
San Francisco Mayor Edwin Lee leaves behind city in turmoil
SAN FRANCISCO — Under Mayor Ed Lee’s seven-year watch, San Francisco went from a city mired in recession to a technology-fueled economic powerhouse where housing costs skyrocketed and the chasm between the wealthy and everyone else grew. Lee died Tuesday at 65 after collapsing while grocery shopping.
He leaves behind a rapidly transforming city where the median home value is more than $1.2 million and grumpy residents are unhappy with homelessness, clogged traffic and frequent auto break-ins.
Supporters touted his dedication to building new housing and sending out workers to clean up dirty streets in a city known for its entrenched homelessness. Critics said Lee, a Democrat, catered too much to tech companies, citing a 2011 tax break he brokered for Twitter as part of a remake of the city’s dilapidated downtown.
Still, many on Tuesday mourned the city’s first Asian-American mayor as a reluctant politician dedicated to civil service who was more comfortable working on details than on delivering the perfect political sound bite. No cause was given for his death but an autopsy was planned.