As part of their coverage of this year’s election, KQED launched a “Dear Mayor…” series, in which their reporters go out to city neighborhoods to research the key issues that residents think are important for this year’s mayoral election.
They paid a visit to the Richmond District recently where reporter Cy Musiker spoke with several small business merchants about the struggles they have trying to stay afloat – dealing with empty storefronts, a weak economy, and a seemingly unsympathetic city government who drives up their cost of doing business with numerous taxes and fees.
“We have cigarette tax, other taxes, and we don’t have much income so I think small business is not good in San Francisco,” said Angela Chung who owns a grocery and liquor store on Clement Street.
Jesse Fink owns Toy Boat, a dessert cafe on Clement, and he’s president of the Clement Street Merchants Association. “My business tax has gone up from 20 years ago,” he says. “From 40 dollars a year, now it’s about 800 dollars a year. I don’t know what more I’m getting.”
Listen to the report:
[audio:https://richmondsfblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/musiker_richmond.mp3]The topic of stimulating the local economy was also discussed in the September 19 mayoral debate held at the Richmond Recreation Center. Candidates commented on city regulation of small businesses, payroll tax changes and more (read all the highlights from the debate here).
Despite the challenges faced by merchants, many are hopeful that the city is paying attention and making plans to encourage small business growth.
“I don’t find that they’re hostile to small business,” said Toy Boat owner Jesse Fink. “There’s a small business commission that keeps getting more and more active, so I feel like the city is trying.”
KQED also spoke with Regina Dick-Endrizzi, who runs the San Francisco’s Office of Small Business. She insists that the city is responsive to business concerns, citing recent programs from her office like a new weights and measures fee tailored to minimize small business costs, a cheaper permit for cafes offering live performances, and help tapping federal stimulus funds.
In addition to the radio report which you can hear above, KQED reporters also conducted man on the street interviews, finding that the top concerns residents of the Richmond District have are about the quality of public schools and the school-assignment system, public safety, and economic development and job creation.
Quotes from Richmond District residents included “The Richmond Alexandria Theater is a big issue for us. It’s a real eyesore.”, “They cut a section of the 38 bus line, and I wish they would restore it.”, “Increase jobs”, and “We have the Richmond District recreation center. They keep eliminating things, and we keep having to sign petitions to keep it going.” And this one from a concerned yet overly honest parent: “Public education, although neither one of my children actually go to public schools.” Read more quotes from residents
Read the full article at KQED.com
What do you think? Did KQED capture the primary concerns you have about our neighborhood? Are these the issues you think the next mayor should be concerned about? Leave a comment to let us know.
Sarah B.
the ice cream store that is mentioned in the broadcast didnt got out of business b/c of the economy–it was a a DUMB idea when they set up directly across the street from Joe’s, a WELL ESTABLISHED store for DECADES. and all these additional grocery stores on clement, and coffee shops?? we have PLENTY of them already. it’s not the economy alone that drives these shops to go belly up so soon.
It’s an interesting piece but it’s pretty one-sided. It seems to focus on business taxes without really discussing the demand side of the equation. Are Richmond District residents spending enough to cover the costs that businesses incur? If not, why not? Are businesses marketing well? Case in point – the ice cream shop closed because, as Steve @1 said – it was a dumb move to put it there. Why blame the economy for that one?
I like where I live. But I’ve lived in SF for over 12 years and even through the economic boom times the Richmond seemed to me like a challenging ‘hood for businesses.
Was our retail vacancy rate much lower in 2000? I don’t seem to remember the Richmond being that much different even when the times were great.
How much of our problem can we really attribute to the current economic recession and how much is a longer term structural issue with our neighborhood?
I agree with Steve’s comment all the way. That Sweet Days idea was horrible! Who would think that putting up shop right near Joes would work?! I see it all the time in the neighborhood. Impractical businesses like desert shops, clothing stores, coffee shops, etc. are being put up and not used at all. It’s a waste of property and puts nothing back into our neighborhood. We have all these empty spaces such as the Alexandria, the old Cala on 28th and Geary, the old Quickly across from the 4 Star, and nothing is being done to put something practical back into the neighborhood. I bet these properties will turn into another Russian/European clothing store, Asian desert cafe, or another business that will just belly up in a year. Come on now!
This is an incredibly hostile business climate. I have spent two months dealing with the Tax Collectors office….one of the most incompetent offices in the city and one of the most dangerous! We regularly pay our taxes. However, we were slapped with a lien for alleged failure to pay taxes in 2007. I immediately went to the SF Tax Collector’s office, where THEY ADMITTED that we had paid the tax. The problem? THEY lost the Business Tax report that accompanied the check. So they never gave us credit in another part of their computer system! I had to unearth four years of business records to find and give them another copy of the document THEY lost. Have they expunged the lien? NO! I am now in a struggle to get someone, ANYONE to correct this. It is an outrage. Letters to the Treasurer have been UNANSWERED.I have made numerous in person visits to the Treasurer’s office. They still are befuddled, although they have completely trashed our business!!!! Can’t wait to take our business elsewhere!
I do not understand why can’t one 38 Geary bus go all the way to Ocean Avenue so that I can go to Safeway and Balboa theater. Why they cut the whole route and replace it with 18 bus. The city sure likes people to stand in bus stops to wait for connecting buses. I do appreciate Fresh and Easy opening and CVS. I feel sorry for CVS; it’s like a ghost town in there. Their stuff is so expensive. I’m so glad that the Korean, Chinese, and Russian community are here. I love the variety of Korean restaurants in the Richmond neighborhood. Clement is still bustling place, but during the week day, it, too, is quite quiet. If i lived out of the city, I wouldn’t come in. Finding parking and paying for parking fines is such a turnoff. The crime is increasing, but that is across the board. I’m glad the candidates for Mayor were nice enough to come to our neighborhood. The concerts at Golden Gate Park is out of control. There’s got to be better planning and consequence for clean up and sanctions for wrecking the park.
The Richmond District is one of the best situated neighborhoods…anywhere. We have huge parks on two sides and the Pacific Ocean on a third. We have some of the best public schools in the City, decent public transportation, great libraries, and terrific people, There’s a great ethnic mix, fine restaurants, and easy access to the Golden Gate Bridge and the Peninsula. Maybe there’s a little too much fog, but nothing’s perfect. With all we have going for us here, I’m struggling to figure out why Geary is so bleak and we just don’t seems to get the respect we should from the rest of the City. Does anyone have any ideas?
I dont’ think we have everything going for us at all. Yes – the location in relation to GG Park and Presidio is AWESOME for families. Schools/libraries – good.
BUT – businesses are not all so good. Our streets and businesses don’t necessarily have curb appeal. We don’t have a streetcar. Our residents don’t all necessarily like to spend a lot, or even a middling amount on things like food, clothing, house wares, etc. We have a fair amount of odd businesses that don’t necessarily attract folks from other neighborhoods – like “junk” shops that sell super cheap random stuff — dingy restaurants — dingy nail/hair salons. And Geary is full of auto-related shops, interspersed with dingy businesses and empty lots.
I don’t think SOME Richmond merchants all really get how to market themselves as a destination because that’s not necessarily in their culture.
Of course, there are a LOT of gems! But they are mingled with some pretty unappealing businesses. And the overall mix combined with weather and transportation and geographic issues makes it a bit of a hard sell as a destination.
I agree with Kayvaan. The shops that open aren’t necessarily what we need in our neighborhood AND they don’t market well. Curb appeal? None at all. When I go shopping on Clement (usually between 2nd and 10th) the filth on the streets outside of the markets and restaurants is horrible. I have to walk with my pants pulled up so my hem doesn’t drag in vegetable waste, spit and fish guts. Dirty, dirty.
This is a neighborhood with a lot of charm, like an old “dirty spoon” restaurant that serves great food; in a word, it has “personality”. It really is unique in San Francisco, and adjacent to some of the finest public amenities in America. Just look at the views of the ocean, and Bay; consider the great access we have to the GG Park. I love this place!
That said, here are some things that I think we could do better:
1) We do have a lot of empty storefronts. I think the reason for that is that is that there has not been much imagination in creating a truly diversified commercial economy in the Richmond.
One solution to this problem would be to require as a part of the license of every new business, a description and the purpose of the new business. Example: let’s say I want to open up a Thai restaurant within two blocks of another Thai restaurant. I say that SF should create rules that forbid the new restaurant to open. Businesses already in place would be grandfathered. It would take some years to wash out many of the duplicate businesses, but eventually we would see more diversity from something like this. There is too much commercial duplication in the Richmond, which makes it really hard to survive here as a retail entity. Diversity is one part of the success formula for urban retail.
The City should require landlords to clean up and fix their building facades, and PROVE that they are not passing the cost of simple cleanup (sprucing up) on to their commercial tenants. I think the irresponsibility of commercial landlords in the Richmond is appalling. Something needs to be done about that, and pronto. Fines are in order, guided by simple, easy-to-understand rules about keeping the facades to your property looking good. Would most San Francisco residential neighborhoods put up with derelict residences? No. Why should we let commercial landlords get away with it?
2) It seems that over the last few years, some really rowdy crowds have been gathering at some of the clubs on Clement – the ones that have live music. I really like to see people have a good time, but when I start to see really sketchy-looking dudes who are looking for trouble around closing time, shouting and making noise/trouble, it makes me fear for the neighborhood, long-term. There is one club down around 8th that is really a problem. Some evenings it looks like the worst of the worst hang out there, spilling into the streets and crowding the sidewalks. I wish the police would keep that under control.
3) Mirroring what other people are saying: marketing, marketing, marketing. That said, many of the merchants in the Richmond don’t know the first thing about marketing, and are so busy scraping out a living that they don’t have time to consider it. I would like to hear more about this from people in the know, or see a serious effort undertaken by the commercial development folks at City Hall to help out. (I can cream, can’t I?).
4) Better mass transport access. WAY better mass transport access.
5) A decided push by City development folks to get some good anchors retail in place. NOT a chain drug store or supermarket, but something that the Richmond *doesn’t* have.
6) the only fear I have is that taking some of this stuff too far will end up gentrifying the neighborhood. The Richmond is homey, and kind of plain. We can keep it that way and have it look better, make it “homier” with a splash of fresh paint, and better small retail diversity.
Geary BRT will have the biggest transformative impact of all. When we build it, they (the customers) will come.
If you lived where I do, the most important issue we have to suffer from is huge concerts and enormous events held in the middle of a residential area that was never built or structured to handle them. The noise, the filth, the humanity is unbelievable, disruptive and just plain disgusting.
Moving Outside Lands and Hardly Strictly to Sharon Meadow, or anywhere closer to the other end of the park makes a whole lot of sense. I’d imagine the merchants on Haight Street would love to have the increased sales and we would love to get rid of hundreds of thousands of all kinds of people trying to park, relieve themselves, buy and sell legal and illegal items, and party all day and all night inches from our ears.
Bob @11 – BRT looks pretty cool (if it happens). But that’s only half the equation. It doesn’t help to have a great rapid transit if the businesses out here are unappealing, does it? I hope I’m wrong about that but I’m not hopeful that BRT by itself would transform the Richmond. It will certainly make life for Richmond people better!
Phil @10 – great points!
I would be hesitant to have the city approve what types of businesses can open up based on “diversity” requirements. Sounds like it could just make it even harder to start a business here and it also is pretty subjective.
GREAT point about commercial landlord upkeep. Some of the buildings out here are shamefully run down.
I do not think that the city should be more involved with service approval. As Kayvann stated, it would actually discourage merchants since the process would be even more drawn out than it is now. Additionally, consumers should be what determines if a business survives or not when a place offers up redundant product or services. However, I would love to see less redundancy and shops that offer quality house goods and clothing, especially in Central/Outer Richmond.
Finally, a lot of people from other parts of the city are just not all that willing to come over to the west side of the city, even if greater mass-transit was established. They think of the Richmond and Sunset as San Francisco’s foggy burbs. I think that rejuvenation/commercial efforts (including transit routes that allow residents to shop from one side of the district to the other) should be focused on the needs for those who live here, so that our shopping can be done even more locally rather than having to venture to other neighborhoods or outside of SF.
I think the biggest issue with Sweet Days was that it was mostly lackluster. I was glad to see it going in because between about 25th and 17th, there are few options for sandwiches for lunch on Geary. It offered a little bit of everything, but not much of what you would want. I tried one of their sandwiches and it was expensive and meh, especially since it was not even made as it was described. I think they would have a bit of a leg up with the ice cream since I believe they took credit card and Joe’s is cash only. But, they basically were just an outlet for other brands of ice cream and had a very limited flavor selection that looked overly frosty.
keyvaan and mel, I hear you about too much bureaucratic intrusion into the process of business set up and licensing. In fact, San Francisco needs to review and eliminate many of the regs that new business owners have to face when they negotiate the business start up process. That said, it would be a very simple thing to set a template up that prevents over-duplication of business. For instance, one rule could be that nobody can open a beauty parlor within three blocks of another beauty parlor, or a Chinese restaurant, or a drug store, etc. etc. Recently, I saw to Japanese restaurants open up within one block of a long-established (and smaller, but very high quality) sushi place; that isn’t going to help any one of those businesses. I lived on the Peninsula for some years, and the overpopulation of many Peninsula cities with restaurants makes for a high overall failure rate among restauranteurs. Same goes for other businesses.
On the surface, this looks like intrusion, but many cities already do this. Los Altos does it.
The end price of “letting the market decide” winners and losers (lie with Sweet Days) is that we end up with more frequently vacated storefronts, exacerbating the problem that we are all trying to solve.
I say eliminate the petty requirements and institute common-sense business demographic requirements that give small businesses a chance.
If we want people in the Richmond, we must seek out optimal retail diversity formulas. If done with an appropriate model, and good community input, we will end up helping long-established businesses, and helping new businesses thrive – all the while adding the badly-needed diversity of retail that the Richmond currently lacks.
Last (to repeat) our Supervisor and City development folks need to work on getting seriously non-duplicate anchors in the Richmond. An Apple Store would not be out of the question, if it was approached properly.
Very last, we need to get to work on these changes, because just as BRT will permit citizens to come to the Richmond, it will also make it easier for Richmond residents to more easily travel *outside* the Richmond for their service and product needs. We need to make this district more robust, and clean it up. Supervisor Mar? Others?
Thinking that an Apple store would move to the Richmond is fool hardy. As somebody pointed out in this thread, we have people that live here that won’t spend money. What makes you think they’ll spend money at the Apple store? Apple doesn’t even have a store in Cupertino because there isn’t enough demand. I’m sure Apple’s real estate team has a standard that they follow for adding stores. I guarantee that the Richmond falls well below that standard.
I think BRT will have negligible effect on business activity. At best it will cut the travel time from downtown by 5-7 minutes. Do you really think that would make any difference and make some local Vietnamese restaurant more appealing to somebody from outside of the Richmond? I highly doubt it.
A few months ago I was showing the city to my classmate who lives abroad. After we drove through the Richmond he said “Wow, you guys surely have a lot of mattress stores around here! Is this like an area where people from all over the city come to buy mattresses?”.
I felt embarrassed for our neighborhood. Sometimes there is little sense in the locations business choose for themselves. But letting some idiots at City Hall decide which business should go where is definitely NOT a good idea.
SFBEAR: “Sometimes there is little sense in the locations business choose for themselves. But letting some idiots at City Hall decide which business should go where is definitely NOT a good idea.”
So, which is it. Owner idiots or City Hall idiots? If there were retail quotas in place you wouldn’t have so many mattress shops, zillions of Chinese restaurants, and cheap Chinese-manufactured retail “goods” shops. It’s ridiculous. Many cities enforce retail quotas, or zones, and *they work*. If you enjoy looking at vacant retail space, keep letting every Tom, Dick, and Jane open up anything they want, no nmatter the location – even if it’s *right next door* to a business selling the SAME thing! I’m a businessperson, and know a few things about retail and other commercial enterprise. How many businesses have you owned and run? I’ve also been a political appointee, and know that government can be stupid, but it’s not ALL stupid.
Paul C said: “Thinking that an Apple store would move to the Richmond is fool hardy”
No, it’s not fool-hardy. How do I know? I have done a LOT of business with Apple, and know a lot about their strategic store-placement formula. As part of a general re-invigoration and rationalization of Richmond District businesses – *including* business zoning, the Richmond could remain a very “neighborhood-like’ area with lots of great *sustainable* retail and food businesses. That would draw other businesses. That would interest Apple. Apple would, I agree, be a long shot, but even so, what about other boutique businesses that would draw people? There is little or no imagination applied to the Richmond’s retail scenario. Too much of the squalor around here is due to derelict landlords that have let the place go to hell, and been willing to rent to anyone with a few bucks in their bank account. So, if we continue down the current path, there is almost NOTHING that we can do to change the look of this place, or the rational control of business in a way that HELPS business sustainability. Do nothing, and nothing will change. Griping and whining about how sketchy the Richmond looks will not impact landlord behavior. Incentives and disincentives, properly placed, will. Again, this works elsewhere, why not here?
Supervisor Mar and others with access need to start pushing some of these ideas, and we need some SERIOUSLY GOOD economic development people put in place at City Hall – people who come out of the business community; people who understand good retail sustainability prerequisites; and, policy-makers who will act to create proper incentives. Otherwise, more of the same.
Come on people. Stop blaming on these businesses. Did you know how much rent people have to pay per month? $5000 to $10000. You know how difficult to run a business. Clement store owners get robbed at gun point in the day time and at night, people break in. It’s difficult out there. Let’s be grateful and support our businesses. These Chinese restaurants do not make much money or else they would be rich and quit. The staff work 10 to 12 hours days. People come from all over to eat at Chapeau and Aziza. They are listed in the Zagat. Lou’s attract the young crowd. Burma Star always has a crowd. The Crepe ice cream place on Clement and 4th Ave is the best place. Joe’s ice cream has built a reputation and is family oriented. People come to feast on the dim sum deli. Those are the restaurants attracting people to come to Clement. At least we don’t have McDonalds or other fast food around. I don’t know how Jack in the Box sneaked into the neighborhood. I noticed that 21st and Geary corner restaurant is being remodeled for another restaurant. Let’s embrace our diversity.
Interesting discussion.
1. Some of the comments seem to complain about too much business. The concerts, for instance, bring plenty of people even if they annoy you. So do people who come out to the bars. If there are crime problems, they should be dealt with, but preferably not by shutting down the places that bring people out.
2. I don’t think that the city shouldn’t be micromanaging the locations of stores, with quotas or otherwise. Sometimes it may be good for multiple similar businesses to be near each other. Is it a problem that Mandalay and Burma Superstar (and B Star) are near each other? Doesn’t seem to be. Sure, there are more junk stores or small grocers than necessary, but if they stay in business they stay in business. They wouldn’t stay open if they were losing money. Likewise, they wouldn’t stay open if there were other businesses clamoring to take their place.
If Apple wanted to open a store here, I don’t think there’s anything stopping them (except maybe that formula retail ordinance, itself a bit of micromanagement, though I’m sympathetic to it). Getting rid of mattress stores isn’t going to make Apple want to open up here.
Heck, this makes no sense at all: “If you enjoy looking at vacant retail space, keep letting every Tom, Dick, and Jane open up anything they want, no nmatter the location – even if it’s *right next door* to a business selling the SAME thing!”
So the way to reduce vacant retail space is to stop people opening new businesses? How bizarre. Mattress stores may not be sexy but they have a right to exist, and if they stay in business it’s probably because people want to buy mattresses.
“The end price of “letting the market decide” winners and losers (lie with Sweet Days) is that we end up with more frequently vacated storefronts, exacerbating the problem that we are all trying to solve.”
Except that the proposed solution involved preventing Sweet Days from opening in the first place. How would that reduce the number of vacant storefronts?
3. People who don’t own cars are the most reliable customers for local businesses. We already have quite a lot of apartments without parking, and I think that’s a major reason why we have as many small businesses as we do (compare us to the Sunset, for example!) There’s plenty of demand for such apartments, too, and it would be higher if there were a comfortable and quick connection to downtown. If I were running the city I’d 1) make a big investment in Geary St. transit– BRT at a minimum, but better yet something that went underground at Japantown, or even BART– and then 2) allow Geary St. to be built up with apartment buildings without parking requirements. Result: better access for people coming in from elsewhere, as well as more customers locally.
Phil, it’s pretty simple, actually. Owners “idiots” risk their own money when they choose locations. They can make mistakes, and they often do, but nobody is better positioned to make a decision.
City Hall idiots would make their decisions based on lobbying from existing businesses, at least partially.
I thought that somebody with business and political background would understand that.
Besides, so often businesses benefit from the spill-over effect. E.g. a few years ago Kitaro was so successful, there was often a line outside the doors. Sakana Bune and Tokyo owners so this as an opportunity and it paid off for them – both of these restaurants are pretty busy despite being on the same block as Kitaro.
“So the way to reduce vacant retail space is to stop people opening new businesses? How bizarre. Mattress stores may not be sexy but they have a right to exist, and if they stay in business it’s probably because people want to buy mattresses.”
OK, I tried. I’ve owned 2 retail businesses; I’ve sat on large municipal committees that enforced retail store placement quotas; I’ve done retail placement analysis. I know a thing or two, and it’s not just opinion. I’ve BEEN there. I think the Richmond is pretty much going to continue the way it is. I love the place, but there is too much old thinking here. Lots of whining with no solutions that meet the test of 100% execution – i.e. workable solutions that involve compromise.
That said, the Richmond (if nothing is done to ameliorate the very fixable problems we have with dilapidation of storefront facades, and business duplication) will continue to have empty storefronts (for many more reasons I don’t have time to get into); it will continue to remain looking like a rat’s nest; it will continue to have a very monotonous retail mix; it will continue to have a ton of mattress stores; it will continue to have massive restaurant duplication; it will continue to degrade (because it won’t attract unique anchors), and so on.
I’m not going to move, I love the place. It really makes me laugh when I read someone telling what Apple would and wouldn’t do, when I know the guy who runs the Apple retail operation, and I’ve had personal meetings with the guy at least a dozen times (about other business). Ignorance is bliss, I guess.