San Francisco has a problem.
The liberal city for years has been known for its welcoming attitude toward the homeless. Now, tourism officials are starting to take notice.
“The streets are filthy. There’s trash everywhere. It’s disgusting,” the San Francisco Chronicle quoted Joe D’Alessandro, president and CEO of the San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau (SFCVB), as saying. “I’ve never seen any other city like this — the homelessness, dirty streets, drug use on the streets, smash-and-grabs.
“How can it be?” he continued. “How can it have gotten to this point?”
In March 2017, the San Francisco Travel Association said it was forecasting 25.6 million visitors to the city, famous for cable cars, chocolate and a bridge, for 2017. That would be a 1.8 percent over the 25.2 million tourists who visited the city in 2016.
“I often travel to major cities for work, including New York, Chicago, Miami and more,” one business traveler said. “While I am always aware and vigilant, I have never felt unnevered walking alone at night through New York or Chicago.
“That’s not the case in San Francisco,” the traveler added. “Because of the state of the city, I will never walk around alone whether it’s noon or midnight.”