Nearly six-and-a-half years since Whole Foods called dibs on the vacated Best Buy space in City Center plaza at Geary Boulevard and Masonic Avenue, the SF Planning Commission finally authorized the Amazon-owned grocery chain to move into the space Thursday.

There was plenty of excitement when a Whole Foods opened on mid-Market in March 2022, bringing an upscale spark into a long-beleaguered part of town. But that Whole Foods lasted barely a year, partially because of drug use and terrible street conditions, though employees also said that “Sales weren’t too great” at the location.

Though now it looks like there’s another Whole Foods coming, albeit at Geary Boulevard and Masonic Avenue.

The Anza Vista Best Buy store at City Center plaza closed way back in September 2017, and the 50,000 square-foot location has sat totally empty there since. And then Amazon-owned Whole Foods announced their plans to open a store in that vacated spot within a month of the closure, but Whole Foods has experienced a long obstacle course of very San Francisco hurdles since.

First, the Target store in that plaza (which also sells groceries) tried to block the Whole Foods in a big-box store pissing match. That eventually got resolved, but then the SF Board of Supervisors approved an appeal against the Whole Foods brought by a local grocery workers’ union. That appeal forced Whole Foods to submit their yet-again revised plans for the location in January 2023, this time mitigating concerns over “air quality impacts” over their refrigeration equipment, cooling towers, and HVAC units.  

That revised plan came back before the SF Planning Commission on Thursday. And in a unanimous 7-0 vote, the commission approved a new Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for that Whole Foods, and authorized its permit for use as a grocery store.  

“This is a big opportunity site, very big intersection, very big formula retail shopping center,” commissioner Joel Koppel said before the vote.

This will be the eighth Whole Foods store in San Francisco. And it was approved unanimously with surprisingly little discussion, despite all the previous controversy. This may be a sign that attitudes toward formula retail are changing as SF struggles with commercial vacancies. Or maybe it’s just that people are sick of seeing this City Center plaza feel like a graveyard after departures of Best Buy, Sears, Mervyn’s, and Toys ‘R’ Us.

Related: Whole Foods Moves In Again On Long-Vacant Former Best Buy Location at Geary and Masonic [SFist]

Image: Alvin J. via Yelp

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At the same time other retailers decamp from San Francisco, Whole Foods Market plans to open a new location.

Acadia Realty Trust expects to help open a controversial location for the grocery chain in San Francisco’s Western Addition in two years.

The New York area-based real estate investment trust plans to lease space to the upscale market at its City Center shopping plaza at 2675 Geary Boulevard in Anza Vista, the San Francisco Chronicle reported, citing a second-quarter earnings call.

Kenneth Bernstein, CEO at Acadia, said he expected the grocery store’s opening to be “a ’25 event.” 

The city’s Planning Commission is expected to approve the Whole Foods site as soon as this fall after an inquiry requested by the Board of Supervisors found the store’s impact on air quality would be “less than significant,” according to the newspaper.

The Whole Foods opening represents a bit of good news for the San Francisco retail industry, which has shrunk with the exit of a number of brand names. AT&T, Nordstrom, Old Navy, H&M and Crate & Barrel are among the retailers that have closed locations.

Store opponents had prevented its opening at Geary Boulevard and Masonic Avenue for three years, citing environmental, noise and traffic concerns. Numerous unions also opposed the Whole Foods, saying its nonunion workforce would lead to lower-paying jobs. 

After the Planning Commission exempted the redevelopment of the former Sears store site from an environmental study, the Board of Supervisors voted in 2020 to require one anyway.

Other local residents complained the review process had hindered the neighborhood’s ability to draw jobs during the pandemic. 

The Whole Foods Market would add grocery options in a neighborhood next to the Richmond District near well-heeled Pacific Heights, Presidio Heights and Laurel Heights. For decades, the shopping center not far from Target and Trader Joe’s was home to the largest Sears in Northern California.

The Anza Vista store would be the seventh market for Whole Foods in San Francisco. 

In April, Austin-based Whole Foods Market pulled the plug on its largest grocery store in the city at 1177 Market Street. After 12 months, the grocery chain owned by Seattle-based Amazon.com closed the Mid-Market location, citing deteriorating street condition and safety concerns for its employees.

— Dana Bartholomew

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Starbucks (SBUX) is the latest company to rethink its presence in San Francisco.

Effective Oct. 22, the coffee giant plans to close seven stores in San Francisco. Following these closures, there will be 52 remaining Starbucks locations in the city.

Starbucks did not disclose the reason for the closures. In a letter to employees, Jessica Borton, the Northern California regional vice president, stated: “There are several factors Starbucks considers when tasked with the tough decision of closing a store, but it is all part of ensuring a healthy store portfolio.”

Starbucks isn’t the only consumer-facing giant to take a second look at its San Francisco portfolio this year.

Other companies that recently closed locations in San Francisco include Amazon (AMZN), which closed a Whole Foods Market just 13 months after opening it earlier this year and all four Amazon Go Stores in March; Office Depot (ODP), which closed a store in April; and Anthropologie (URBN), which left Union Square after two decades in May.

Gap (GPS) also shuttered Old Navy, Banana Republic, and Athleta stores this year, while Nordstrom (JWN) closed its flagship store in August, and Saks Off 5th shut its doors this fall.

The Starbucks stores being added to this list are located on Mission and Main, Geary and Taylor, 425 Battery, 398 Market, 4th and Market, 555 California, and Bush and Van Ness. It’s worth noting that none of the stores set to close are unionized and employees at the stores will be offered the opportunity to transfer to other locations.

San Francisco sluggish in returning to offices

What’s behind the exodus? Hybrid and fully remote companies may be partly to blame.

“A big component for sure is that people are remote working and not coming into those offices as much,” John Zolidis, president of Quo Vadis Capital, told Yahoo Finance. “That’s got to be one of the driving forces — just less traffic from office workers.”

A customer leaves a Starbucks coffee shop in San Francisco, California, on Sept. 13, 2018. (Robert Alexander/Getty Images)

Per foot traffic analytics platform Placer.ai, San Francisco has the lowest number of visits to offices of any major US city. In August 2023, office visits were down 52.7% compared to August 2019, before the pandemic disrupted workplaces.

San Francisco is “by far the slowest to come back,” Ethan Chernofsky, senior vice president of marketing at Placer.ai, told Yahoo Finance. “When you think about what that means for retail more broadly … lots of people work there and then shop there and eat there, so that’s obviously going to have an impact. … Then, even though people who are coming back to the office [are] not doing so five days a week.”

Migration patterns — such as people moving out of the city — are a factor too, Chernofsky said, affecting cities across the US as well as San Francisco. And if retailers leave a city, it can lead to fewer visits to that area as well, causing companies to further reconsider their real estate portfolios.

“We see significant headroom for new store growth in underpenetrated areas in the US, including smaller cities, as well as new formats in larger metros,” Starbucks CEO Laxman Narasimhan said on a call with investors following its Q3 earnings results.

However, the tide may be turning for San Francisco, with the artificial intelligence boom acting as a bright spot for activity. Just as the tech industry was the first to move to remote work during the pandemic, it may be a leader in bringing workers back to offices.

“San Francisco and the Bay Area in general is really a market that’s led by the tech industry,” Colin Yasukochi, executive director at CBRE’s Tech Insights Center, told Yahoo Finance. “Over the last six months, … they’re starting to see growth perk up in the tech industry. Artificial intelligence is one of those particular areas where the companies are actually looking to expand — they’re looking to upgrade the [office] space that they currently have to provide a better experience for their employees.”

Pedestrians and vehicles are visible at the base of the Salesforce Tower in San Francisco, California, on May 5, 2022. (Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)

A ‘difficult operating environment’

Crime and safety may also be playing a role.

On Sept. 26, Target (TGT) announced plans to close nine stores at the end of October, including three in the San Francisco and Oakland area. Target said crime and retail theft were the reasons behind the decision to close stores.

“We cannot continue operating these stores because theft and organized retail crime are threatening the safety of our team and guests, and contributing to unsustainable business performance,” the company said in a statement.

According to crime data on the city’s website, theft has been the top issue, followed by burglary. That has affected not only if companies open retail space in the city but also where they choose to expand.

“On-the-ground type of issues have probably impacted where companies are willing to be located in terms of their office space,” Yasukochi said, “which is why we’ve seen a greater concentration of companies looking for space in the central business district and less so in the South of Market or mid-market areas.”

For Starbucks, though, it’s a bit harder to understand if crime truly was a factor. A spokesperson for the company declined to comment on whether safety played a part in the decision in particular.

“There’s not large quantities of merchandise to steal and resell,” Zolidis said about Starbucks stores, though he added: “It’s just a difficult operating environment from an employee safety perspective.”

Another factor affecting how companies position themselves in the Golden State could be the approach of a minimum wage law that goes into effect on April 1. The law, which raises starting pay for fast food workers to $20 an hour, is one to watch, Zolidis said.

But, he added, “if that were a deciding factor [for Starbucks], it wouldn’t be seven stores in San Francisco [but] a much broader group of stores.”

Meanwhile, San Francisco Mayor London Breed remains optimistic about the city’s future, despite its challenges.

“People still want to be here,” Breed told Yahoo Finance in a recent interview at Salesforce’s annual Dreamforce conference. “They’re starting their companies, their businesses here.”

—

Brooke DiPalma is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter at @BrookeDiPalma or email her at bdipalma@yahoofinance.com.

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News

By Allie Griffin

April 11, 2023 | 12:51am

A recently opened Whole Foods Market in San Francisco closed its doors on Monday over growing crime in the downtown area, according to a report.

The popular grocery store chain shuttered its SF flagship location a little more than a year after it opened, citing worker safety concerns, the San Francisco Standard reported.

“We are closing our Trinity location only for the time being,” a Whole Foods spokesperson told the local outlet in a statement. “If we feel we can ensure the safety of our team members in the store, we will evaluate a reopening of our Trinity location.”

The company said rampant drug use and growing crime led to its decision, a city hall source told the Standard.

The Whole Foods store had already reduced its hours in October last year after experiencing “high theft” and hostile patrons, a store manager said.

A month later, store managers restricted the use of its bathrooms to customers only after syringes and pipes were found in the restrooms, the publication reported.

The city has also been plagued by a lack of foot traffic as many residents are no longer going into offices in the downtown area and are instead working from home.

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I’m incredibly disappointed but sadly unsurprised by the temporary closure of Mid-Market’s Whole Foods. (1/7) https://t.co/lthpC90xTL

— Matt Dorsey (@mattdorsey) April 10, 2023

Countless small businesses have shuttered.

San Francisco’s District 6 supervisor Matt Dorsey said he was “incredibly disappointed but sadly unsurprised” by the Whole Foods closure.

“Our neighborhood waited a long time for this supermarket, but we’re also well aware of problems they’ve experienced with drug-related retail theft, adjacent drug markets, and the many safety issues related to them,” Dorsey said in a statement.

People maintain distance while waiting to enter the Whole Foods Market at the San Francisco location. AP

Whole Foods store managers restricted the use of its bathrooms to customers only after syringes and pipes were found in the restrooms. AP

The Democrat said he was drafting new legislation to ensure the San Francisco Police Department is fully staffed within five years.

The department has been down 335 officers since 2017 and well below its staffing goal, the Standard reported.

https://nypost.com/2023/04/11/san-francisco-whole-foods-closes-a-year-after-opening-due-to-crime-reportsan-francisco-whole-foods-closes-a-year-after-opening-due-to-crime-report/?utm_source=url_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site%20buttons&utm_campaign=site%20buttons

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Whole Foods opened a store in San Francisco, US, in March 2022, but months later reduced its hours after “grand theft” — the closure came just weeks after Cash App founder and tech superstar Bob Lee was killed in the city

Whole Foods has closed its store after admitting employees were unsafe in the city (whole food market)

Whole Foods has closed its San Francisco store because the company “cannot ensure the safety of employees” days after tech mogul Bob Lee was stabbed to death.

The popular supermarket chain had opened a flagship store in March 2022, but just months later the store reduced its hours in San Francisco, California, amid rising drug problems and “frequent thefts”.

The store experienced hostile customers and store managers were forced to restrict use of the toilets to customers after used syringes and tubes were found on the floor in November.

Local shopper Allyn Mejia said she wasn’t surprised the company had raised concerns about employees after security guards burst into the store to deal with unruly customers.

She told Newsweek, “I saw security rush into the store very quickly before anything happened.”

Tech mogul Bob Lee was attacked in San Francisco

San Francisco District Manager Matt Dorsey said he was “incredibly disappointed but sadly not surprised” by the closure of Whole Foods.

“Our neighborhood has been waiting for this supermarket for a long time, but we’re also aware of the problems they’ve had with retail drug thefts, adjacent drug markets and the many security issues that come with it,” he said.

A Whole Foods Market spokesman told the San Francisco Standard that the closure may be temporary.

A homeless man is seen in the Tenderloin neighborhood of San Francisco(Agency Anadolu via Getty Images)

It said: “We are only closing our Trinity location for the time being. When we feel we can ensure the safety of our team members in store, we will consider reopening our Trinity location.”

The decision to close the store came after Cash App founder Bob Lee died in San Francisco on April 4 after being stabbed twice in the chest.

His death sparked an outcry from tech leaders like Elon Musk and revealed fears of a deepening drug and crime crisis in San Francisco, a well-known tech hub.

Homeless people are seen in San Francisco(Agency Anadolu via Getty Images)

According to the victim’s friend, the tech boss himself had moved out of the California city because he feared things were “getting worse.”

And Mr Musk said he was “very sorry” to hear about Mr Lee’s death, before criticizing what he saw as a crime out of control.

He tweeted: “A lot of people I know have been badly attacked. Violent crimes in SF are horrific, and even when attackers are caught, they are often released immediately.”

The city has a high crime and drug rate (Agency Anadolu via Getty Images)

The billionaire called San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jennings and asked, “Is the city taking stricter measures to incarcerate repeat offenders?”

Matt Ocko, a technology entrepreneur and venture capitalist from Palo Alto, California, tweeted that the leaders of “lawless” San Francisco had “literally blood on their hands” from Mr Lee following the recent raid on the city.

A huge homeless camp in California(Agency Anadolu via Getty Images)

The 43-year-old was visiting San Francisco after returning from Miami for a “quick visit” after planning to stay an extra day, according to friends.

CCTV footage showed Mr Lee walking down an empty San Francisco street in the early hours of the morning, lifting his shirt to show a driver his wounds before driving away.

In disturbing footage from a local newspaper, he was seen begging a driver: “Help. Someone stabbed me.”

Flowers and cards were left near the Portside apartment building in San Francisco, California where Bob Lee was tragically stabbed(Agency Anadolu via Getty Images)

According to reports, Mr Lee can be seen on CCTV running towards the Bay Bridge before falling to the ground in front of a residential building around 2.30am.

Police found the engineering chief unconscious before taking him to the hospital, where he tragically died from his injuries.

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A San Francisco Whole Foods store closes a year after it opened. (whole food market)

By Jordan Valinsky | CNN

A giant Whole Foods store in downtown San Francisco that opened just last year is temporarily closing. The company said rampant crime in the area forced it to close.

The nearly 65,000-square-foot Trinity Place location in the city’s Mid-Market area closed its doors Monday to ensure “the safety” of its employees, a Whole Foods spokesman said. Although Whole Foods did not share any further information on the conditions leading to the store’s closure, the spokesperson added that it was a “difficult decision to close the Trinity store for now.” Affected employees will be transferred to surrounding branches.

The 8th Street and Market Street store will not open on Tuesday, the spokesman said. The store’s website has also disappeared.

Announced as a “flagship store” after it opened in March 2022, Whole Foods was one of the largest supermarkets in downtown San Francisco. The store sold 3,700 local products and was designed with “nods to classic San Francisco,” according to a press release.

The San Francisco Standard, an independent news website, reported that this Whole Foods location cut operating hours and replaced its toilets after workers found syringes and pipes last year due to theft.

Matt Dorsey, a member of the San Francisco board of directors, said on Twitter that he was “incredibly disappointed” by the closure.

“Our neighborhood has been waiting for this supermarket for a long time, but we are also aware of the issues they have had with retail drug thefts, adjacent drug markets and the many security issues that come with it,” Dorsey wrote.

Property crimes in San Francisco have garnered national attention through several attention-grabbing videos of thieves in action. Though still well below 2017 levels, the city saw a 23% increase in property crime between 2020 and 2022, with an increase in burglaries and theft leading the way, according to the San Francisco Police Department.

Meanwhile, violent crime statistics in San Francisco have remained relatively stable in recent years. Preliminary police data reports 12 homicides in San Francisco this year, up 20% from the same period last year. Overall, there were 56 homicides in San Francisco in 2022, which is the same number of homicides the city recorded in 2021.

In recent months, nationwide retailers have complained of theft at locations. Chains responded by locking up everyday products like deodorant and toothpaste and deploying additional security guards. However, a Walgreens executive recently admitted that the impact of the thefts may have been exaggerated.

A Cotopaxi store in San Francisco was temporarily closed in October 2022 due to theft and employee safety, and reopened in mid-November.

Davis Smith, CEO of Cotopaxi, said in a LinkedIn post at the time that the “large-scale theft and raid” put the store’s employees at risk. But he also said he regrets that the store’s closure has become the subject of political debate about crime in San Francisco and other cities.

“Many immediately gave their support, some were offended by my post and some politicized the closure of our store (because sadly these are the times we live in),” Smith wrote. “To be clear, I never expected our decision to close our Hayes Valley store to become a political discourse.”

The CNN Wire
& © 2023 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery company. All rights reserved.

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America’s Newest Superfood Sweep Show: Healthy, High-Quality, Sustainably-Farmed Antarctic Krill Meat, Praised by Hundreds of Show Attendees – From International Wholesalers, Chefs, Hoteliers and Restaurateurs to Government Agencies and Beyond – for Its Unparalleled Combination of Great Flavor, Nutritional value, versatility and economic value

For the most part, krill meat is a relatively new protein that most consumers — and even some food industry experts — have never heard of or have certainly tried. That truth led Krill Arctic Foods to the National Restaurant Association show, held in Chicago in May 2023. As the first global supplier of this exciting new keto and paleo-friendly protein, the company is quickly gaining ground as the leading and most recognized brand pioneering this unique seafood, touted for its nutritional value and versatility. It can be used as a primary or complementary ingredient in various recipe types that resemble crabmeat applications: dips, sauces, salads, dressings, spreads, fillings, soups, pizza, sushi, fried rice, burgers, fritters, pies, chowders, stuffed peppers, stuffed Mushrooms, ravioli and other pastas, dumplings and more inspired by the gourmet’s imagination.

“At the last show we gave out at least 500 samples, which were served in three different applications – one on water crackers with and without avocado spread and another ceviche-style with chopped tomatoes, cucumber, black pepper and lemon – and not one only person had a negative response…and those who were initially hesitant to try it said they really liked it for a variety of reasons,” said Alfred Nasti, founder and CEO of Krill Arctic Foods. “Our booth has been a steady stream of buyers from many of the world’s most recognizable major brands, executives from numerous hotel chains, chefs in search of culinary inspiration and so many others interested in this epicurean mystery. The feedback we’ve received on our various krill samples has been consistently positive…the National Restaurant Association Show has definitely helped attract new followers and the recipe page on our website has seen a nice increase in traffic.”

Compared to other proteins, krill is also a palatable revenue generator whose price also appears to be well received. “Event attendees were pleased to learn that we are currently offering ten cases of 40 doses at US$4.50 per 105 gram can, or US$1,800 for the lot, with buyers also receiving a full case of 40 doses free of charge received – a value of 180 US dollars,” Nasti continues. “We’re even offering free shipping anywhere in the US for the first six months. Also of note is that our Antarctic krill meat has a long shelf life of three full years.”

krill 101

Antarctic krill, scientifically named Euphausia superba, are small crustaceans about 10 to 65 mm long with a translucent body with a reddish tint. Krill is rich in a variety of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids. It’s one of the healthiest foods on the planet and is known to “nourish an entire ecosystem.”

Krill is considered a key species, meaning it plays an important role in the ecosystem by serving as an important food source for a wide variety of marine organisms, including fish, whales, penguins, seals and seabirds. Krill can form huge swarms comprising millions of individuals. Krill feed on phytoplankton (microscopic algae) and zooplankton, and use special appendages called thoracopods to filter tiny particles out of the water. Known for their unique feeding behavior, they often form dense schools near the sea surface where they feed on phytoplankton blooms.

Wild and carefully harvested

According to Nasti, krill is 100% sustainable and its operation is recognized as one of the most sustainable wild fisheries in the world because it operates in accordance with strict industry guidelines. These crustaceans are harvested by Krill Arctic Foods from the pure, pristine waters of the Antarctic Ocean. Freshly caught krill is cleaned over a period of three to four hours, then blanched and frozen to preserve maximum flavor, texture and nutritional value.

The company’s factory ship, the More Sodruzhestva 2, is the only one of its kind with the ability to capture, clean and process Antarctic krill on board. It is then heat sealed in cans with water and its own natural oils. A video of this process can be found on the company’s website in the Learn section.

environmental and ecosystem integrity

Not only is krill meat delicious, but it offers the same health benefits as krill oil supplements. It does so in delicious form with negligible environmental impact. Nasti reports that around 2% of the world krill supply is used in the food chain and over 80% is harvested for oil additives.

In several articles discussing the negative impact of krill overfishing on our marine life, Nasti comments on this important issue. “We are doing our part to ensure that our fisheries do not negatively impact our marine ecosystems in any way,” he says. “Our krill meat is caught under the strict guidelines of the Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, known as CCAMLR, to ensure and promote the health and sustainability of the krill population in the Antarctic Ocean. The CCAMLR consists of 25 member countries that meet once a year in October to make decisions to protect and conserve the southern marine ecosystem. One of the issues discussed is the level of quotas for fishing to ensure there is enough krill left for all marine life that depends on it to survive. Our annual krill quota is less than 2% of the total krill biomass, which is estimated to be up to 500 million tons.

health issues

Among its health benefits, krill is known for having the highest source of protein with a far higher digestibility rate than the digestible protein in other meat sources, making krill a far superior source of protein. In fact, a study published in the journal Food Chemistry examined the digestibility of Antarctic krill meal and found a digestibility rate of 89.1% for protein and 89.6% for lipids.

As krill are the only marine crustaceans that follow a vegan diet, this meat is the perfect choice for anyone looking for a healthy and sustainable source of protein. Of course, it’s always best to get your vitamins, minerals, and nutrients from food first and supplements last. While krill oil offers numerous health benefits due to the healthy fats and antioxidants it contains, Antarctic krill meat offers all the benefits of krill oil and more—including 15 grams of digestible protein per 105g serving.

According to Krill Arctic Foods, it has been scientifically proven that Antarctic krill meat, as supplied from there, improves heart health, lowers cholesterol, reduces inflammation, maintains healthy eyes and vision, supports brain function, reduces the risk of developing autoimmune diseases and cancer and weight loss aids, promotes metabolic and reproductive health, aids in anti-aging and promotes healthier hair, skin and nails, neutralizes free radicals to prevent cell damage, supports liver function and even helps relieve depression.

Krill Arctic Foods is clearly the industry’s leading expert and exclusive supplier of sustainably fished, premium quality Antarctic krill meat. If you are a food or hospitality brand and are looking for a unique and healthy specialty that will make your restaurant or grocery store stand out from the rest, this company is a brilliant place to start.

~~~

Merilee Kern, MBA, is an internationally recognized brand strategist and analyst, reporting on cultural shifts and trends as well as notable industry changers, makers, movers and innovators across all categories, both B2C and B2B. This includes subject matter experts and thought leaders, brands, products, services, destinations and events. Merilee is the Founder, Editor-in-Chief and Producer of The Luxe List and Host of the lifestyle TV show Savvy Living, which airs in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Miami, Atlanta and other major markets on CBS and FOX and other top networks; and the business TV show Savvy Ventures, which airs nationally on FOX Business TV and Bloomberg TV. As the productive voice of authority and taste maker in the lifestyle, travel, hospitality and leisure industries, Merilee keeps her finger on the pulse of the market in search of new and innovative must-haves and exemplary experiences at all price points, from affordable to extreme. Her work reaches millions of people worldwide through television broadcasts (her own shows and numerous others she appears in) and a variety of print and online publications. Connect with her at www.TheLuxeList.com and www.SavvyLiving.tv / Instagram www.Instagram.com/MerileeKern / Twitter www.Twitter.com/MerileeKern / Facebook www.Facebook.com/MerileeKernOfficial / LinkedIN www.LinkedIn.com / in contact. in /MerileeKern.

***Some or all of the accommodations, experiences, items and/or services listed above may have been provided or arranged free of charge if this is an editorial review, but all opinions expressed are solely those of Merilee Kern and have been incorporated into not affected in any way.***

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SAN FRANCISCO — Last year, with pandemic lockdowns in its rearview mirror, Whole Foods Market made a bet on a grim San Francisco neighborhood. The high-end supermarket chain opened a massive flagship store in a part of the city that’s home to both tech companies like Twitter and open-air drug stores.

But the business soon found itself head-on with many of the problems that plagued the area. People threatened employees with guns, knives and sticks. According to records of 568 emergency calls over 13 months, many of which showed scenes of chaos, they threw food, screamed, fought and tried to defecate on the ground.

“Man with machete is back,” says the report of an emergency call. “Another guard just got attacked,” says another. A man with a 4-inch knife attacked several security guards and then sprayed store employees with foam from a fire extinguisher, according to a third party.

In September, a 30-year-old man died in the bathroom from an overdose of fentanyl, a potent opioid, and methamphetamine.

When Whole Foods announced in mid-April that it was closing the store citing the safety of its employees, many in San Francisco saw it as some of the city’s most persistent problems: property crimes like shoplifting and car break-ins, an entrenched network of dealers selling fentanyl and other illegal drugs Selling drugs and people suffering from untreated mental illnesses roaming the streets.

The closure also appeared to be the latest indicator of San Francisco’s faltering economic outlook, and provided more material for an ongoing debate about where the city is headed after tying its fate to the tech industry. The Whole Foods was intended to cater to technicians and other professionals, part of a long-term downtown redevelopment plan. But the business fell victim to a crushing downtown decline that began with the pandemic and could last for years as companies vacate offices to work remotely.

In a city famous for its boom-and-bust cycles, San Francisco’s ongoing slump has residents in a bad mood, angry at city leaders and waiting for the spark of revival. Now, largely because the tech industry has so fully embraced work-from-home, activity in downtown San Francisco remains at about a third of pre-pandemic levels — according to a new study that used cellphone data as a, lower than in about 50 other major cities a measure.

“This is going to be a very slow recovery,” Effi Shoua said this month from behind his desk at the downtown art gallery he owns in Union Square. The area is a prime spot for tourists who are steadily returning to the city, a bright spot and a contrast to the 26 percent vacancy rate for downtown offices.

Many merchants fear a domino effect of business failures, with office workers being permanently absent for about half the week, while people using drugs, experiencing mental health crises or living on the streets remain more visible than ever.

The impact on the city’s budget is also significant: the office industry accounts for almost three quarters of the city’s gross domestic product. After years of surpluses, the government now projects a deficit of $780 million over the next two fiscal years — a roughly 6 percent cut in its general fund, according to the mayor’s office.

City officials say they are looking at ways to diversify the economy and reduce homelessness and drug trafficking. They realize that some of the largest local employers, Big Tech companies, aren’t going to pull San Francisco out of its economic shoals. Twitter, Google, Facebook and Salesforce, all of which have offices in the city, have laid off thousands of workers.

San Francisco executives point out that the city has continued to bounce back, even after the near-collapse of the tech industry in 2000 and the national recession some eight years later.

“We’ve been tallied before and there have been others who have tried to imply it’s over because things aren’t happening as quickly or as they think it’s over,” said London Breed, the city’s mayor in an interview.

In the famously liberal city, where Republicans make up just 7 percent of voters, moderate Democrats like Mayor Breed are calling for aggressive moves to address public safety concerns, while progressive voices denounce law-and-order strategies as knee-jerk responses that trample on the weak .

City guides face some limitations. A federal judge ruled in April that San Francisco can’t evict the homeless from public spaces because it hasn’t done enough to provide shelter. Mayor Breed supports bills in the state legislature that would make it easier to coerce people with mental illness into treatment. The mayor has also proposed tackling homelessness through more building: cutting the construction permitting process with a goal of building 83,000 additional homes — a 20 percent increase over the city’s current total housing stock — in eight years.

Though downtown is littered with “For Rent” signs, the city’s unemployment rate is below 3 percent, and the mayor and other officials say the engineering talent pool remains the city’s greatest asset. And San Francisco has a lot more to offer than downtown. It’s always been a constellation of very diverse neighborhoods, some with very few of the social ills that plague the area near the closed Whole Foods.

Officials add that downtown could eventually become more resilient as it attracts industries like life sciences and biotechnology whose employees still need workspaces. The tech industry is also growing: the development of artificial intelligence, which promises to change the way people live and work, is concentrated in San Francisco.

Garry Tan, president of Y Combinator, a well-known venture capital firm, says he sees signs of renewal in San Francisco. “It’s always the gold rush,” he said.

Mr. Tan belongs to a generation of tech workers who are more confident in their demands of city officials and unafraid to take sides in the city’s murderous politics and fund organizations that are pushing for a greater emphasis on public safety.

“Now the narrative is out there for some of the founders in our community, I’m not sure I feel safe here. I’m not sure if I want to stay here. The quality of life issues are the issue. Can I start a family here?”

In early April, some tech leaders took the fatal stabbing downtown of Bob Lee, a prominent industry leader, as an alarming sign that downtown was unsafe. But an acquaintance was later charged, and San Francisco’s murder rate is quite low compared to other major cities. Overall, police statistics show fewer property and violent crimes in 2022 than in 2018, before the pandemic began.

Still, Bill Scott, the city’s police chief, says many residents complain that they feel less safe, and outdoor drug use, much of which is tied to fentanyl, is a major contributor.

Matt Dorsey, a board member who lives steps from the closed Whole Foods, said the recent election signaled a shift in voter priorities. He pointed to last year’s dismissal of progressive district attorney Chesa Boudin, who was replaced by a prosecutor who promised to crack down on crime.

“San Francisco is in the midst of a voter revolt over public safety,” said Mr. Dorsey. In a poll conducted by the San Francisco Chronicle in September, nearly two-thirds of respondents said life in the city is worse than when they first moved here.

New district attorney Brooke Jenkins has started prosecuting more drug-related offenses than Mr. Boudin, but the city saw a 40 percent increase in fatal drug overdoses in the first quarter compared to the same period last year. Citing those statistics, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday authorized an anti-narcotics task force in San Francisco that will include members of the California National Guard and California Highway Patrol Police.

The mayor and police chief have promised to hire hundreds of additional officers, which would expand the force by more than a quarter, a difficult feat when law enforcement agencies across the country are facing bottlenecks.

Not everyone is on board.

Dean Preston, a board member who was re-elected on a Democratic-Socialist platform in 2020, opposes an increase in police staffing and says calls for more public safety are overblown.

“There has been a massive propaganda effort to change public opinion about policing and public safety,” he said.

Mr. Preston uses his district as an example of how uneven the pandemic recovery has been. Some areas like Japantown and Haight Ashbury are thriving, he said. Others, like the Tenderloin, which sits next door to the closed Whole Foods, are riddled with drug dealing and homelessness.

One of the next big tests for downtown could be the expected opening of an Ikea store this summer not far from the Whole Foods location.

Police described theft as rampant at Whole Foods, with thieves walking away with an armful of alcohol, at least initially. After 250 shopping baskets were stolen, the company refilled 50 more. Those are gone too.

According to official reports, at least 14 people have been arrested in the 13 months that the store has been in operation, on charges including theft and assault. Chief Scott said plainclothes officers were sent there and security has been improved over time, but apparently not enough for the company.

On a recent chilly night across from the closed store, Joseph Peterson, a former construction worker who lost both legs to diabetes and is homeless, rolled down the sidewalk in his wheelchair. Mr. Peterson was able to see the 2,000-unit Trinity Apartments, the high-end complex that Whole Foods had hoped would become its client base. Across the street, security guards were standing outside the Orpheum Theater, where Pretty Woman: The Musical was playing. A few dozen steps away, vendors sold fentanyl and crystal meth.

Mr Peterson said he understood why Whole Foods closed the store.

“People kept stealing from it,” he said. He, too, has taken macaroni and cheese and chicken from the warm snack bar several times, he said. But he made a difference. Other people stole from the store because they wanted to resell what they had taken.

“I only stole mine to eat,” he said.

Alain Delaquérière, Susan C. Beachy, and Kitty Bennett contributed to the research.

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One of San Francisco’s largest remaining supermarkets, the flagship Whole Foods on 8th and Market, closed Monday after just a year in business without warning at the end of business, citing high crime and drug use in the area.

For several years, both large chains and small businesses have been abandoning San Francisco, either closing permanently or relocating outside of the city. For small businesses, some have left the area entirely, moving out of the state or to other areas of the state. For example, in recent years, Walgreens has closed more and more of its stores in the city because of a tremendous amount of crime going on in its stores. High-end stores have also cited burglaries and crime as top reasons for leaving. And just last month, Amazon announced that all of its Amazon Go stores in the city would also be closing.

While high rental costs and other factors were cited as the main reason, a lack of customers visiting the stores because many avoided downtown crime was also a factor in the decision, leading to renewed crime.

While the vast majority of these stores leaving town predated the first outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, the closure of Whole Foods was particularly surprising given that it only opened last year. In March 2022, the press release celebrating the opening of Whole Foods was jubilant, with the company even calling it its “flagship” store for the region. But shortly after the opening, it quickly got dark. The emptying of downtown businesses due to rental costs and the rise of home working regulations have reduced scheduled foot traffic. In addition, the store became a magnet for criminals, homeless people, drug addicts and others who routinely stole from the store. Although the store had its own security service, the situation proved overwhelming and, with the SFPD being understaffed, getting people arrested in a timely manner proved daunting.

Many measures have been taken to suppress the high crime rate. Shop opening hours have been shortened to not include the evening hours. The bathrooms were made for shop customers only, with drug addicts using drugs in the bathrooms. More security was added as more violent situations arose. But all of this proved futile as the store lost more and more stolen products every month, including all 250 stolen shopping carts.

Flagship Whole Foods is closing, having only opened in March 2022

“Yeah, all this news isn’t exaggerating,” Whole Foods regular Amon Hardy told the Globe on Monday. “I go in, or should I say I went in there, two to three times a week. At least once a week someone seemed to be trying to steal something. They would just grab something and then run like hell. Sometimes when I went in or out the security had someone and they would always yell about the high prices or cost of living there. And the worst thing is that people there always seemed to side with the stealing person as they defended them and yelled at security to let them go.”

Another regular, Janice Mueller, added: “Theft was common but I always remember the drug users there. I recently stopped walking because I saw someone on something just slowly descending in front of me after they took something and I had to physically walk around them. I mean, when this place opened, it really was like any other Whole Foods out there. And it went so downhill and I just got used to it. Then I visited my sister in LA and went to one there. I mean, there wasn’t even security there. In L.A. No bathroom codes. Nothing. Night and day. Going back felt like a big blow.”

A third longtime customer, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “Everyone just assumed that because they are such a big, fancy grocery store, Whole Foods would cover those costs. But look how they took advantage of that. I saw people move against security and the police trying to stop this. That’s why San Francisco can’t have nice things.”

Finally, on Monday, Whole Foods announced that the store was closing indefinitely, with employees there reassessing whether they can reopen in the future.

“We are closing our Trinity location for now,” Whole Foods said in a statement. “If we feel we can ensure the safety of our team members in store, we will consider reopening our Trinity location.”

Many local officials and legislators were also surprised by the announcement, promising to increase policing and improve public safety to encourage business and many others to return to the city.

“I’m incredibly disappointed but sadly not surprised by the temporary closure of Mid-Markets Whole Foods,” tweeted SF City Supervisor Matt Dorsey. “Our neighborhood has been waiting for this supermarket for a long time, but we are also aware of the struggles they have experienced with retail drug theft, adjacent drug markets and the many security issues that come with it. TToday I’m renouncing the privilege of publicly announcing an editorial assignment I’m working on with Supervisor Stefani for a bylaw amendment titled the San Francisco Police Department Full Staffing Act that will make San Francisco a fully staffed police department within 5 years.

“For nearly 30 years, San Francisco residents have been denied the benefits of a fully staffed police department. Today, our current police understaffing crisis is worse than ever. The closure of Whole Foods — along with many other security-related challenges we’ve seen recently — is evidence A of why San Francisco can no longer afford NOT to solve our police understaffing crisis. San Franciscans — or at least those I represent in District 6 — are demanding solutions, and they have a right to expect that from those of us at City Hall. I hope my colleagues will support this effort. We owe our residents nothing less.”

For many in the city, however, that’s only part of the solution.

“More police is great, but we also need the power to arrest and have security, and the SFPD must not be intimidated by people who say they will let these criminals take to the streets,” added the national security adviser and former police officer Frank Ma added to the Globe on Monday. “Let’s continue to introduce laws here that punish people for stealing, not just ‘write it off’. The city needs that too. The same goes for not being complacent about drug use. More police is a good first step, but business won’t come back unless police are allowed to take action and arrest people like they used to. The people of the city wanted fewer cops and a share of their arresting powers and fewer consequences. We have that now. A grocery store fleeing here after just a year is just the latest result of it all.”

News on if and when Whole Foods will reopen is expected shortly.

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Whole Foods is temporarily closing one of its San Francisco flagship stores just a year after it opened, citing concerns that crime in the area is putting its employees at risk.

A spokesman for Whole Foods said the company closed the 65,000-square-foot grocery store on Trinity Place in San Francisco’s Mid-Market district on Monday “to ensure the safety” of the store’s team members.

The spokesman called the move a “difficult decision,” adding that the store would only be closing temporarily and that all of the store’s employees would be relocated to nearby locations for the time being.

The flagship store opened on March 10, 2022, with Whole Foods touting its design as an homage to “classic San Francisco.” The location sold more than 3,700 local Northern California products, including produce from local farms and hundreds of wines from nearby vineyards, according to the company.

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As of Tuesday, the store’s website was gone.

Whole Foods did not elaborate on the specific conditions that led to the store’s closure. The San Francisco Standard, an independent newspaper, reported that Whole Foods had cited local crime and drug use as reasons for closing operations, according to a city hall source.

Whole Foods had previously reduced the store’s hours citing “grand theft,” the newspaper reported last October.

Disappointed but “not surprised”

Matt Dorsey, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors representing the district where the closed Whole Foods is located, said on Twitter that he was “incredibly disappointed, but sadly not surprised, by the temporary closure of mid-markets Whole Foods ” may be.

He said the neighborhood’s problems with retail theft and drug-related crime were evident, citing the “neighboring drug markets” and “the many security issues associated” as known problems in the area.

Dorsey added that he was proposing a charter change, which he was calling “The San Francisco Police Department Full Staffing Act” to fully staff the city’s police force within five years.

“The closure of Whole Foods — along with many other security-related challenges we’ve seen recently — is evidence A of why San Francisco can no longer afford not to solve our police understaffing crisis,” he said Twitter.

Theft rings strike several times a week

Other shops in the area have raised concerns about retail theft.

Davis Smith, founder and former CEO of adventure accessories and apparel brand Cotopaxi, said in a LinkedIn post last year that “San Francisco seems to have descended into a city of chaos.”

“Many streets and parks are overrun with drugs, criminals and homelessness, and local leadership and law enforcement allow this through inaction,” he added.

At the time, Smith announced the temporary closure of his company’s nearby Hayes Street store after its “windows were smashed and thousands of dollars worth of product stolen.” He said at the time that the store was “hit by organized theft several times a week,” with thieves putting employees at risk. The shop is now open again.

According to the San Francisco Police Department, property crime has exploded in San Francisco in 2021 and 2022. So far, however, burglaries and thefts in 2023 are down about 10% year-on-year, according to SFPD data.

$100 billion problem

Industry groups have sounded the alarm about theft, and the National Retail Federation said organized retail crime costs businesses about $100 billion a yearaccording to a 2022 survey.

According to the survey, retailers saw a 27% increase in thefts from organized crime rings in 2021. They responded by investing more money in security measures to protect employees, customers and goods.

Many stores – from pharmacies to retailers of electronic goods – have also started to lock up more goods. This technique, designed to deter thieves, can sometimes drive away willing buyers who don’t want to wait for an employee to clear items for them to purchase.

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