One of the few silver linings to the current gentrification of San Francisco is that the occasional ugly building or horrible business dies, such as the recently shuttered McDonald's at the corner of Van Ness and Golden Gate Avenues.
The location of the burger behemoth was controversial in 1978 when it was built, because San Francisco city government at the time was worried about the incursion of suburban fast food franchises into urban spaces. They insisted on the hiring of a reputable architect to create a modernist design for al fresco seating.
The problem was that the site immediately became a gathering place for street people, many of them acting out...
...while others use the outdoor seating as a combination bathroom and bedroom.
Even days after the building was boarded up, its clientele is still hanging out on the sidewalk in front...
...and nodding off on nearby curbs.
No loss, that one. I wish gentrification would also kill the McDonalds at 24th and Mission (first one allowed in the city.)
ReplyDeleteBut they just paint murals on it and go on.
God how pathetic. What have we come to? What is to be done?
ReplyDelete