SAN FRANCISCO — On a sunny Saturday in March, more than 40,000 people filed through San Francisco’s Union Square to get a glimpse of the 80,000 yellow, orange, and red tulips on display.
The flower garden opened at 1 p.m., but that didn’tstop people from getting in line hours earlier, shovels and bags in hand.Therule was that they could dig up eight tulips to keep until the flowers ran out.
By midday, the line had snaked around Union Square, a 2.6-acre public plaza in downtown San Francisco, twice.The massive space and surroundingarea has historically been home to one of the largest collections of department stores, luxury boutiques, giftshops, art galleries, and restaurants in America.
The free event was sponsored by the city and the Consulate General of the Netherlands to usher in spring.
For some, it was difficult to see beyond the crowd and the barricadessurrounding the tulips, so they went across the street to Macy’s, a 400,000-square-foot flagship store that spans nearly an entire block, for a better look.
Inside, people pressed their faces up to the window of the fourth-floor Starbucks to watch the colorful scene unfold.
But for Macy’s employees, this year’s tulip festival was bittersweet.
A week earlier, they found out on the nightly news that the store, which had been operating for more than seven decades in Union Square, was closing and that they’d be out of a job.
“I have worked here for 40 years and finally took a week off,” explained Joann, a worker who asked theWashington Examinernot to reveal her last name out of fear of retaliation. “I was home watching the news, and they said [Macy’s] was closing down and laying everyone off. It was the first time I had heard about it. I’m 60. What am I supposed to do? I can’t afford to retire. I only know how to sell jewelry and watches. That’s it.”
Joann said the juxtaposition of people carrying around free flowers from the city and snapping selfies was almost too much to bear.
“I want to be happy, but it’s tough today,” she said. “I am trying to stay away from the windows.”
Macy’s opened in San Francisco in 1947. Its building, located on the south side of Union Square, is a city landmark. News of its closing marks one of the biggest retail closures the city has ever seen and follows a string of other high-profile exits, including the loss of nearby Nordstrom last year. The mall’s owners surrendered it to their lender in the fall and cited a lack of enforcement against criminal activity as a motivating factor for Nordstrom’s departure.
Macy’s did not cite a specific reason for calling it quits at the Union Square location but said a change in the retail landscape forced it to change its strategy.
However, customers and a dozen employees whom theWashington Examinerspoke to believe crime and the lack of enforcement were to blame.
“It happens every day,” said Macy’s employee Steve, who works in the men’s section. He estimated that shoplifters take at least four blazers, 10 wallets, and 20 briefs daily.
Anne, another employee who works at one of the upscale makeup counters, told theWashington Examinerthat even though she thought “there was no way they’d ever shut us down,” it “might be for the best.”
Anne, like Steve, said shoplifters and organized retail theft “gangs” walk out with thousands of dollars in unpaid merchandise daily.
“It used to scare me when it happened, but now, I see it several times a day,” she said. “I don’t flinch anymore. I barely look up.”
San Francisco resident Thomas Maloney joked, “I thought payment was optional at this Macy’s.”
Maloney said he has watched helplessly over the years as crime has gotten worse and enforcement has become more lax.
“My wife and [daughter] came for the tulip festival,” he said. “We wouldn’t be here on a normal day. There’s crime, there’s drugs, there’s people sleeping on the sidewalk two blocks away with needles in their arms. Who wants to deal with that? You can’t even walk to your car. Then you get the mayor saying, ‘Oh, it’s not so bad.’ Yes, it is.”
Since the start of 2023, more than 40 retailers have closed or announced closures in downtown San Francisco. The latest two were The North Face and international retailer Zara.
The optics of so many retailers leaving the area have not been good for Democratic Mayor London Breed, who is facing a tough reelection this year and has made turning downtown around a top priority.
Following Macy’s announcement, Breed, who grew up in San Francisco, said the department store “has always meant a lot to the people of this city” and added that it’s “hard to think of Macy’s not being part of our city anymore.”
Breed said her office will work closely with “any potential new owner to ensure this iconic location continues to serve San Francisco for decades to come.”
“I’m also continuing to talk to leaders in retail, business, and real estate about how we can continue to focus on the long-term success of this site and others,” she added. “There is tremendous opportunity at this site, and I know this city will continue to draw new investments and ideas.”
Despite her upbeat outlook, the news comes at a politically sensitive time for her as she struggles with low approval ratings, a budget deficit, and a robust field of challengers looking to unseat her.
Breed won a special election in 2018 to serve the remainder of late Mayor Ed Lee’s term. A year later, she won her first full termagainst a field of little-known opponents. It will be a much tougher fight for her this year.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Joann voted for Breed in 2019 but said she will not be “making the same mistake” in November.
“Things have only gotten worse — and now, I’m out of a job, too,” she said.
