Overview
- The San Francisco Downtown Development Corporation, launched in April by Mayor Daniel Lurie and led by CEO Shola Olatoye, reported more than $60 million in early donor commitments.
- Newly detailed backers span tech, finance and philanthropy, including Google, OpenAI, Amazon, Salesforce, Ripple, Emerson Collective, Thoma Bravo, Sixth Street, TPG, Hellman & Friedman, the Dolby family, Ben and Leah Spero, ValueAct Capital, Gap Inc., Y Combinator and major real estate groups, with a top funder remaining anonymous.
- Funding will support Lurie’s Heart of the City priorities with clean-and-safe work, small-business aid, retail activation along corridors such as Powell and Stockton, and a planned Embarcadero Park modeled on successful urban public spaces.
- The group is assembling a Downtown Business Fund to help fill high-traffic storefronts, with early financing commitments from Citizens, Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase for below-market capital.
- The DDC reports early steps such as expanded power washing near Moscone and a Market Street safety pilot tied to fewer 911 calls at key BART stations, and it is timing visible improvements as the Bay Area prepares for Super Bowl LX and FIFA World Cup matches.