Mayor Lurie declared a Fentanyl State of Emergency. But are things actually getting better?

When we launched Blueprint, we did so in order to support pragmatic candidates, elected officials, and policies that contribute to San Francisco’s recovery, better government, and a vibrant city—a key part of this mission is to hold elected officials accountable in moments when they fall short of the promises they made while campaigning for the offices they now hold.

It feels like we may be approaching one of those moments.

Mayor Daniel Lurie and many of the new leaders on the Board of Supervisors were all elected because, first and foremost, they understood that voters were deeply frustrated with the status quo on our streets. Particularly, they articulated what we all saw on the streets for ourselves: the approach to the addiction crisis was not working. 

With this understanding, Mayor Lurie’s first major piece of legislation was passing a Fentanyl State of Emergency, which was meant to rapidly accelerate the response to the addiction crisis on our streets. This legislation passed with a commanding 10-1 vote on the Board of Supervisors. 

The Mayor also requested even more funding for an already-historically funded police department, and was granted an incredible $91M for law enforcement with yet another commanding margin of 9-2 on the Board of Supervisors. 

From a temporary triage center on Sixth Street to new ambassador programs, including one at downtown MUNI stops, nobody can fault the Mayor and his team for trying anything and everything. The problem, though, is this: none of these patchwork solutions have delivered lasting change. 

While it’s only been ten months of Lurie’s four-year term, it’s a good time to ask: How soon is too soon to demand results?

While crime is down citywide, recent incidents have contributed to the perception that, beneath a tonal and “vibes” shift, there is still persistent and serious disorder on city streets. While we and everyone else in the city collectively hope for the city’s bounce back, it is hard to dismiss these high-profile incidents as “one-offs.”

This includes the point-blank killing of Urban Alchemy practitioner Joey Alexander on the steps of our city library by a homeless man high on drugs. The killer used a fully loaded shotgun he had in his backpack.

At a rally on the steps of City Hall just days after the killing, Mayor Lurie and several other elected officials offered thoughts and prayers to the victim, to the Urban Alchemy practitioners, and the broader community. The offered comments about how things need to change. Yet only Supervisor Matt Dorsey and District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said the quiet part out loud: that we need to be arresting people who are using drugs on our streets and sidewalks. Our predecessor organization, TogetherSF, closely tracked the fentanyl crisis and advocated for greater enforcement and treatment; at Blueprint, we will continue to do so. Brutal incidents like Alexander’s killing serve as a reminder that we simply have not yet found a lasting solution. Our police force has not grown to match the recommended level of staffing. Nurses and health practitioners who man treatment beds remain understaffed and overworked. It remains unclear whether bureaucratic problems in the city’s health delivery system have been addressed. 

Our city elected Mayor Lurie to lead us out of this crisis. And while videos on Instagram tout our economic recovery and are helping shape the narrative that we are a “city on the rise,” our rise is still tethered to the reality on the ground: the addiction crisis is not getting better. Until it improves, our mayor’s glass half full will begin to more closely resemble a leaky bucket. 

Accountability for political allies is just as important as that for elected officials on the other side of the political spectrum. We must continue to hold all of our elected officials accountable as we look to build our city’s next great era.