The exterior of Joe’s Ice Cream, a registered legacy business on Geary Boulevard in San Francisco.
Derrick H./Yelp
San Francisco’s popular Legacy Business Program has quietly cut its only employee. Due to recent budget cuts, the program’s manager, Richard Kurylo, has been shifted to another department, as first reported by the Ingleside Light.
“We’re all very worried and concerned that this program, which is beloved and such a success, is being demoted in importance by the Office of Small Business and the mayor,” said Woody LaBounty, the president and CEO of San Francisco Heritage, an architectural preservation nonprofit.
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Earlier this month, Mayor Daniel Lurie released his budget proposal for the next two fiscal years, cutting 550 city positions, reorganizing departments and making other spending cuts to close SF’s $642 million budget deficit. After the Office of Economic and Workforce Development was directed to make budget cuts, its Office of Small Business eliminated the Legacy Business Program Manager position and also reduced the Legacy Business Stabilization Fund, a grant that provides an incentive for landlords to provide long-term leases to legacy businesses.
Kurylo declined to comment on his reassignment to SFGATE.
“It’s like, give me a break,” said South of Market Business Association President Henry Karnilowicz. “You’ve got one person, and you can’t just have him still there? It just makes no sense to me. I really think it’s unfair.”
While a representative of the city’s Office of Small Business declined to comment on how the Legacy Business Program will function without its sole employee, they confirmed that the program will continue on.
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A view of San Francisco City Hall.
Shanna Baker/Getty Images
“We know how critical this program is in supporting long-term leases for our city’s most storied small businesses, so while the program will be impacted by budget cuts, we will continue to ensure that resources go directly to the Legacy Businesses it serves,” the Office of Small Business said in a statement to SFGATE.
Since SF voters approved the creation of the city’s Legacy Business Program in 2015, it’s been so popular that it’s even inspired other cities across the country to start similar programs. Through the program, businesses that have operated in SF for at least 30 years receive marketing, grants toward rent and other expenses, and help with navigating permitting or other government issues.
Mayor Daniel Lurie’s office cut the Legacy Business Program manager position last year, but the Board of Supervisors restored it after an outpouring of support from the community, the Ingleside Light reported. This time, the position cannot be restored by the Board because Kurylo was not laid off, LaBounty explained.
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LaBounty said the most immediate impact of the loss of this position is that businesses will lose their personal relationship at City Hall.
“Here was a person from the city who recognized their importance, shepherded them through this process, celebrated with them, supported them, marketed them,” he said. “And I think it’s a rare thing where you have somebody at City Hall who you feel like really cares.”
Sean Kim, the co-owner of Joe’s Ice Cream and the vice president of the Geary Boulevard Merchants Association, said that the Legacy Business Program has helped him to promote his 67-year-old Richmond District business. He also said that having a dedicated manager is essential for small-business owners to navigate the program, as many need help with the application process.
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“They have a history, but they’re not familiar with the program, so they need help,” Kim said. “So, sometimes they ask around, but Rick was a great person to encourage them to join the program.”
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LaBounty said it’s important for the community to help persuade the mayor of the importance of the Legacy Business Program so that it doesn’t become de-prioritized.
He said that his group SF Heritage will work to “convince the mayor, who is on Instagram every day at some business, that these legacy businesses, they’re incredibly important to the life blood of the economic health of this city,” he said. “But also, they love the city because of this program, so give them their props and lean into this. Don’t try to dismiss it.”