Adam Lashinsky

1 month ago | sfstandard.com | Adam Lashinsky

For his first budget for the city and county of San Francisco — the current one is just shy of $16 billion — Lurie may be forced to spend his considerable political capital by pissing off a number of important constituencies. Either that, or he’ll thread the needle of pleasing as many people as possible. A tough job, sure. It’s the one he asked for. That the budget will be balanced is not a subject of suspense — the city charter requires it. It’s how it gets balanced that matters.

1 month ago | sfstandard.com | Adam Lashinsky

There’s a joke I’ve made to certain wealthy San Franciscans I’ve interviewed over the years, as they vent their indignation over the city’s never-ending homeless problem. “Move all the encampments to Pacific Heights,” I tell them. “And you and your neighbors will get things sorted out snappily.”Obviously, this is a pipe dream. There isn’t a lot of empty real estate for setting up tents or shelters in the city’s toniest neighborhoods.

1 month ago | sfstandard.com | Adam Lashinsky

Given that continued state of existential angst, you’d think news of Nordstrom proposing a new store in San Francisco would be warmly greeted. But you’d be wrong — at least in the case of a group of residents loudly opposing the company’s desire to move into their neighborhood. The kerfuffle is playing out at the San Francisco Planning Commission, where the Seattle retailer is requesting approval to put a concept store called Nordstrom Local into a long-vacant storefront on Fillmore Street.

1 month ago | sfstandard.com | Adam Lashinsky

Maria Su is ready to talk about closing schools again in San Francisco. No, that doesn’t mean the San Francisco Unified School District superintendent is committing to closing them. She knows the highly emotional issue is what chased out her predecessor last fall, leading to her appointment in October. But it’s time to study the issue and put it back on the agenda.

1 month ago | sfstandard.com | Adam Lashinsky

The mayor is cajoling reluctant city workers back to their municipal cubicles. Now he needs to push his friends in the corporate world to do the same. No mayor in modern times has a closer relationship with the private sector than Daniel Lurie. He nurtured it at his former job as a nonprofit funder and also as ringleader of the Super Bowl-supporting Bay Area Host Committee.