Yet another business is packing up and leaving San Francisco as crime continues to scare away business owners and residents alike.
Cotopaxi is shuttering its San Francisco location less than a year after it opened. CEO Davis Smith said the company was robbed less than a week after it opened, with windows smashed and “thousands of dollars of product” being stolen. “Our store is hit by organized theft rings several times per week,” Smith said. “The city has recently announced a reduction of police presence in this neighborhood, despite mass-scale crime.”
Utah CEO of @cotopaxi announces they are closing their SF store after multiple break ins.
how embarrassing.
“our team is terrified. they feel unsafe. I grew up in Latin America, and I never felt this unsafe there. Something has to change in San Francisco.” pic.twitter.com/a9Sirpl6Bi
— tyler hogge (@thogge) October 18, 2022
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Cotopaxi isn’t the first business to leave, and it likely won’t be the last. Organized retail theft has plagued San Francisco thanks to California making theft of less than $950 in goods a nonviolent misdemeanor. San Francisco didn’t even care to prosecute those misdemeanors under the tenure of District Attorney Chesa Boudin, and now the city has lost control. Walgreens closed 17 locations due to the rampant thefts, and business owners frequently saw the people who vandalized or stole from their businesses out on the street just days after they were arrested.
Theft isn’t the only issue. Because San Francisco’s Democratic leaders get queasy about prosecuting “quality of life” crimes, the quality of life in the city has deteriorated. Residents in some neighborhoods have resorted to carrying tasers or baseball bats to protect themselves from unruly, drug-addicted residents. San Francisco is ranked as the city residents most want to leave, and they and the businesses heading for greener pastures are taking tens of millions of dollars in tax revenue with them.
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San Francisco ousted Boudin, but the liberal mindset that has put the city in this situation hasn’t faded. California and San Francisco are still run by Democrats who don’t care if residents are living in neighborhoods being ruined by drugs, homelessness, or crime. San Francisco needs a full course correction or more businesses will be joining Cotopaxi in closing their doors.
