Forbes: Why The Biden-Xi Talks Should Put A Microscope On San Francisco

Forbes: Why The Biden-Xi Talks Should Put A Microscope On San Francisco

What are three policy steps the city of San Francisco should take to make living in the city and working downtown better? super{set} Founding General Partner Tom Chavez writes in Forbes:

"My office is in downtown San Francisco, which was completely upturned as President Biden and China’s President Xi Jinping came together for their big meeting last month. The day before the Chinese dictator came to town, I was driving to work on Mission Street and saw city officials setting up succulents with rows of cops on the street, prepping for his arrival. I was enraged.

Why are we celebrating the leader of a police state that surveils its citizens in the most sinister way? Prettifying and securing the city should be the norm, not just something we do when world leaders come to town. These kinds of efforts would have been particularly helpful over the past few years as San Francisco’s perceived “unraveling” continues to make national news headlines.

My cruise down Mission Street on the day of this meeting further highlighted the incongruence between what the city, particularly downtown, needs and what city officials are doing. San Francisco is a city of global, national, and local importance; we should all be calling on city officials to make necessary changes to help the city thrive at all times.

I hope that business leaders, investors, and tech people all over the U.S. care deeply about San Francisco, have regard for its past, and share optimism about its future. To help make sure Downtown San Francisco is a great place to live and do business, I’d like my city’s government to..."

Read Tom Chavez' Why The Biden-Xi Talks Should Put A Microscope On San Francisco in Forbes

• How can San Francisco build more housing?
• How can those that work downtown be made to feel safer?
• How can the City step in encourage more retail business?

Read the editorial now.