12 Months to Restore San Francisco

The Clock Starts...Now

2024 was a disaster for San Francisco. Our reputation went from bad to miserable. Retail continued to take a dive, our population declined, and companies of all sizes fled screaming into the night.

Lies, damn lies, and statistics

Today, trust in the city’s government is at a nadir, not just for contentious projects like closing a major thoroughfare and pretending it's a park and corruption - exemplified by the misuse of funds by the executive director of the Dream Keeper Initiative - but outright lies.

For example, according to official reports, fatal overdoses decreased in 2024 but the data stinks. When you've been around as long as I and many others have, you know when numbers are off. They don’t feel right because they aren’t right. All that harm reduction has created a whole lot of harm. No pseudo-academic screed can change the fact that thousands of people are suffering and dying on our streets, most of whom came here for the cheap drugs, generous services, and look-away policies. Experts on the streets know. Overdoses down? They call bullshit.

It’s also clear that the permanent supportive housing touted as a solution to so-called homelessness has become little more than a money sucking quagmire. While their leaders pull in between $250,000 to half a million dollar salaries, there’s not much incentive to solve the problem.

It's no surprise that London Breed was not reelected. The city she was tasked to lead is objectively worse off than it was when she began. Certainly she is not to blame for all of San Francisco’s ills, but the decline happened on her watch. Communication broke down. If certain elected officials and radical activists really did block progress, she should have named names - specifically, repeatedly, and loudly. When she didn’t, all eyes went to her.

New mayor, new chances

Anyway, that's in the past. A new mayor is at the helm and I’m glad for it. Daniel Lurie is set to take over room 200 and I - both as a San Franciscan and a journalist - am open minded and hopeful. I interviewed Lurie on my show, The San Francisco Beat, when he was running for mayor and found his ideas interesting and his commitment genuine. I will not prejudge him or his administration. My job is to report on what he does and doesn’t do, when it happens.

Although the mayoral term lasts four years, the first 12 months out of the gate will be the most important. With the right moves, we should see measurable progress every four weeks. Those successes would be cumulative. As each new business opens, another will follow and existing companies can regain their footing and strengthen neighborhoods.

As long as the Department of Public Health and the Department of Housing and Human Services are forced to perform, our neglected communities will improve. Fewer people will deal and use illicit drugs, resulting in a true decline in overdoses. There will be less crime and blight, which will result in more people coming to the city as residents, workers, and entrepreneurs. The hospitality industry will rebound as our reputation as a desirable place for tourism and conventions mends.

As far as law and order, we’re already on our way. There has been a growing and much needed appreciation for officers who respond to some of the most dangerous and depressing situations imaginable. I’m proud to be on the Chief’s Community Police Advisory Forum. Starting January, our group will identify the most pressing crime concerns in San Francisco and provide counsel on solutions.

Pessimists not wanted

San Francisco will never recover. It’s dead, over. Forget about it!

Oh go away.

I simply do not work with pessimism. Maybe that's irritating to some and I suppose I understand, but it's just not how I function. Besides, I’m a Gretzkyian. As the great one said, you miss 100% of the shots you don't take. Skate in, not out.

Of course I see all the entrenched problems, as well as those that lie ahead. From my vantage point, I see a board of supervisors that includes a vacuous socialist and a few political puppets (one of whom opposed California Proposition 36, which is already having a chilling effect on criminal behavior), but that’s OK. They know they’re being closely monitored, not only by a growing body of relentless, fearless independent journalists but by countless residents who no longer allow abuses of power.

You see, San Francisco is too important to too many people. I believe our city can sparkle in a relatively short period of time. It won’t be easy. There will be plenty of setbacks, arguments, and frustrations, but with the correct actions we can and will move forward.

What we will do, today and into the future

As for me, my job is to report accurately and fairly; to tell the stories others don’t. My passion is San Francisco and I remain a loyal gadfly. And I’m thrilled that huge numbers of others are in the scrum because that’s when good things happen.

Case in point, when the Municipal Transportation Authority attempted to mess with the parking situation in the Marina District. The mosh pit of infuriated residents at Moscone Rec Center was a thing of beauty. Not only did the department back off but its wildly overpaid, car-hating leader cut and ran.

So let’s ring in 2025 with a sense of eagerness and set of expectations. If all goes according to plan, we will witness the gradual but real improvements in all of our communities. Then, by this time next year, we should see an objectively cleaner, safer, healthier and more appealing San Francisco as a whole. See you at City Hall - and everywhere else.

In the meantime and as always, I invite you to contact me with hot tips and fresh story ideas.

With gratitude -

Erica