San Francisco is hemorrhaging businesses. Soaring crime and homelessness have forced long-time businesses to close up shop for good. Some of those businesses are grocery stores, leaving many residents in the neighborhood without a place to buy food. But now, a city official may have found a way to make those businesses stick around a while longer, even if it is not financially feasible for them to do so.
San Francisco Board of Supervisors member Dean Preston introduced what he is calling the "Grocery Protection Act." It is based on a similar proposal in 1984 and was wisely vetoed by then-Mayor Dianne Feinstein. It
would require grocery store owners to give a written six-month notice of their intent to close to the Board of Supervisors, as well as the Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD), and as if that weren't enough, the stores would also be required to "meet and work in good faith with neighborhood residents," and the OEWD. this could mean anything from finding ways to keep the business open, or essentially to find their replacement. Failure to comply with this new set of regulations could result in legal proceedings, including damages, injunctive relief, declaratory relief, or a writ of mandate to rectify the violation.
There are several exceptions to the proposed regulations: if the store is forced to close due to unforeseen business circumstances that could not have been predicted at the time the notice would be required, or if some sort of natural disaster or emergency were to occur. Other exceptions would be if the store was actively seeking financial means that would postpone or avoid the closure, and if giving the closing notice would have affected the business getting the means to keep the doors open.