The announced departure of the Chronicle from South of Market after more than a century in its iconic building is the latest instance of the stark emptying of the area around Powell Street, once a booming hub for shoppers, tech workers and travelers en route to nearby hotels, shops and conventions.
San Francisco, CA
This strip of downtown S.F. is at a crossroads as massive housing project re-emerges
Pedestrians walk past San Francisco Chronicle signage as others wait at a bus stop on Mission Street in San Francisco.
Lea Suzuki/The ChronicleThough the move is temporary, the Chronicle’s departure will likely last for years.
It comes as the immediate neighborhood is at a critical juncture: Downtown’s recovery has been a primary focus for city officials for several years now, yet businesses continue to flee the area. This week, Bloomingdale’s announced its decision to shutter its flagship store inside the San Francisco Centre mall, which is located across the street from the news company’s headquarters at 901 Mission St., in March. A Walgreens on Market Street is also slated to close, adding to a toll that includes Nordstrom, Old Navy and the Cinemark movie theater. Last summer, 24-hour Denny’s closed near Fourth and Mission streets, and SF Pizza, a restaurant under the Fifth and Mission parking garage, shuttered this month. And the historic San Francisco Mint, a grand building across from the Chronicle, sits empty most of the year, save for a scattering of limited run events.
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The decision by parent company Hearst to break traditional tethers by shifting the Chronicle and its sister company SFGate from the 1924 Gothic Revival style building at 901 Mission to a sleek 16-story high-rise tower at 450 Sansome St. in the Financial District was prompted by an effort to finish what Hearst had started before the pandemic: a 400-unit condo tower that would further infuse its incomplete mixed-use campus spanning four acres between Fifth, Mission and Howard streets, with life.
The Chronicle building is seen in the background as a couple rides a scooter along Market Street on Friday.
Lea Suzuki/The ChronicleIt would be the final piece of the massive 5M project that transformed — and many would argue, improved — nearby blocks, but also collided with the post-pandemic slump that has seized the area, causing the project to fail to achieve the vision for a larger revitalization plan conceived nearly a decade ago.
A once fenced-off parking lot that had served as the centerpiece of the 5M project area today is a carefully manicured park featuring an outdoor performance space. But plans to program the lush public amenity with concerts and cultural events were derailed by the pandemic.
A massive 640,000-square-foot office tower at 415 Natoma St., the biggest part of the project, is 97% vacant.
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“There was the thinking that (5M) would really revitalize the area, which everyone was optimistic about,” said Marty Cepkauskas, Hearst’s senior director of real estate. “Unfortunately with COVID, and buildings staying vacant, and workers not coming downtown, you don’t have the activity in the area to live up to that plan and its potential.”
Cepkauskas sees progress, such as a new residential building known as The Geroge at 434 Minna, and once gritty alleys that were transformed into clean and pedestrian-friendly footpaths.
Marty Cepkauskas, senior director of real estate at Hearst Corporation, stands at the 5M dog park behind the old Examiner Building as members of the San Francisco Police Department work on Minna Street behind him.
Lea Suzuki/The ChronicleBut, there are still fewer office workers and less foot traffic compared to 2019. Before the pandemic, food trucks would draw hordes of hungry tech workers multiple times a week in an alleyway behind the Chronicle building. Those food trucks and the crowds are largely gone. Tech companies that once operated in the vicinity like Zendesk, Eventbrite and Yahoo have all either left or cut their office space. Convention traffic spillover has also slowed from nearby Moscone Center, while drug usage and quality of life issues on long-troubled Sixth Street to the west is “significantly worse” in recent months, according to police. Yet, Mayor Daniel Lurie said he is prioritizing public safety and that the city is “open for business.”
Longtime stakeholders of the downtown neighborhood feel like they have been shortchanged.
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“It hasn’t hurt us, but I don’t know if it’s necessarily helped,” said Justin Trujillo, owner of the Tempest Bar at 431 Natoma St. “The new buildings are emptier than they (the developers) hoped they would be. Of course, a lot has changed from when they started the project to where we are now. I remember when the first plans for 5M were brought to me over a decade ago. The pandemic was something nobody could have predicted.”
Joshua Manzo, a former bartender at Tempest, had more choice words.
Justin Trujillo, center, owner of the Tempest bar, calls out “To the Chronicle” with customers Joshua Manzo, left, and Caitlin Liversidge, right, as they share a toast after hearing the news Friday about the Chronicle’s move out of its longtime building at 901 Mission.
Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle“What we were promised when 5M was being done was that it would bring more business into the area, more people. I just hate that there is a lack of housing. But, it’s insane to me that here you have a whole building sitting empty,” Manzo said, while pointing at the 5M office tower at 415 Natoma. “Downtown is a little lost. We have empty buildings, and yet we have a housing crisis. To me, that doesn’t make any sense.”
Alex Sagues, a retail broker with CBRE who has handled leases in the area, said he did not see Friday’s news about the Chronicle’s and SFGate’s planned departure from Fifth and Mission coming.
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Also surprising was Hearst’s plan to advance the condo project in the current market, which has seen development projects freeze across the city due to high costs and changing demand. Hearst said it is problem-solving around how to reboot the arrested development.
Sagues expects that it could take at least two to three years before development comes back. Still, he’s also a firm believer in downtown and the Fifth and Mission area, given its proximity to Union Square and downtown.
People are seen in a largely empty plaza space at Mint Plaza in San Francisco.
Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle“I think there’s a huge opportunity in the area,” he said. “While this is a period of change in San Francisco, the neighborhood remains an integral part of the larger community.”
The Chronicle’s exit adds more uncertainty for local businesses that have survived COVID.
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Joe Kane and Fi Tjioa have run a small coffee shop on the ground floor of the Chronicle building since the mid-’90s. On Friday, they were also startled by the news.
“We know about the development plans, but it’s been so long and nothing happened,” Tjioa said.
She is hopeful that business from the nearby University of the Pacific dental school and convention traffic will be enough to continue to sustain their 30-year run in the neighborhood. But what comes next for them is not clear.
Marty Cepkauskas, senior director of real estate at Hearst Corporation, visits Java Trading Co. coffee shop, a tenant in the Chronicle Building.
Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle“I’ll miss all the Chronicle customers here. It was a surprise,” she said. “But I think we will be OK.”
Trujillo, the Tempest’s owner, said: “I hope the new condo project brings more people in, that it brings people who have never been here before — but you can’t ignore what it’s going to take away.”
In contrast to their current location, the Chronicle and SFGate are headed to 450 Sansome near the Transamerica Pyramid and Jackson Square — an area that’s emerged as a business hot-spot in recent years, drawing hundreds of millions of dollars in new investment and fresh enthusiasm about the future of San Francisco. Jony Ive, designer of the iPhone, has bought multiple buildings for his design studio, while new restaurants and tenants are filling the newly renovated Pyramid.
“If you have an office in Jackson Square, it doesn’t feel like you’re in an office,” said Robbie Silva, executive director of the Downtown Partnership, which promotes and cleans the neighborhood. “There’s no doubt that 2024 was the year for Jackson Square. I think that will only continue. With the recent changing of hands of these buildings, it’s paving a way for a new generation of property owners who, as we see time and time again, are valuing amenities — not only for the building but also for the community at large.”
Long shadows are cast in the plaza area on Market Street near the cable car turnaround in San Francisco.
Lea Suzuki/The ChronicleIn regard to other pockets of downtown, particularly the “micro areas” that have continued to struggle post-pandemic like Fifth and Mission,” Silva said that he believes the long term answer is “development, development, development.”
But, “it’s going to take a while for that to happen,” Silva said.
Cepkauskas, of Hearst, said that when opportunities present themselves, it’s imperative to take action.
“We decided a good use of time right now would be preparing the site for redevelopment, which is in our control. The opportunity for 450 Sansome popped up, and you can never really pick the timing,” he said.
“We decided to move forward with it. Now, we have one piece of the puzzle locked in. Hopefully the city comes back quickly, and we can find a way to move forward with residential development. I’ve been in this area for 30 years, and I believe in it.”
Reach Roland Li: roland.li@sfchronicle.com; X: @rolandlisf,Reach Laura Waxmann: laura.waxmann@sfchronicle.com
One of San Francisco’s busiest freeways remained shut down Saturday, creating major traffic delays and dampening business for some local restaurants and shops.
All eastbound lanes of Interstate 80 just before the Bay Bridge are closed as crews work around the clock to rehabilitate the roadway. The 55-hour shutdown, which began on Friday night, is scheduled to last until Monday morning in time for the commute.
The closure has forced drivers onto detour routes, leading to heavy congestion for those trying to reach the East Bay, including Oakland and Berkeley.
The impact is being felt beyond the roadways.
At MoMo’s, a restaurant across from Oracle Park, staff found business noticeably slower.
“A little bit more mellow than usual. We usually see a little bit more foot traffic, a little bit more people on Saturdays,” said Daniel Bermudez, executive chef at MoMo’s.
Bermudez believes the freeway closure may be discouraging visitors from coming into the city this weekend, despite favorable weather.
“The weather is beautiful today. It’s nice and sunny. So we have plenty of tables outside,” he said.
With the San Francisco Giants playing an away game, the restaurant had hoped fans would still gather to watch, but turnout during game time remained light.
“This is kind of like our off-season Saturday. A lot slower than our baseball weekend,” said Casandra Alarcon, general manager at MoMo’s.
Other small businesses in the Mission Bay and South of Market neighborhoods reported similar trends, saying most of their customers are regulars who live nearby rather than visitors.
“A little bit slower for sure. Before, we had tourists come and walk to the baseball park,” said Ajaree Safron, manager at Brickhouse Cafe & Bar.
Caltrans has shut down eastbound lanes between 17th and 4th streets to repave the 71-year-old roadway. The goal is to extend the life of the Bayshore Freeway by another decade.
City and transportation officials said the timing of the closure was intentional, noting fewer major events scheduled in San Francisco this weekend, aside from the Cherry Blossom Festival.
Westbound lanes remain open, and officials said traffic heading into San Francisco from the East Bay has not been significantly affected.
“Getting into the city, it wasn’t too bad. Regular [traffic], what we expect on a Saturday morning,” said visitor Andrea Inouye.
While the closure has posed challenges for businesses, some workers said they are taking it in stride.
“Hopefully, it’s not for too long and we get past it, and get back to our normal routine,” Bermudez said.
Despite early concerns about widespread gridlock, transportation officials said the region has avoided the worst-case scenario. Traffic remains heavy in areas near detours, but the anticipated “carmageddon” has not materialized, in part because many drivers chose to avoid the area or take public transit.
Bay Area High School baseball fans are treated to a rare opportunity Saturday (April 18) with three games at Oracle Park, home of the San Francisco Giants, including the famed Bruce-Mahoney clash between West Catholic Athletic League rivals St. Ignatius and Sacred Heart Cathedral.
The first pitch of the 20th annual Dante Benedetti Baseball Classic starts at 11 a.m. and pits two more San Francisco private schools as University (9-7), winners of four straight, taking on Riordan (5-11).
That will be followed by the Bruce-Mahoney game at 2:30 between St. Ignatius (12-5, 4-2 WCAL) and the Irish (7-10, 1-5) and finished off with a North Coast Section clash between North Bay’s Marin Catholic (9-7) against Acalanes (7-6-1).
The Benedetti Classic, founded by Dante’s Boys Foundation board member Tom Lounibos and Giants president Larry Baer, benefits the DBF which honors the spirit of Benedetti who for nearly 40 years owned San Francisco’s Mr. Baseball nickname for his kindness and generosity to baseball-playing youth in the area.
Among their philanthropic efforts are glove and baseball equipment drives, field renovations and contributions to scholarships and sponsorships.
After starting the season 0-4 — three of those losses were by one run — University, under head coach Andrew Suvunnachuen, has found its way, winning the last four, all in Bay Counties League play, by a combined 51-6 count over Lick-Wilmerding (16-1 and 11-3) and San Domenico (13-2 and 11-0).
Senior catcher and pitcher Jett Messenger leads the way with a .447 average, while getting on base at a .638 rate. He also leads the team with 20 stolen bases. Junior third baseman Tate Gebhart is hitting .419, while Leo Felder and Behbart share the RBI lead with 15 each.
Junior Matthew Foley is 3-2 on the mound with a 2.38 ERA and 25 strikeouts in 17.2 innings.
Riordan, under second-year head coach Craig Sargent, was 5-5 in nonleague games but lost six straight in the rugged WCAL, losing two tough games this week to Mitty (3-2 and 7-4). Junior third baseman and pitcher Santiono Williams leads the team in batting average (.371), on-base percentage (.488) and stolen bases (nine). He’s also been the team’s top pitcher at 4-2 with a 2.84 ERA.
The teams have split two previous games in their history, with Riordan winning 2-0 in 2023 and University prevailing 5-0 in 2021.
St. Ignatius, led by ninth-year head coach Brian Pollzzie, has already secured the Bruce-Mahoney trophy with four straight wins — one each in football, girls volleyball, boys basketball and girls basketball — but this rivalry is always spirited.
The Wildcats, who are ranked fourth in the Bay Area by the San Francisco Chronicle, are coming off a tough 3-0 home loss to No. 2 St. Francis on Friday after beating the host Lancers 10-6 on Tuesday.
The team is led by Stanford-bound Archer Horn, who is hitting .486 with four home runs and a .604 on-base percentage. The shortstop and pitcher also has not allowed an earned run in three pitching appearances while registering one save.
Pitching is a team’s strength with a 2.59 ERA, led by a brigade of strong arms including Leo Rhein (2-0, 2.38), Tycco Giometti (2-1, 2.62), Charlie Stecher 1-1, 0.72) and Chase Gordon (1-0, 2.80). The team is missing standout Finn Demuth, out of the season after undergoing Tommy John surgery.
Sacred Heart Cathedral, led by fourth-year head coach Gregg Franceschi, has scored 60 runs on the season and given up 61. The Irish are coming off two losses to eighth-ranked Valley Christian (5-2 and 10-1).
They are led offensively by junior outfielder Brody O’Sullivan (.381) and senior infielder Jacob Vines (.378). Johnny Nepomuceno and Max Nylander are other run-producers. Zach Stallworth (37 strikeouts, 29.2 innings) and Cooper Rogers Lewis (0.25 ERA) have been the team’s top pitchers.
The series has been remarkably close since 2005 with Sacred Heart Cathedral holding a 27-20 edge, though St. Ignatius won both games last season (5-0 and 6-3) after the Irish won 9-7 and 1-0 in 2024.
Marin Catholic hopes to get back to winning after starting the season 9-1, but have since lost six straight, four in Marin County Athletic League play, including 4-2 to Novato on Thursday. Senior outfield Luke Martin is the team’s leading hitter at .478 while senior infielder and pitcher Cooper Mitchell is at .455. Senior infielder Walker Untermann leads the team with 15 RBIs.
Acalanes is at the other end of the spectrum, winners of five of six after a 2-5-1 start. Junior infielder Tyler Winkles, also a highly recruited quarterback in football, leads the team with a .383 average and nine stolen bases. Riley Gates (2-3, 2.49 ERA, 30 strikeouts) is the team’s top pitcher.
The teams have played three times, all since 2022, with Marin Catholic owning a 2-1 lead. Acalanes won last year’s game 8-7.
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Chinatown fatal crash victim ID’d, safety measures proposed
The victim killed in Friday’s Chinatown crash was identified Monday by the medical examiner as Cutberto Zamora-Martinez, 49, of San Joaquin County. At a meeting on Monday, city officials said the cause of the crash is still under investigation.
SAN FRANCISCO – A 76-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter and speeding following a crash in San Francisco’s Chinatown that killed a man working in the area.
Zhuo Ming Lu, 76, is accused in the March 27 crash that left 49-year-old Cutberto Zamora-Martinez, of San Joaquin County, dead.
Suspect was trying to park
What we know:
Authorities said Lu was attempting to park near Grant Avenue and Jackson Street when his vehicle jumped the sidewalk and crashed into the landmark New Lung Ting Café, also known as the Pork Chop House. The vehicle also struck two pedestrians, including Zamora-Martinez.
Zamora-Martinez died from his injuries.
He had been working in the area, according to a GoFundMe page. A San Francisco Police Department source close to the investigation told KTVU the victims were carpet installers arriving for work.
The fundraising page described Zamora-Martinez as a husband and father who was the sole provider for his family and “a humble man who wanted the best for his family.”
Before his arrest, Lu had been cooperating with investigators. Authorities have not confirmed what caused the crash.
Some residents questioned whether the driver’s age or a possible confusion between the brake and gas pedals may have been factors.
“Maybe if people hit a certain age, you got to get retested for your driver’s license is something I was thinking about,” said Keith Hong, who works next door to the crash site.
Another case involving an elderly driver
Big picture view:
In an unrelated case, Mary Fong Lau, 80, was sentenced to probation after killing a family of four, two parents and their young children. in March 2024. Authorities said Lau struck the victims as they waited at a Muni stop on their way to the zoo.
Lau pleaded no contest to four felony counts of vehicular manslaughter, and a judge accepted the plea. A Superior Court judge cited her age, remorse and lack of criminal history in the sentencing decision.
She was placed on probation for two years, banned from driving for three years and ordered to complete 200 hours of community service.
The Source: San Francisco Police Department, prior reporting
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