T-Mobile was recently forced to close its flagship store in downtown San Francisco, continuing a trend of commercial vacancies in the crime-ridden city.
The company posted a sign on the front doors of the massive two-story location at Union Square, informing customers to shop at nearby T-Mobile locations in the city. A T-Mobile spokesperson told SFGATE, “We recently reshaped our retail strategy. Employees have been offered roles within the company.”
T-Mobiles vacancy of their flagship store follows other retailers closing up shop in downtown San Francisco, opting for safer, more business-friendly suburbs. Other businesses that have enacted closures are Whole Foods, Nordstrom, and Saks Off 5th. Nordstrom stated it is leaving downtown because “the dynamics of the downtown San Francisco market have changed dramatically over the past several years, impacting customer foot traffic to our stores and our ability to operate successfully.”
A spokesperson for the Westfield San Francisco Centre, a prominent 9-story mall with hundreds of retail offerings, stated, “A growing number of retailers and businesses are leaving the area due to the unsafe conditions for customers, retailers, and employees, coupled with the fact that these significant issues are preventing an economic recovery of the area.”
The Daily Wire reported on the surging crime in the city contributing to the economic disruption businesses are facing:
Crime in San Francisco has indeed been blamed for severely diminishing quality of life and contributing to a mass exodus of residents and businesses. Pharmacy giant Walgreens closed several locations in the city two years ago, while technology retailer Best Buy has struggled with safety issues related to organized retail crime. Nearly 8% of current San Francisco residents plan to move elsewhere within the next year, surging past levels seen in every other major American city, according to data from the Census Bureau.
San Francisco Democrat mayor London Breed has suggested turning these empty commercial spaces into residential housing. “The challenges facing downtown require us to imagine what is possible and create the foundation for a stronger, more resilient future,” Breed said. “We can create more opportunities to fill our empty buildings, whether that’s to create housing or making it easier to fill office and retail space. These changes shouldn’t be something that requires granting exceptions through lengthy paperwork and exhaustive public hearings. We need to make the process easier for getting our buildings active and full.”
Famous actor Scott Biao recently spoke about how crime in California has led the state to become so unsafe that he is moving. He had been a long-time resident of Los Angeles, now a far cry from what the city used to be.
Biao tweeted:
After 45 years, I’m making my way to finally “exit stage right” from California.
“The most recent survey conducted by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority found approximately 69,000 people experiencing homelessness in L.A. County and 41,000 in the city in 2022.”
After 45 years, I’m making my way to finally “exit stage right” from California.
“The most recent survey conducted by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority found approximately 69,000 people experiencing homelessness in L.A. County and 41,000 in the city in 2022.” pic.twitter.com/fBCeNyhhhx
— Scott Baio (@ScottBaio) May 3, 2023
Mark Wahlberg is another famous Hollywood personality who has decided to pack up and move his family out of California. Wahlberg said, “It’s really giving the kids a chance to thrive. It just has the best of both worlds. I know a lot of people, when they think Las Vegas, they think the Strip. But just about 15, 20 minutes away, there’s a whole lot of other amazing areas that are all about family and community.”
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