San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie: Previous leaders took the city ‘for granted’

If you believe it San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie There’s no better place to live in the world than the City by the Bay. At WIRED’s big interview event on Thursday — which, not coincidentally, was held in San Francisco — the city’s mayor told global managing editor Katie Drummond that he’s absolutely convinced that anyone looking to mess with the city doesn’t know what they’re talking about.

Photo: Annie Noelker

Of course, things could always be better, Lowry said. While he praised the positive changes San Francisco has made since he took office 11 months ago, such as more office space filling the downtown area and lower crime rates, he acknowledged that some of that may have come in the wake of companies returning to office politics and the artificial intelligence boom. However, if you ask San Francisco residents, Lurie says, 62 percent say their city is headed in the right direction, compared to just 25 percent a year ago.

Part of what will help keep San Francisco moving in the right direction is the commitment of residents, Lowery said. Previous leaders “took San Francisco for granted,” he said, believing that “we can continue and our success will continue as well.” To make San Francisco resilient and able to weather economic changes and technological booms and busts, Lurie said its leaders must be “relentless in fighting for their city, defending their city, welcoming people, saying, ‘We want you here and we’re going to create the conditions for your success.'”