San Francisco was America’s Emerald City on the hill, or hills in its case. It was considered one of the most beautiful cities in the world, as much as it was storied as far back as the 1906 earthquake. It was made one of the world’s richest cities by the technology surge of the late 20th Century. San Francisco became the center of fabulous wealth.
Except for the earthquakes that leveled the city, which is hyperbole, it receives little comparison with its past. It has become the worst example of the blight that has overtaken America’s cities, which have caused drops in population and business activities. The once-busy streets are now nearly deserted. Some of America’s most well-known retailers have left. Several major hotels have been closed. The streets are filled with the homeless, and hundreds of people suffer from drug addiction. Drug overdose deaths have run into the hundreds in the last two years.
It is hard to say exactly what happened to San Francisco. Other cities with severe urban problems, like New York and Chicago, have not fallen apart. For some reason, people who have left the West Coast have moved to cities, which include Phoenix, Austin, Miami, and Tampa. Many have moved for a better climate. Others have moved because of low real estate prices. Some have not returned to the city because they can work from home, a trend triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic.
One critical measure of how San Francisco’s fortunes have been is its population. It grew steadily from 723,959 in 1990 to 873,965 in 2020. It then fell to 808,427 in 2022. And, by most accounts, it will continue to shrink. People have fled and are leaving faster.
Also read: American Cities With the Most Million-Dollar Homes
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