Welcome back to our “Meet the Candidates” series, where District 8 supervisor candidates respond to a question in 100 words or fewer. Answers are published every Wednesday.
District 8 includes neighborhoods in the center of the city, including the Castro, Noe Valley, Glen Park, Twin Peaks, Duboce Triangle, Dolores Heights, Parnassus Heights, Ashbury Heights, Corona Heights and Diamond Heights.
Business vacancies, particularly in the Castro, are a frequent complaint of District 8 denizens. The area has yet to fully recover from the pandemic — in the Castro, business is still down 22 percent from 2019, according to 2025 sales tax data.
The city has tried a variety of measures to help struggling business corridors, including waiving fees for new businesses. It has also given grants to fill storefront and encouraged pop-ups through its Vacant to Vibrant program, though the Castro has not been a part of those programs.
In addition to carrots, San Francisco has also tried sticks. In 2020, the city voted to create a new tax on vacant storefronts. The Board of Supervisors changed the tax last year, though, to exempt storefronts near long-term public construction projects. Following that change, 27 vacancies were taxed in 2025 compared to 241 in 2024.
This week’s question: What would you do to fill empty storefronts?
Manny Yekutiel
Job: Founder and owner of Manny’s, co-founder and former executive director of Civic Joy Fund
Age: 36
Residency: Renter, has lived in San Francisco since 2012 and District 8 since 2013
Transportation: Driving, public transit and walking
Education: Bachelor’s degree from Williams College
Languages: English, Hebrew
As a small business owner, I know firsthand how difficult starting a business can be in this city and, as a former merchant association president, I already have experience filling vacant storefronts.
To fill our District’s 63 vacancies, I would work storefront by storefront to understand what’s keeping each space empty and help the landlord find tenants. I would also broaden the vacancy tax, reduce exemptions, and increase penalties for landlords who intentionally keep spaces vacant. At the same time, I would offer $100,000 startup grants and remove most zoning barriers so businesses can open faster and stay open.
Endorsed by: Mayor Daniel Lurie, the San Francisco Democratic Party, District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, Assemblymember Catherine Stefani, former Mayor Willie L. Brown Jr, Supervisor Bilal Mahmood, Jane Fonda, Senator Cory Booker, Grow SF, Abundant SF, San Francisco Apartment Association … see more here.
Gary McCoy
Job: Former staffer to Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi and former vice president of policy and public affairs at HealthRIGHT 360
Age: 48
Residency: Renter, has lived in San Francisco for 24 years and District 8 for 15 years
Transportation: Driving, biking, public transit and walking
Education: Former City College of San Francisco student, certified phlebotomy technician from Bay Area Medical Academy
Languages: English
Long-vacant storefronts have negatively impacted the vibrancy of our commercial corridors in the Castro and districtwide, and hurt existing businesses.
I will strengthen incentives for landlords to quickly lease their spaces, including month-to-month options for pop-ups and local artists.
I will also focus on stronger enforcement of the Commercial Vacancy Tax, which primarily rests on landlords self-reporting their vacant properties. We need proactive enforcement by the city, and we need to close loopholes landlords have found to circumvent this tax while increasing penalties for those with two or more vacant properties.
Endorsed by: Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, Supervisor Matt Dorsey, San Francisco Labor Council, Alice B. Toklas LGBTQ Democratic Club, Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club, San Francisco Tenants Union, UESF, Working Families Party, San Francisco League of Pissed Off Voters … see more here.
Michael Nguyen
Job: Patent attorney
Age: 44
Residency: Renter, has lived in District 8 since 2006
Transportation: Driving, public transit and walking
Education: Bachelor’s degree from Southwestern University, law degree from University of California Law San Francisco
Languages: English, some Spanish, some Vietnamese
I would expand Vacant to Vibrant from three months to two full years of support, push for commercial rent stabilization so small businesses aren’t priced out, and standardize lease terms so small businesses get the protections they need. I’d implement innovative ideas like partnering with nonprofits for pop-ups, and expand access to small business loans.
That’s why I support Prop B, the Public Bank, which would invest San Francisco’s own dollars into San Francisco businesses. Filled storefronts mean neighborhood vitality, safer streets, and wealth building opportunities for immigrants and underserved communities, funded by making wealthy corporations pay their fair share.
Endorsed by: GLBTQ+ Asian Pacific Alliance, Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club (#2), San Francisco Green Party, former supervisor Dean Preston, UESF, Working Families Party, UESF … see more here.
Darshini Patel
Job: Former DoorDash employee, worked on the 2012 Obama campaign and the 2024 Harris campaign, former Obama staffer
Age: 38
Residency: Homeowner, has lived in District 8 for 10 cumulative years since 2010
Transportation: Public transit, walking and biking
Education: Bachelor’s degree from Wellesley College
Languages: Gujarati, English
The city counts 45 vacant storefronts in all of District 8; Castro Merchants counted 68 in the Castro alone. Clearly, our vacancy system isn’t working.
I would audit and enforce the commercial vacancy tax for small businesses, including an audit of delinquent filings and review of community-identified vacancies. I’d also bring Vacant to Vibrant to District 8, give businesses a central resource to navigate permitting, and create a complete public marketplace with available storefronts, rents, and lease terms.
It should be harder to leave a storefront empty than to help it thrive.
See Patel’s full answer here.
Endorsed by: UESF, Solidarity Club SF, San Franciscans for Social Housing, Supervisor Myrna Melgar (#2), Rose Pak Asian American Club (#3)
Candidates are ordered alphabetically and rotated each week. Answers may be lightly edited for formatting, spelling, and grammar. If you have questions for the candidates, please let us know at io@missionlocal.com.
Election Day is on Nov. 3, 2026. You can register to vote via the sf.gov website.