Upmarket hipster shop Whole Foods is shutting its downtown San Francisco location after just one year of being opened, due to crippling crime rates.
The Whole Foods at Eighth and Market Streets, one of the largest supermarkets in the entirety of San Francisco, shut down on Monday evening. According to the SF Standard, Whole Foods informed City Hall that “deteriorating street conditions” regarding drug use and crime near the store was the main reason for shutting down.
In October, the opening hours for the “flagship” store were cut dramatically due to “high theft” and “hostile visitors,” and had to enforce new rules for their bathrooms in November after syringes and pipes were discovered left there.
In a statement, a spokesman for Whole Foods said that they were closing the location “for the time being,” and that if they ever feel again that they can “ensure the safety of our team members in the store, we will evaluate a reopening of our Trinity location.”
I’m incredibly disappointed but sadly unsurprised by the temporary closure of Mid-Market’s Whole Foods. (1/7) https://t.co/lthpC90xTL
— Matt Dorsey (@mattdorsey) April 10, 2023
Matt Dorsey, a San Francisco Supervisor for District 6 which covers the Whole Foods, said in a thread on Twitter that he was “incredibly disappointed but sadly unsurprised” by the decision from Whole Foods to shut down their downtown location.
“Our neighborhood waited a long time for this supermarket, but we’re also well aware of problems they’ve experienced with drug-related retail theft, adjacent drug markets, and the many safety issues related to them,” Dorsey tweeted.
He announced he was drafting a bill to address the “understaffing crisis” that was currently taking place in the San Francisco PD, adding that the closure of the Whole Foods was “Exhibit A” as to why it had to be fixed.
Today, I’m waiving privilege to publicly announce a drafting request I’m working on with @Stefani4CA for a Charter Amendment entitled the “San Francisco Police Department Full Staffing Act,” which will get San Francisco to a fully staffed police department within 5 years. (3/7)
— Matt Dorsey (@mattdorsey) April 10, 2023
As Valiant News reported, Bob Lee, the founder of Cash App, was stabbed to death in the middle of the night last week in the Rincon Hill area of San Francisco, a “well-to-do” neighbourhood in Nancy Pelosi’s district. Police responded to the stabbing at 2:35 a.m. last Tuesday, rendering aid to Lee, who was transported to hospital where he later died of his wounds.
In 2022, 55 murders took place in San Francisco. Chesa Boudin, the former District Attorney who was supported by George Soros, lost a recall election in June last year, after rising crime rates led to increased dissatisfaction among lower class and minority residents.
