My bigger concern with SF is property crime and homelessness. I don't feel safe in this city. It's been getting worse every year and there is no end in sight. Major conferences already relocated because of it.
The pandemic has managed to cure a few of San Francisco's ills. Rents and real estate prices are trending down towards sanity, the city/county government has managed to get a large number of homeless folks situated indoors, restaurants are getting outdoor seating space, and initiatives to massively reduce the amount of red tape small business have to work through are getting fast tracked. All that, and the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths are extremely low relative to the rest of the country, even as businesses re-open. The post-pandemic San Francisco has a decent shot at being a livable city again (though the property crime problem isn't yet on a path to being solved).
I agree on most points. My guess is that some homeless were put into hotel rooms, which is why there are fewer on the street. I don't know how sustainable that is or what will happen when the pandemic is over. Will they be allowed to stay there indefinitely? Who will pay for all that? I have a hard time believing that the homeless population actually decreased during COVID with all the generous social programs going on.
