The death of SF and NY?

Today, we’re finally moving out of the Spaces co-working spot in SOMA and moving to CANOPY in Jackson Square. I have a love-hate relationship with Spaces. It’s where I’ve been working out for almost 2 years. It’s our first San Francisco office and I’ve had a lot of great memories (and late nights) here. It was time to leave however and we’re excited as ever to call Jackson Square our new home.

We may be the only company in San Francisco to sign a lease during this time, but we’ve decided as a company to double down on office work and hope to make a full return once COVID is over. I know a lot and perhaps the majority of people don’t feel the same way however.

The talk of Twitter has been the death of major cities like San Francisco and New York. I understand a lot of people’s frustration with two of America’s most iconic cities. Cost of living is through the roof and there is no shortage of issues including homelessness, cleanliness and safety.

My take on the situation is that these cities are not for everyone. People that would prefer to live in suburbs or quieter cities now have a perfect excuse to leave and hopefully a job that will allow them to do so. There’s nothing wrong with that and I believe the acceleration of remote work will be great opportunities for those to achieve what makes them happy.

For the rest of us that enjoy the hustle and bustle, connections and entertainment that a city has to offer, we can also look towards better days. There will be short-term impact from COVID and unfortunately we all have to live it. But we can look to rebuild SF and NY the way it needs to be built. Forced mass migration to the city for jobs will hopefully be over and we can make a better SF and NY.

I grew up in San Francisco, moved to Seattle for 5 years, then New York for 5 years, and now I’m back in San Francisco. I have lived in cities my whole life and I have no plans to leave a city anytime soon.

The next few years are a pivotal point for both SF and NY. There will be struggles and bumps along the road, but I am hopeful. I have heard the “Death of SF” before and I refuse to believe it. I am long SF and NY and I know a lot of others are too.