(Molly Bruns, Headline USA) John Chachas, owner and CEO of Gump’s luxury department stores, based in San Francisco, took out a full-page newspaper ad calling out local and state-level politicians for their “destructive” and “failed public policies.”
Chachas published his lengthy letter in the ad space of the San Francisco Chronicle, begging politicians to take action against the rampant homelessness, drug use and violent crime left unchecked within city limits, according to the Post Millennial.
OPEN LETTER from a San Francisco legacy business. This letter, a full-page newspaper ad published today. It summarizes what majority of residents lament. pic.twitter.com/2WlcSHTrxR
— Richie Greenberg (@greenbergnation) August 13, 2023
“San Francisco now suffers from a ‘tyranny of the minority’—behavior and actions of the few that jeopardize the livelihood of the many,” Chachas wrote.
“The ramifications of COVID policies advising people to abandon their offices are only beginning to be understood,” he continued. “Equally devastating have been a litany of destructive San Francisco strategies, including allowing the homeless to occupy our sidewalks, to openly distribute and use illegal drugs, to harass the public, and to defile the city’s streets.”
The disgruntled CEO continued describing the city’s situation, requesting that Democrat leaders including California Gov. Gavin Newsom, San Francisco Mayor London Breed and the board of City Supervisors clean up the streets, remove homeless encampments, and properly enforce city and state ordinances, “returning San Francisco to its rightful place as one of America’s shining beacons of urban society.”
He appealed to the city’s bleeding-heart sensibilities by acknowledging their good intentions, while insisting that the balance between compassion and capitulation to socially deviant conduct had reached its tipping point.
“As San Franciscans, we will continue to support the compassionate efforts of helping those in need,” Chachas said. “But we believe failed public policies must be abandoned and a renewed focus must be brought to restore the city we all love.”
The state of the city have declined so much that federal workers based at the Speaker Nancy Pelosi Federal Building recently received instructions to work from home indefinitely after several violent incidents took place in the vicinity of the building.
Nordstrom, AT&T, Cinemark, Old Navy, Whole Foods and T-Mobile all closed storefronts within city limits. Park Hotels & Resorts announced that they opted to turn over the Hilton San Francisco Union Square and Parc 55 to the bank.
Gump’s opened 165 years ago and has been a fixture of San Francisco for many years.
