After 35 years in business at the same location, Nordstrom closed its flagship store in San Francisco, California Sunday.

The closure comes as crime, homelessness, and public drug use have been on the rise in the city’s downtown.

Nordstrom’s store was located in the Westfield San Francisco Centre on Market Street. It occupied 312,000 square feet spread over five floors since 1988. According to MSN, the company had announced the store would close last May due to declining sales. 

Social media influencer Ian Miles Cheong posted a video to Twitter showing the empty space that once housed Nordstrom.

“Nordstrom is leaving San Francisco for good,” he wrote. “Like many other retailers, it is no longer able to do business in the crime-ridden city.”

Nordstrom is leaving San Francisco for good. Like many other retailers, it is no longer able to do business in the crime-ridden city. pic.twitter.com/IMsgrp0Ihz

— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) August 28, 2023

“It’s definitely partially due to the crime in the area. COVID-19 had a big impact,” a Nordstrom employee told KGO-TV.

Rising crime rates have been a problem in other cities too where gangs of thieves sometimes target stores in broad daylight with impunity.

Earlier this month, several people ransacked a Nordstrom store in the Topanga Mall near Los Angeles.  A video of the brazen daylight robbery was posted to Instagram. 

Warning: Foul Language Alert

Critics are blaming San Francisco’s leaders for the increase in crime that has led to several businesses leaving. Retailers who have announced plans to pull up stakes and leave the Golden Gate City, include Old Navy, Banana Republic, Crate & Barrel, AmazonGo, Saks Off Fifth, Anthropologie, and Office Depot, according to MSN. 

Meanwhile, Walgreens and other stores have locked up most of their products in displays due to the increase in shoplifting in the area. 

A downtown security guard told The New York Post he sees at least five thefts happen where he works every day. 

“I can’t use any force, so there’s nothing I can do,” the guard, who wanted to remain anonymous, said. “In my eight-hour shift, we catch at least 15 people coming in and stealing, and it’s worse on weekends. 

The National Retail Federation (NRF) said that in some cases, “rampant crime and the dangers coupled” have led to a decrease in foot traffic, according to Fox Business. 

“It should come as no surprise that these factors can have a negative impact on businesses and can contribute to the decision to close a specific store location,” the NRF said in a May blog post. “Several national brands recently closed locations in the San Francisco area, with many saying that retail crime was a factor.” 

“I will say this: We have some serious issues to work on in San Francisco,” city Supervisor Matt Dorsey told KGO.

“San Francisco has always had ups and downs, but I’m going to tell you we always come back. And I’m not going to lose my optimism about my district or my city,” Dorsey said.

As Nordstrom was moving out of Market Street, furniture manufacturer IKEA was moving in, opening a brand new store on Market Street. 

“The arrival of @IKEA is great news for the City’s economic recovery that will bring local jobs and excitement to the Union Square area,” Mayor London Breed said in a tweet earlier this month. “We are thrilled to welcome IKEA to be part of San Francisco’s future.”

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By James Reynolds and Keith Griffith

12:47 May 25, 2023, updated 13:09 May 25, 2023

Banana Republic is the latest chain to close its doors in a crime-ridden part of San Francisco, joining a slew of brands citing security and lower footfall as reasons for the closure.

The clothing store announced it would be leaving the Westfield San Francisco Center as the city’s flagship store is located at 256 Grant Ave. will also downsize and become a store at 152 Geary St.

Dozens have closed or are expected to close in recent months, including Saks, H&M and Nordstorm, citing a drop in foot traffic, online shopping and safety concerns.

The Gap, which owns Banana Republic, has closed a number of Banana Republic stores during the pandemic and last month announced it would lay off 1,800 employees at its San Francisco headquarters as net sales fell six percent to $15.6 billion last fiscal year US dollar declined.

Drug addicts and homeless people in the Tenderloin District, San Francisco The luxury department store blamed the closings on the changing “dynamics” in the city. Pictured is the Westfield store

High-end retailer Nordstrom is also cutting 400 jobs as it prepares to close all of its San Francisco stores.

A total of 379 jobs will be eliminated at the department store, as well as at the Westfield San Francisco Center mall and the Nordstrom Rack outlet a few doors down.

LEARN MORE Why San Francisco is caught in an apocalyptic DEATH LOOP: A work-from-home boom has devastated the local economy, while drugs and homelessness are soaring thanks to soft policing.

The company announced earlier this month that it was closing both stores, blaming the “changed dynamic” of the crime-ridden city.

Jamie Nordstrom, Chief Stores Officer, said, “Decisions like these are never easy, and this one was particularly difficult.”

“But as many of you are aware, the dynamics of the downtown San Francisco market have changed dramatically over the past few years, impacting the flow of customers into our stores and our ability to operate successfully.”

Westfield Mall said in its statement to the Washington Post that business churn could be due to “unsafe conditions for customers, retailers and employees.”

The mall said, “These significant problems are preventing an economic recovery for the region.”

In April, Whole Foods announced it was closing its flagship store in downtown San Francisco “for the time being” to ensure the “safety” of employees.

“If we believe we can ensure the safety of our team members in store, we will consider reopening our Trinity location,” a spokesman said.

Multimillionaire tech entrepreneurs in the city have also indicated they would relocate to London, UK, as crime and homelessness rose.

“Tech workers are increasingly disillusioned with San Francisco,” Annie Ingram, a private banker at Coutts, told The Telegraph this week, citing concerns about rising crime, homelessness and outdoor drug use in the Golden Gate City.

Instagram boss Adam Mosseri made a highly publicized move from the Bay Area to London’s ritzy Kensington district, despite being called back to the US by Meta bosses.

Organic food giant Whole Foods opened a new “flagship” location on Trinity Place in the city’s Tenderloin area in March 2022, but closed its doors after a year. Bags of beef jerky are sealed in plastic crates at the Target store in the Metreon neighborhood of San Francisco May 8, 2023 as soft crime policies correlate with an ongoing crisis of everyday shoplifting

A recent study found that San Francisco is the most expensive US city to raise children at more than $35,000 a year.

At the same time, residents say San Francisco is beginning to feel like a ghost town as many retailers are moving out of town due to crime and low foot traffic.

A disturbing recent report showed that 95 retailers in downtown San Francisco have closed since the COVID pandemic began, down more than 50 percent.

Of the 203 retailers that opened in the city’s Union Square area in 2019, only 107 are still operating, a 47 percent drop in just a few years battered by the pandemic.

In early May, T-Mobile closed its flagship store in Union Square, a 17,000-square-foot building in the heart of the city.

They said it was part of a “nationwide retail strategy to better serve customers”.

The T-Mobile building previously housed Apple’s flagship store before the tech giant moved to its current Post Street location.

Since early May, San Francisco has been hit by a spate of retail closures since the pandemic as the city failed to deal with rising crime and drug problems. The Anthropologie store in Union Square (pictured) in San Francisco is now closed

Earlier this month, women’s retailer Anthropologie closed its store in the Union Square retail space in San Francisco as more stores relocated for security reasons.

The now-closed location was scheduled to close permanently on May 13. They urge customers to visit nearby branches on Fourth St and Village at Corte Madera.

Though Anthropologie didn’t give a reason, they join retailers like RealReal, Gap and Whole Foods that have closed their nearby locations.

The city is also affected by a statewide shoplifting law that downgrades theft of goods from a criminal offense to a far less serious offence.

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• A group of around 100 motorcyclists illegally staged a sideshow on the Bay Bridge between San Francisco and Oakland
• It caused all westbound lanes to come to a standstill as drivers performed stunts including wheelies – there were similar incidents last year
• Traffic was disrupted for about two minutes before resuming

A group of about 100 motorcyclists brought traffic onto the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge Saturday afternoon when they engaged in an illegal sideshow.

The bikers were caught on camera performing dangerous stunts including slamming wheelies that brought all westbound lanes of the bridge to a standstill.

The uncomfortable spectacle led to a traffic jam. Some drivers stuck in traffic got out of their cars to capture the chaos.

The bikers could be seen performing donuts while smoke from the burned rubber filled the air.

Others revved their engines intimidatingly and drove in circles while trying the patience of other motorists who could do nothing but watch.

A group of about 100 motorcyclists illegally staged a sideshow on the Bay Bridge between San Francisco and Oakland. The motorcycles’ tires could be seen squeaking, generating smoke from the burned rubber. A motorcyclist was seen performing donuts on his motorcycle in the middle of the road causing all westbound lanes to come to a standstill as riders performed stunts including wheelies – similar incidents occurred last year

Drivers stuck in their cars watching remained surprisingly calm with no honking to be heard.

A woman who recorded the scene explained how common such depictions are after she was caught up in something similar last month.

‘I just got caught by another guy on the bridge last month…Bay culture for sure!’ User lalasantola wrote on her Instagram.

This is not the first time such an event has occurred on the Bay Bridge, as several incidental events have been reported on the bridge in the past year alone.

At one point, ATVs were also involved in the incident.

The California Highway Patrol confirmed the disruption lasted about two minutes before traffic was able to move again.

So far, it’s unclear if there have been any arrests or subpoenas in connection with the stunt.

Other motorists could only watch until the mob of motorcycles drove on. Bikers blocked traffic across the bridge for several minutes while performing stunts. Bikers seemed in no hurry to move on as they caused disruption on Saturday afternoon The city of Oakland isn’t the first time such an event has happened on the Bay Bridge, with several sideshows on the bridge in the past year alone were reported. The situation took a dangerous turn after dark when a group of about 15 bikers entered the Bay Bridge between San Francisco and Oakland and headed eastA biker weaved into and out of traffic on the bridge and Oakland

The lawlessness displayed on the bridge is emblematic of the city’s drug and crime problems elsewhere.

San Francisco is still riddled with crime – especially against property – in part because the police are too weak.

It doesn’t help that the city is being ravaged by fentanyl, a deadly synthetic opioid.

Addicts say users flock to San Francisco because drugs are readily available and the police just watch them get high. An estimated 620 people died there last year from an overdose.

Add to this the constant fear of crime, committed in large part by addicts who are frighteningly unpredictable.

The number of homeless people in San Francisco was nearly 8,000 as of February last year, the second highest number since 2005, according to the official government census, which takes place every three years.

Drug addicts and homeless in SOMA (South of Market) neighborhood, San Francisco Drug addicts and homeless in SOMA (South of Market) neighborhood, San Francisco Tents are surrounded by modern skyscrapers in an affluent neighborhood of the city

Various liberal politicians and city leaders have tried to implement numerous policies to stem the many problems created by the growing homeless and drug addicted population.

One specific harm reduction policy that failed was the opening of the Tenderloin Center last year to help alleviate the city’s drug and homelessness crises.

It cost taxpayers a whopping $22 million and was intended to be a “safe place” for addicts to “get high without getting mugged” and without fear of a fatal overdose.

Users should also be directed to help centers, although in the first four months of operation it only referred 18 of the more than 23,000 people welcomed to the site.

The post 100 unlawful bikes carry site visitors Bay Bridge between crime-ridden San Francisco Oakland to halt appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

OAKLAND (CBS SF) – Two foreign suspects were arrested and charged in November when an Oakland woman on a cul-de-sac on Lakeshore Ave has been involved in gunfights since May seven.

Oakland police said Lashawn Price, 33, a resident of Stockton, and Torrin Dupclay, 32, a resident of Crockett, were in custody for their roles in killing 22-year-old Devani AlemanSanchez on November 11th.

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According to court documents, prosecutors also charged the couple with attempted murder of two other people during the same incident and robbery at gunpoint on December 5th and 6th.

Oakland Police Chief LeRonne L. Armstrong held a press conference earlier this week to address violence in the city, particularly at 1400 block on Lakeshore Ave.

It came after a man was shot dead in the same cul-de-sac over the weekend.

“We’ve been working with the community for the last month or so to monitor the violence we saw on the 1400 block of Lakeshore,” Armstrong said. “We don’t think this latest murder has anything to do with previous criminal cases, but we know this is an area that people love to come and congregate. It’s a scenic area. It is a place that a lot of people come to when they want to see the lake or to visit the lake. “

Oakland has stepped up police presence in the area to curb the increase in violence on the Lakeshore.

“I would like to say, without going into specific cases, we have seen whenever people hang around there, either in the evening or early morning hours, consuming alcohol or using drugs, have made contact with other people in the area that we have believe they may be involved in illegal activity, ”said Captain James Beere of the Oakland Police Department, who is in charge of enforcement in the area.

“Unfortunately, there are sometimes confrontations or clashes that escalate into violent crimes and shootings.”

Sanchez was standing in front of a vehicle when at least one person approached her and tried to rob her. The shooter shot her. She was taken to a hospital where she died a few days later.

The last murder took place on Christmas Eve. The officers reacted to reports of gunfire around 8:19 p.m. When they arrived, the officers found a man in the middle of the street.

Firemen and an ambulance tried to save the man, but he died in the hospital. His name was withheld pending notification of the next of kin.

It was the 134th murder in the city – the highest number in Oakland since 148 in 2006. Last year, Oakland Police investigated 109 murders in the city.

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Michael Ziolkowski lives in the facility and heard four opposing recordings on Christmas Eve. From his apartment he saw the victim lying in the middle of the street. He said it appeared the man had been shot in the back.

“Several people around him are trying to help him and whatever and tell him to lie down. He kept trying to get up, ”said Ziolkowski.

The incident kicked off a heavy Christmas weekend in Oakland. Police said there were multiple shootings, robberies and car thefts.

People who live in the Lake Merritt area said they no longer feel safe there.

“It’s been getting more dangerous the last six months I’ve lived here,” said Maya Hendricks area residence.

Hendricks no longer feels safe at Lake Merritt. She stays at home after dark.

“It is not customary to leave [my home] after 7 or 8 pm I try to get in just before the sun goes down, ”said Hendricks, who was walking her dog.

“It’s scary. I don’t know why the increase. I think there has been a lot of activity here since the pandemic,” said Tsiolkovsky.

The 1400 block on Lakeshore Avenue is a popular spot where people just park, hang around in their cars, and admire the views of Lake Merritt. Most people just assume it’s a safe place until they find out about all of the shootings.

“It’s a little intimidating and nerve wracking. It’s a little scary, ”said Matthew Ball, who was walking his dog by the lake.

As for Hendricks, she said the beauty and vibrancy surrounding the lake is no longer worth the risk.

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“I’m actually moving out. So I don’t have much to say other than that I can’t stay here much longer, ”said Hendricks. “For me personally it is getting more and more uncomfortable [to live here]. “

The post 2 Arrested For Slaying On Crime-Ridden Oakland Cul-De-Sac Subsequent To Lake Merritt – CBS San Francisco appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

OAKLAND (CBS SF) – An Oakland man was shot dead in a cul-de-sac on Lakeshore Avenue on Lake Merritt on Christmas Eve, where a woman was previously fatally shot and seven other people injured, authorities said.

All of these gun violence incidents have occurred since May, East Bay Times investigators said. They did not disclose whether the shootings were related.

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Oakland’s Devani Aleman Sanchez was shot dead in a cul-de-sac around 12:50 p.m. on November 16. She was taken to a hospital where she died a few days later.

According to police, she was standing in front of a vehicle when at least one person approached her and tried to rob her at gunpoint.

In the most recent incident, officials reacted to reports of gunfire around 8:19 p.m. on Friday. When they arrived, the officers found a man in the middle of the street.

Firefighters and an ambulance tried to save the man, but he died in the hospital. His name was withheld until the next of kin were notified.

It was the 134th murder in the city – the highest number in Oakland since 148 in 2006. Last year, Oakland Police investigated 109 murders in the city.

Michael Ziolkowski lives in the facility and has heard four opposing shots. From his apartment he saw the victim lying in the middle of the street. He said it appeared the man had been shot in the back.

“Several people around him are trying to help him and whatever and tell him to lie down. He kept trying to get up, ”said Ziolkowski.

The incident kicked off a heavy Christmas weekend in Oakland. Police said there were multiple shootings, robberies and car thefts.

People who live in the Lake Merritt area said they no longer feel safe there.

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“It’s been getting more dangerous the last six months I’ve lived here,” said Maya Hendricks area residence.

Hendricks no longer feels safe at Lake Merritt. She stays at home after dark.

“It is not customary to leave [my home] after 7 or 8 pm I try to get in just before the sun goes down, ”said Hendricks, who was walking her dog.

“It’s scary. I don’t know why the increase. I think there has been a lot of activity here since the pandemic,” said Tsiolkovsky.

The 1400 block on Lakeshore Avenue is a popular spot where people just park, hang around in their cars, and admire the views of Lake Merritt. Most people just assume it’s a safe place until they find out about all of the shootings.

“It’s a little intimidating and nerve wracking. It’s a little scary, ”said Matthew Ball, who was walking his dog by the lake.

As for Hendricks, she said the beauty and vibrancy surrounding the lake is no longer worth the risk.

“I’m actually moving out. So I don’t have much to say other than that I can’t stay here much longer, ”said Hendricks. “For me personally it is getting more and more uncomfortable [to live here]. “

Anyone with information about the Friday night shooting is encouraged to contact Homicide at (510) 238-3821 or Tip Line at (510) 238-7950.

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Da Lin contributed to this report.

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