The flight of tiled steps at 16th Avenue and Moraga Street is well-known as a tourist attraction, a great non-gym workout, and a staycation sight to see. But now it's getting far more dubious attention as yet another spot in San Francisco where crime is hitting an apparent new high.
We all know that car break-ins are out of control in the city, with a 34 percent increase in the crime between 2014 and 2015, for a total of 26,491 last year — and those are just the ones that people bother to report.
In fact, Rachel Miller-Garcia, who lives near the Inner Sunset steps, tells ABC7 that "the precinct tells us that they're inundated" with reports of car break-ins at the tourist hotspot. "They can't keep up with all the reports," she says.
Break-ins and robberies in the area have gotten so brazen, Miller-Garcia says, that she's observed miscreants waiting for people to park, "casing" cars for out-of-state plates and valuables, and even suggesting to tourists that they "make sure" to climb the stairs all the way to the top — a ten-minute trek that gives thieves ample time to smash a car's window and swipe whatever's inside.
Lacking a police response, Miller-Garcia and her neighbors have taken to posting homemade signs warning tourists that they are almost-certain victims of crime, as well as warning visitors in person and posting one-star reviews of the stairs to Yelp. Here's an example:
Hardly the message one might want to send to a visitor to our city, but better an uncomfortable exchange, perhaps, than a burglary? As SFPD Commander Toney Chaplin said in January, “The increase of these auto burglaries is because these are the lowest of the low-hanging fruits...It’s the easiest crime for you to perpetrate. You don’t need much to do it.” Maybe these signs and reviews will move those fruits just a little bit higher.
Previously: Car Break-Ins Are Up, Hit 5-Year High Last Summer
Spike In Car Break-Ins Has Many Blaming Prop 47