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| -Great Cultural Revolution |
| San Francisco is dealt another blow as Westfield walks away from downtown mall |
| 2023-06-15 |
| Every time I go into a store these days, at the mall or anywhere else, I have trouble finding items and clerks tell me I have to buy it online. That's part of the problem. But then, if the mall is in San Francisco, that's a whole other problem. [LaTimes] The owners of the Westfield San Francisco Centre mall have stopped paying their loan and are giving up the property to lenders, adding to deepening real estate pain in a city struggling to bring back workers and tourists after the pandemic. The mall, co-owned by Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield and Brookfield Corp., has $558 million in outstanding mortgage debt. Management will be turned over to a receiver. The move comes a month after Nordstrom Inc. said it was closing its store at the site, citing a drop in customer traffic and the changing dynamics of the city. The mall is in the heart of San Francisco’s Union Square district, one of the downtown’s main shopping and tourist areas. Westfield San Francisco Centre is the city’s biggest shopping center and features the historic Emporium department store dome, rebuilt after San Francisco’s devastating 1906 earthquake and painstakingly restored for the mall’s 2008 opening. "Given the challenging operating conditions in downtown San Francisco, which have led to declines in sales, occupancy and foot traffic, we have made the difficult decision to begin the process to transfer management of the shopping center to our lender to allow them to appoint a receiver to operate the property going forward," Molly Morse, a spokesperson for Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, said in a statement. San Francisco has been among the hardest-hit cities since the pandemic as office vacancies soar, retail vacancies rise and concerns about safety deter visitors. Last week, Park Hotels & Resorts Inc. said it was stopping payments on loans tied to two downtown hotels with $725 million in outstanding debt. Sales at Westfield San Francisco Centre fell to $298 million last year from $455 million in 2019, while foot traffic dropped 43%, Morse said. Traffic and sales at other Westfield properties increased during the same period. Westfield’s decision to stop paying its debt was first reported by the San Francisco Chronicle. In a statement, San Francisco Mayor London Breed said the move was "coming for some time" and pointed to plans by Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield to leave the U.S. market entirely. The Paris-based company planned a "radical reduction of our financial exposure to the U.S. over the course of 2022 and 2023," Chief Executive Jean-Marie Tritant has said. The company last year sold the Westfield Santa Anita mall for $537.5 million to Southern California real estate investor Wen Shan Chang, who changed the Arcadia shopping center’s name to the Shops at Santa Anita. It was the largest mall sale in years. "With new management, we will have an opportunity to pursue a new vision for this space that focuses on what the future of downtown San Francisco can be," Breed said. "Whether that’s attracting new types of business or educational institutions, or creating a totally different experience, we need to be open to what’s possible." BTW, I hate buying things online. I want to see where it was made (make sure it wasn't Made In China), check the fabric, make sure it's the size I need. Hell, I might even want to ask technical questions of someone who actually knows something about the item. Can't do any of those things online. |
| Posted by:Abu Uluque |
| #10 Any hope is foolish. I lived and worked there for 5 years in the late 80s while attending SF State. The writing was most definitely on the wall then and all has since come true and more. Nothing will change as the vast majority of those who are left voted for this crap. I'll watch the final bon fire out of state. |
| Posted by: Rex Mundi 2023-06-15 13:14 |
| #9 Changes need to be made at the state and city levels for things to improve. Exactly. And my hope would be that at some point even mad men like Gavin Newsom would understand that. Either that or people with clearer vision would get control. I can dream, can't I? |
| Posted by: Abu Uluque 2023-06-15 12:37 |
| #8 Changes need to be made at the state and city levels for things to improve. |
| Posted by: Super Hose 2023-06-15 12:33 |
| #7 If you've invested everything you own in San Francisco real estate, the time to sell out and leave was two or three years ago. Some time before the pandemic anyway. If you're still there you're screwed. I would think that the rich, rich elite in San Francisco are waiting for the real estate market to hit rock bottom at which time they'll buy it all at bargain basement prices and then make even bigger fortunes when the city recovers. It's really tough for me to imagine that a city as beautiful and as strategically located as San Francisco could become a ghost town and remain in a permanent state of Detroit. It would violate some basic law of physics. I could be wrong. But the decline will certainly be disastrous for those without the resources to either flee or wait for the rebound and it won't be pretty for anybody. In the meantime I would expect the elites to have their own private security details to make sure the filth doesn't break into their mansions. But then, what happened to Paul Pelosi? Well, something weird about that case. |
| Posted by: Abu Uluque 2023-06-15 12:30 |
| #6 Commercial Real Estate in SF may well have a significant future - as dormitory housing for illegals and homeless. |
| Posted by: NoMoreBS 2023-06-15 11:17 |
| #5 challenging operating conditions in downtown San Francisco Conditions like needle and poop filled streets? Gangs of smash and grab thugs? No cops? Conditions like those? Boy howdy how do they do it? |
| Posted by: AlanC 2023-06-15 10:51 |
| #4 Was one of the nicest places. Beautiful lighting, decor, etc. Just 50 yards from the Cable Car turnaround point on Market Street. |
| Posted by: lord garth 2023-06-15 07:54 |
| #3 We are living in The Lion King with the hackles in charge. |
| Posted by: Super Hose 2023-06-15 06:58 |
| #2 Indeed they did, Raj. CRE should experience of real ass pain over the next 1-2 years. The days of 0.5% Fed rates are long gone. |
| Posted by: DooDahMan 2023-06-15 00:35 |
| #1 Last week some investment firm walked away from two prime downtown SF hotels; I think the loan in question was $775 million. The dominoes are starting to fall. |
| Posted by: Raj 2023-06-15 00:16 |