These California downtowns are far from what they used to be, UC Berkeley study says

Downtown Sacramento and other older, large cities have not fully recovered from the COVID-19 economic downturn more than two years into the pandemic, according to a study from the University of California, Berkeley.

Results from the study published in June suggest many downtown districts are still suffering from COVID-19’s economic and social consequences, and older cities, in particular, are still struggling.

In order to survive, these cities may need to recreate downtown spaces for their residents, according to the study’s policy brief.

What does the study show?

The academic study, called the “Death of Downtown?,” analyzed major U.S. and Canadian cities and their levels of activity in downtown areas.

Researchers observed and collected data using seasonal three-month time periods, from March 2020 to May 2022, and compared that information to data collected to the same periods in 2019.

And they measured downtown activity by using visits from smartphone devices to “places of interest” in downtown areas, according to the research brief.

Places of interest included businesses, shops, restaurants, parks, community centers and stadiums, and other sites that receive foot traffic.

Experts from the study suggest downtown areas are seeing less activity due to remote work, especially in the fields of technology and finance. Many office spaces are now empty, creating “vacuums” in urban spaces.

“To survive in the new era of remote work, downtowns will need to diversify their economic activity and land uses,” researchers from the UC Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies wrote in the policy brief.

They also said that downtowns are recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic more slowly than the rest of the city and “continue to struggle to return to pre-pandemic levels.”

What does it say about California cities?

San Francisco took the last spot on the list of 62 North American cities, at a 31% recovery value from March to May this year, which is a metric that compares the number of visits in a post COVID period to a pre-COVID period. A recovery value less than 100% indicates activity lessened from the same time in 2019.

Los Angeles ranked 28th on the list and San Jose 43rd.

Sacramento ranked 13th of the cities analyzed, recovering 80% for March to May 2022.

Other California cities, however, ranked closer to the top of the list. Bakersfield ranked second and Fresno, fourth — meaning activity in their downtowns increased when compared to pre-pandemic levels.

Salt Lake City had the greatest amount of activity with a recovery rate of 155% in spring 2022.

Portland and Cleveland joined San Francisco for having some of the lowest recovery values by spring 2022, at ranking 60 and 61.

This story was originally published August 29, 2022 at 10:38 AM.