[bhyolken]

I lived on that block for close to 10 years and can confirm that the safety situation around there significantly degraded over the last 1-2 years. Gangs of drug dealers moved in and took over key sidewalk areas (particularly 7th and 8th streets between Market and Mission), and violent crime and property destruction increased significantly. In my last year, there were two murders nearby (including one that I heard the gunshots for), and I witnessed a bunch of things I had never seen in the neighborhood before including trash fires, people screaming at all hours of the night, and overdose victims being revived on the sidewalk.

Although nothing bad happened to me personally, it just got really depressing and emotionally draining to live in a place where you're surrounded by so much suffering and destruction, and where you have to be hyper-vigilant every time you step outside. I packed up my things and left in December. My mental health and happiness have improved since then.

I don't blame Whole Foods and other businesses in the neighborhood for shutting down. The city leadership, including the mayor and a majority of the Board of Supervisors (SF's legislative body) really didn't seem to care one bit about the problems in that area of the city. Maybe if enough people and businesses vote with their feet, they'll be motivated to actually fix things.