Mission Local previously excluded Behrend from this series because he did not meet our candidate-coverage guidelines<\/a>. He has since qualified for Meet the Candidates coverage after receiving endorsements from former District 5 Supervisor Dean Preston and Juanita More, an activist and drag queen.<\/p>\n SoMa\u2019s sales-tax revenue remains below its pre-pandemic levels.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n In 2025, the latest complete year of neighborhood sales-tax data<\/a>, SoMa generated about $9.4 million in sales-tax revenue, down from roughly $18.5 million in 2019 \u2014 a decline of about 49 percent. But neighboring Mission Bay, also in District 6, moved in the opposite direction, with sales-tax revenue rising more than 20 percent over the same period.<\/p>\n The most recent quarterly figures show little sign yet of a sustained rebound for SoMa. Inflation-adjusted sales-tax revenue in the first quarter of 2026 remained at roughly half its 2019 level.<\/p>\n \u201cSouth of Market is struggling,\u201d Henry Karnilowicz, president of the South of Market Business Association, told Mission Local earlier this year. He pointed to fewer office workers, low foot traffic and persistent concerns among business owners about crime and public drug use.<\/p>\n According to 2025 police incident data, SoMa\u2019s crime rate was more than twice that of every other San Francisco neighborhood, even as crime fell citywide.\u00a0<\/p>\n Southern Station, which polices District 6, including SoMa, has also struggled with adequate staffing and longer response times<\/a> for all but the most urgent police calls. The station added more officers this year, but its jurisdiction expanded Oct. 1, bringing an expected 23 percent increase in calls for service.<\/p>\n Some local business owners have said<\/a> that they contend with crime and difficult street conditions on a daily basis. Merchants have described vandalism and theft at their businesses, people struggling with addiction outside their entrances and the high cost of repairing damaged storefronts.<\/p>\n At the same time, the shift to remote work since the pandemic has deprived some restaurants and shops of the office workers who once supplied a steady stream of customers, according to business owners interviewed by Mission Local.<\/p>\n So, this week, we asked the District 6 supervisorial candidates: How should San Francisco support SoMa businesses?<\/p>\n Matt Dorsey<\/p>\n Job: Current District 6 Supervisor<\/p>\n Age: 61<\/p>\n Residency: Renter, living in District 6 since 2008, has lived in San Francisco since 1990 (except for four years in Washington, D.C.).<\/p>\n Transportation:\u00a0Public transit, walking, biking<\/p>\n Education: Bachelor\u2019s degree from Emerson College<\/p>\n Languages: English<\/p>\n Website:\u00a0Reelect Matt Dorsey 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Most of what I hear from SoMa businesses is frustration at the unfairness of playing by the rules while the city tolerates business-killing lawlessness all around them. San Francisco demands a lot from our law-abiding businesses \u2014 and yet we seemingly allow public drug use, drug dealing, retail theft, vandalism, violence, illegal vending, and more undermine them every day. It\u2019s not a level playing field. It\u2019s not fair. And it\u2019s a predictable result of a police staffing crisis we haven\u2019t done enough to solve. Supporting SoMa businesses means enforcing the law \u2014 consistently and fully \u2014 to end unlawful competition and improve safety.<\/p>\n Endorsed by: Mayor Daniel Lurie, District Attorney Brooke Jenkins, Sheriff Paul Miyamoto, Senator Scott Wiener \u2026 read more here<\/a>. <\/p>\n Alex Behrend<\/p>\n Job: No current job, formerly a voter organizer for Dean Preston\u2019s 2024 campaign, a Safeway checker and a housekeeper at the San Francisco Zen Center<\/p>\n Age: 54<\/p>\n Residency: Renter living in District 6 since April 2026, and in San Francisco since 2011, with a previous stint in 1990-91 while attending the University of San Francisco<\/p>\n Transportation:\u00a0Public transit, walking<\/p>\n Education: Bachelor\u2019s degree from the University of California, San Diego<\/p>\n Languages: English<\/p>\n Website: Alex for All<\/a><\/p>\n The power imbalance between local businesses and corporate property owners is murder on neighborhood commercial corridors!\u00a0<\/p>\n The city cannot pussyfoot around as landlords spike rent on small businesses while vacant storefronts are everywhere.<\/p>\n Organizing, resources and oversight are necessary protections against corporate greed. When landlords and banksters know shopowner rights are protected and the city won\u2019t roll over, predatory practices aren\u2019t enticing.\u00a0<\/p>\n We need a Public Bank to ensure local businesses \u2014 vital for neighborhoods \u2014 are properly capitalized. The Public Bank will deliver ROI for all city residents. [Editors note: Proposition B<\/a>, on the Nov. 3 ballot, lays the groundwork for a public bank<\/a>, though it will not provide the estimated $325 million that it would take to get the bank up and running. Matt Dorsey is one of nine supervisors<\/a> supporting the measure.]\u00a0<\/p>\n We\u2019re the most important economic stakeholders here \u2014 not Wall Street and faraway landlords.<\/p>\n Endorsed by: Former Supervisor Dean Preston, Juanita More, Arab Resource and Organizing Center Action.<\/p>\n Answers may be lightly edited for formatting, spelling and grammar. If you have questions for the candidates, please let us know at sarah@missionlocal.com<\/a> \/\/ io@missionlocal.com<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"Cartoon](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Matt-Dorsey.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"Illustration](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Alex-Behrend.png\")
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