THE BUZZ: Assemblymember Matt Haney is tired of out-of-staters dumping on the condition of California’s struggling downtowns. But he doesn’t necessarily disagree with the criticism. He wants his colleagues to help pump life back into urban cores that have struggled to regain their pre-pandemic luster, and he’s formed a special committee of lawmakers to craft laws that could do just that. To say that the state’s urban cores have a reputation problem would be an understatement. Right-wing media and conservative politicians who love to hate on California are especially keen on criticizing the condition of its major downtowns. And to be fair, they have plenty of fodder to work with: sprawling sidewalk encampments, rampant fentanyl use, vacant storefronts and office towers. Haney, a Democrat from San Francisco, plans to announce the new committee today. He said the problem will only get worse unless the state steps in to help cities reverse their urban slumps. “When people think about what’s wrong with California right now, they think about how our downtowns are hurting,” said Haney, who lives in San Francisco’s long-struggling Tenderloin neighborhood. “If you go to many downtowns across the country, they’re doing better than we are. Why is that?” Business leaders and lawmakers are eyeing several of the usual suspects, including a higher concentration of remote tech workers, the largest per-capita homeless population in the country, a lack of housing supply and concerns about crime. Haney, who exclusively shared his announcement with Playbook, said cities can’t fix these problems on their own. He outlined several ideas the committee will study:
- Tax credits and other financial incentives to encourage workers to return to work in person — with a separate focus on public-sector workers;
- Streamlined permitting for developers to convert vacant office buildings into housing;
- More nightlife and entertainment zones, along with support for more festivals, farmer’s markets and cultural events;
- Moving more universities, sports teams and arts venues into downtown areas;
- Incentives to help small businesses stay afloat.
San Francisco and Los Angeles often get the brunt of bad publicity about their downtowns, but many cities across California are suffering from the same problems.
Haney said his committee is designed to be geographically diverse. Its initial members include Assemblymembers Buffy Wicks (Oakland), David Alvarez (San Diego), Ash Kalra (San Jose), Kevin McCarty (Sacramento) and Miguel Santiago (Los Angeles). Four additional lawmakers representing Central Valley cities will be named to the panel. Haney said he realized the severity of downtown Sacramento’s struggles during his time in the Legislature. He’s struck by the number of vacant storefronts lining K Street, a block from the Capitol. The area is suffering, in part, because the state has been slow to bring many of its workers back, he said. (Haney lamented the recent closure of Chicory Coffee & Tea, a once-popular haunt for lawmakers and lobbyists.) “This isn’t at all just a Bay Area issue,” Haney said. “K Street is bleak. Market Street (in San Francisco) is bleak. I don’t think we can sugarcoat it.” Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg, former president pro tem of the state Senate, said he was elated when Haney called him this week to tell him about the committee. The mayor is in talks with Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration about how the state can bring more workers back to the office. Steinberg said the number of office workers might never rebound to pre-pandemic levels, but that he hopes to partner with the state to repurpose vacant office buildings for new uses. “The state does have decisions to make about its large state office footprint,” Steinberg said. Haney came up with the idea for the select committee while chatting with his Sacramento roommate, Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas — just the person he needed to sign off. The speaker praised the effort in a statement, saying, “our downtowns must sustain the heartbeat” of cities. Jim Wunderman, president and CEO of the Bay Area Council, said his group will work with the committee on ways to revive downtown Oakland, San Francisco and San Jose. He said the state likely must provide incentives and ease regulations to see a robust comeback. “It’s not going to solve itself,” Wunderman said. “We can’t just take for granted that there’s going to be a natural recovery of cities.” What form any tax breaks or incentives could take is unclear — especially in light of the state’s hefty budget hole. Haney, however, said the state cannot afford the long-term economic hit of leaving many downtown businesses and offices vacant. GOOD MORNING. Happy Thursday. Thanks for waking up with Playbook. Now you can text us at 916-562-0685 — save it as “CA Playbook” in your contacts now. Or drop us a line at lkorte@politico.com and dgardiner@politico.com, or on X — @DustinGardiner and @Lara_Korte WHERE’S GAVIN? Nothing official announced. WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU: Thank you for reading California Playbook! We value your feedback and would appreciate you taking a few minutes to tell us about your experience. | 
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