In an interview with the Roundtable, Haakon Black, a San Francisco native and 2019 graduate of Stuart Hall, shared insights into Mayor Daniel Lurie’s goals and ambitions. Black, who serves as the Communications and Digital Assistant for Mayor Lurie, discussed the mayor’s plans for the city. After graduating from The Hall, he went on to Northwestern University and earned his degree in political science. While at Stuart Hall, he played baseball, soccer, and basketball.
With rising drug issues and homelessness rates due to the housing crisis, San Francisco has been mocked and its reputation has become the subject of mockery. Many people have wondered if the city would ever be able to go back to the high experienced after the Giants and Warriors’ success in the 2010s. After being unhappy with the job that former Mayor London Breed did as mayor, many residents of the city were hoping that the next mayor would be able to take action and make steps to revitalize the city. Last fall, with the upcoming election, there was an anticipation that a change was going to happen. This change came with Daniel Lurie.
On November 5th, 2024, Daniel Lurie was elected as the 46th mayor of the city and county of San Francisco. Just over a month ago, on January 8th, 2025, Lurie was officially sworn in as mayor. Lurie was born and raised in the city. He attended Town School for Boys and University High School. He earned his Bachelor of Arts in political science from Duke University and a Master of Public Policy from the Goldman School of Public Policy at UC Berkeley.
Daniel Lurie’s mayoral style is to work collaboratively as a team rather than everyone working independently and trying to satisfy their own needs. This is especially true with the relationship that mayors have had with the Board of Supervisors. The Board of Supervisors is a governmental body that oversees the operation of a county government. As Black stated in the interview, Lurie’s response when asked about his relationship with the board and how it is different from past mayors, “Previous mayors and the Board of Supervisors have had antagonistic relationships, which creates a mayor vs the board dynamic, rather than the mayor working with the board to solve problems.” Lurie’s goal is to work well with all of the supervisors and work toward achieving results for the people.
When asked about what some of the short-term goals Lurie is planning on targeting first, Black said that public safety and beginning to solve the national reputation are a few of the top priorities. The goal of improving the national reputation of the city is so large events and big conventions can be held in the city. An example of this is the city hosting the 2025 NBA All-Star Game. Hosting events like this brings lots of people to the city to show how the city has developed. Lurie wants to return to the amazing city that many citizens used to describe it as. Coming back after the decline of the pandemic is very important to Lurie and his goals as mayor. Lurie is planning on continuing to use the momentum from the election victory in November. Making an impact to clean up the streets and make them a safer place is key to reviving San Francisco’s image. Also, a crisis dropoff center was set up at 6th & Market Street, which is open 24/7. This allows anyone on the streets to receive help and care.
Overall economic recovery and rebounding from the pandemic are long-term goals that Lurie is planning to prioritize first as mayor. This means having a thriving downtown with filled office buildings, like how it was before working from home became so popular. Also, lots of flights and full hotels with people coming to the city for business trips. Lurie also hopes to bring people back to the city for business vacations and tourism. Cleaning up the streets and making the city much more appealing to tourists. Lurie wants San Francisco citizens to tell people living in the suburbs and outside of the city to come to the city and enjoy the authentic culture San Francisco has to offer.
Since being sworn in as mayor a little over a month ago, Lurie has created a hospitality task force with the SF Police Department. Several officers have been dedicated to patrolling Union Square, Moscone Center, and Yerba Buena. Lurie says that “making these zones work” is crucial due to the economic importance of those areas. Additionally, a crisis dropoff center was set up at 6th & Market Street which is open 24/7 and anyone on the streets can go to receive help and care. According to Black, Lurie says he is “laser-focused” on getting results to citizens quickly. He frequently talks with people in City Hall to achieve this. Lurie has been working with different departments about maximizing taxpayers’ money and ensuring that it goes to help clean the streets, fix drug and homelessness crises, and return San Francisco to a more desirable city.
The issues that Daniel Lurie is planning to target first are public safety, mental and behavioral health homelessness, and economic recovery. The top priority is public safety. As mentioned earlier, a crisis drop-off center has been set up and is open 24/7 at 6th & Market Street, open 24/7 for those in need. Also, people are being taken to care and treatment facilities so they can receive help and support for their struggles. Something that Lurie does that is different from previous mayors as he walks the streets of San Francisco every day and sees firsthand what’s going on in the city. This shows his genuine care to help and make the city a better place. He also posts the attempts he makes to help the city on social media platforms so his online supporters can see the efforts he is making. On February 11th, a fentanyl-related state of emergency ordinance was passed. This marks Lurie’s first major step in fulfilling his campaign promise of reducing homeless encampments and open-air drug use. The ordinance passed with a 10:1 vote on the Board of Supervisors which shows the overall unity to solve in the city. Despite previous mayors being suppressed by the board, Lurie is planning to have City Hall be a place where everyone comes together to fix issues in the city. He has also added over 1,500 shelter beds and has expanded behavioral and mental health services. Lurie says, “Starting to fix the crisis is crucial because if we wait, things will not get done as efficiently.” This speaks on Lurie’s goal of starting to fix crises early into his tenure. Though it is a concern for some San Francisco citizens, Lurie says that organizing traffic and retiming lights isn’t a top priority at the moment. However, he said that if the problem is brought to his attention, he will address it and help achieve what the people are asking for.
Around the Hall, there is also hope that Daniel Lurie can bring change to the city as he promises. Junior Pierce Quigley said, “I know that Lurie is going to bring change to the city and revive the culture.” Junior Noah Torres also said that “I have faith in Daniel Lurie to fix the homeless crisis in San Francisco. I also believe that he can help remove drugs and clean up the streets.” There is also a hope from an anonymous student that the $950 rule is changed. This relates to California Penal Code 459.5 which states “Penal Code Section 459.5 makes it illegal to enter a commercial establishment with the intent to steal while the establishment is open during regular business hours. The value of the property must not exceed $950. ‘Any other entry into a commercial establishment with intent to commit larceny is burglary.’” The student said that, overall, he believes Lurie can bring change to the city.