The sudden decline of San Francisco’s top shopping destination, paired with an unprecedented retreat from office use, is a novel trial for a city that has faced its fair share of challenges in recent years.
For Union Square and its environs, the changes have come rapidly. In 2016, less than 3% of retail space in the area was available for lease. That number spiked to 9.4% at the onset of the pandemic, which cut off daily foot traffic downtown. Fast forward to today, and that number has only gotten worse, now standing at approximately 22%.
