San Francisco in the late 1960’s seemed engulfed in a dream-like aura, perhaps best captured in Scott McKenzie’s song. “San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear Some Flowers In Your Hair).”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlVwcBTXwmo
I was at Texas A&M studying away, so I was far from that scene. But dreamy songs do not necessarily portray reality, and many who traveled to the Haight Ashbury Street area during that period likely found a reality different from their dream.
Nevertheless, like in the song “I Left My Heart in San Francisco,” there is a part of me, poetically speaking, that I left in San Francisco.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SC73kdOL5hk
The period was 1979-1980. I was in my mid-30’s and on leave from the University of Houston. I headed up the U.S. economics division of what was then Crocker National Bank.
San Francisco embodied an interesting culture. My office looked out over a circular fountain with cement extensions that served as seating all around it. Some bankers would go there to eat lunch. After finishing the meal, some kind gentlemen would roll big joints and share them with the men sitting next to them. When finished, a fair share of them would stand up, dressed up nicely in their banker suits and ties, adopt passionate embraces, and kiss each other goodbye.
One night coming out of a hotel next to the Tenderloin District, I observed two women fighting at the end of the block. A closer look revealed that it was actually two guys in dresses slugging it out.
Judy, Kristin, and I lived in Walnut Creek, CA in 1979 and early 1980 in a nice house on a hillside plush with beautiful plants that I could admire through ceiling to floor windows in our living room. Adding to the magic of the time, Judy became pregnant. Our daughter, Ashley, was born in Walnut Creek in early 1980.
We made trips into San Francisco on some weekends to go to the great restaurants, enjoy the views on the wharf, check out the food, the stores and galleries, and to just appreciate the glamour of the city. Sometimes we would admire the magnificent skyline from the Alta Mira Hotel patio in Sausalito. At that time, San Francisco was one of the most beautiful and thriving cities in the world.
From a music standpoint it was a productive period. I bought a 10th anniversary Ovation guitar in Berkely with funds my grandmother Drake left for me. Exchanging lyrics by mail, mostly written by Doug who was in Houston, I wrote the music to some of my favorites of our songs while in CA, and made home recordings of them: Them Rabbits Go Dancin’, I’ve Been Leaning to the Wind, The Cat Waits, Why Do You Treat Me So Unspecial, Rock The Cradle, A Year On the Night Train, The Reason (the Promise), and Questions and Answers come to mind.
Fondness remains. Judy and I have three pictures of San Francisco displayed in our house now, over the doors that lead out to a patio.
The pandemic lockdowns caused businesses to close and people to suffer abrupt losses. Some cities have policies that encourage business, and these are recovering from the lockdown period. While the geography of San Francisco is beautiful, the city is in decline. It did not have to be this way. If you vote the wrong people into power, destruction can follow. One obvious characteristic of the “wrong people” is that they do not understand the power of incentives, or – what may be worse – they actually do and pursue their policies regardless. Decrees by elected officials are currently destroying businesses in San Francisco, and if they stay in place, the city will continue in decline.
A California state law essentially decriminalizes an individual’s theft of less than $950 per “visit”. Though it is technically a misdemeanor, as a rule thieves in San Francisco are not caught and prosecuted. Police are rarely on the scene, and a chance of injury is viewed so negatively that force by employees, store owners, or customers to stop thieves may even lead to lawsuits.
Being “soft on crime” encourages more crime, but the city’s policy makers don’t care. Property crime is rampant, and little is being done to stop it. The policy makers favor the looters, rather than a respect for business owners’ private property and ability to function.
How Often Does San Francisco Deal With Shoplifters? – Bing video
The city council tolerates filth on the streets and open drug markets. Dangerous and filthy conditions have helped drive major businesses out of San Francisco, as more potential customers want no part of the downtown filth and crime. This is true for large corporations and “mom and pop” stores. Their closing deprives area residents of jobs and goods and services that were formerly sold there. There are major blocks of San Francisco that look like streets in a ghost town. Already, major skyscrapers have a high percentage of vacancies. Some people want to convert them into public housing, and some people want to tear them down, both requiring use of taxpayer’s money.
Businesses, directly and indirectly, are the sources of significant amounts of tax revenue to the city. The trend is such that the city of San Francisco will have fewer funds to pay its fire and police departments, reducing availability of first responders, and the problems will get even worse.
Here is a partial list of companies that have closed major branches of their stores or plan to leave the city.
Old Navy – moving to Texas
Whole Foods – closed their flagship store in San Francisco due to lack of worker’s safety
Amazon Go – had a “futuristic” store where people purchased using a phone and the city council outlawed them for not accepting cash
Westfield Mall – the mall operator surrendered the mall back to the lender citing “challenging operating conditions in San Francisco which have led to declines in sales, occupancy, and foot traffic”
AT&T – shutting down flagship store referencing changes in consumer shopping habits
Saks Off Fifth – closing fall 2023 referencing performance
Nordstrom – closing both stores citing changing “dynamics”
Anthropologies – closing its downtown store in Union Square
Office Depot – closing its store in Downtown San Francisco
Depomed – moving to the edge of Lake Michigan
Bare Escentuals – moving its headquarters to New York, citing efficiency reasons
Bechtel – moving its headquarters to Reston, VA.
On the bright side, there are signs that local voters want a change. New leadership with policies that protect private property and make streets safe from crime are required. When enough pain is inflicted on city residents, policies will change, and San Francisco will see a resurgence of business and an environment attractive to local residents, customers, and tourists. But it may take a while.
Perhaps someday, like the Phoenix of legend, San Francisco will rise out of the ashes to soar to new heights. But for now, ashes it remains.
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