents, fewer shoppers visiting San Francisco locations, and the lack of security. Walgreens has closed at least 11 stores in the city since 2020, CVS has closed seven since last year, and Target recently announced three new closures.
This week began with a spate of long-time restaurants and small businesses closing their doors, then later in the week led with the Banana Republic in the Embarcadero Center and the Express store in Union Square announcing their closures. While Express said that the closure was because of cost-cutting measures, employees at nearby businesses pointed to two main culprits – skyrocketing rent and crime.
“It all comes down to the rent being too high and crime happening,” said Leslie, a shift manager at a business less than a block away from the soon to be closing Express Store. “So, stores here are targeted for robberies. We’re all insured, but it still costs a lot, especially when we need to get better security. Homelessness is always an issue, as is open drug use. Not that much here in Union Square, but still enough to be a concern. So that leads to less people coming out here, especially tourists. I know the blame for a lot of businesses have been the empty office buildings and workers not passing by, but here, it is tourists.”
“Combine that with less and less people wanting to shop at physical locations and you have just a world of pain for us. Oh, and with less money coming in as a result, we struggle to pay the rent. These things are all interconnected, and even if the city manages to solve a few of them overnight, we still have enough problems to still not be doing well. It’s this awful cycle. Express was just the latest victim of it.”
With the Chinese consulate attack, the Dior robbery, and multiple new store closures occurring this week alone, security experts told the Globe that the city was likely going to see even more closures and other similar incidents in the coming weeks.
“If you remember, the last few years always saw a bump in these big robberies in the last few months of the year,” said Frank Ma, a former law enforcement official who now works as a security advisor for businesses in San Francisco and cities in the Peninsula. “Nearly two years ago we had all of those Union Square robberies occur, and look, echoes of the past now.”
“Government officials from [San Francisco Mayor London] Breed on down have been running out of excuses. Their progressive programs failed. Breed has been wheeling back on her more progressive actions in recent years, especially after former DA Chesa Boudin was recalled from office and she installed someone to reverse his policies. But for every step in the right direction, there are two more the wrong way it seems.”
“From a security standpoint, the city needs more police since they have a major shortage and can’t be everywhere they need to be. There needs to be tougher sentencing to deter people, and businesses need more leeway in defending and protecting their stores. The city can’t claim to have a handle on it anymore. A car crashed into a consulate in an apparent attack. Union Square is being targeted again. Stores continue to be closed. It’s bee a long road, but the city is still sinking further down. But that is San Francisco now. It needs help.”
More store closures in the city are expected to be announced soon.
