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| Ed Lee, San Francisco Mayor, Dies at 65 | Ed Lee, San Francisco Mayor, Dies at 65 |
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| Edwin M. Lee, an affordable housing advocate and technocrat who became the first Asian-American to be elected as mayor of San Francisco, died early on Tuesday of undisclosed causes, his office said. He was 65. | Edwin M. Lee, an affordable housing advocate and technocrat who became the first Asian-American to be elected as mayor of San Francisco, died early on Tuesday of undisclosed causes, his office said. He was 65. |
| “It is with profound sadness and terrible grief that we confirm that Mayor Edwin M. Lee passed away on Tuesday, December 12 at 1:11 a.m. at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital. Family, friends and colleagues were at his side,” his office said in a statement. | “It is with profound sadness and terrible grief that we confirm that Mayor Edwin M. Lee passed away on Tuesday, December 12 at 1:11 a.m. at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital. Family, friends and colleagues were at his side,” his office said in a statement. |
| Mr. Lee arrived at the hospital by ambulance in critical condition shortly after 10 p.m. on Monday, according to Dr. Susan P. Ehrlich, the hospital’s chief executive. Mr. Lee’s family asked that further medical details not be released, Dr. Ehrlich said. Local news accounts said Mr. Lee collapsed while shopping at a supermarket. | |
| Under the city’s rules, London Breed, the president of the board of supervisors, became the acting mayor. Dennis Herrera, the city’s attorney, said the board can decide whether it wants to choose a replacement mayor before June, when an election will determine who will finish out Mr. Lee’s term. | |
| As mayor, Mr. Lee presided over a tremendous shift in wealth in the city driven by the technology boom that put San Francisco at the center of global innovation. | As mayor, Mr. Lee presided over a tremendous shift in wealth in the city driven by the technology boom that put San Francisco at the center of global innovation. |
| Rents soared past levels only the wealthiest could afford, an ironic development for Mr. Lee, who began his career fighting for affordable housing. When Mr. Lee took office in January 2011, the median home value in San Francisco was $656,500. Today it is about $1.25 million, according to Zillow, a real estate data company. A sharp rise in rents — the city’s median rent is about $4,300 — also pushed large segments of the middle class out of the city. Office rents in parts of San Francisco rose higher than those in Manhattan. | Rents soared past levels only the wealthiest could afford, an ironic development for Mr. Lee, who began his career fighting for affordable housing. When Mr. Lee took office in January 2011, the median home value in San Francisco was $656,500. Today it is about $1.25 million, according to Zillow, a real estate data company. A sharp rise in rents — the city’s median rent is about $4,300 — also pushed large segments of the middle class out of the city. Office rents in parts of San Francisco rose higher than those in Manhattan. |
| Mr. Lee was born in 1952 in the Seattle neighborhood Beacon Hill, one of six children of Chinese immigrants who came to the United States in the 1930s. His mother was a seamstress; his father, a war veteran, died when Mr. Lee was a teenager. | Mr. Lee was born in 1952 in the Seattle neighborhood Beacon Hill, one of six children of Chinese immigrants who came to the United States in the 1930s. His mother was a seamstress; his father, a war veteran, died when Mr. Lee was a teenager. |
| In an interview with The New York Times last year, Mr. Lee said he had been drawn to San Francisco for its diversity and tolerance. | In an interview with The New York Times last year, Mr. Lee said he had been drawn to San Francisco for its diversity and tolerance. |
| “California, particularly San Francisco, has always been an opening, welcoming atmosphere. That’s kind of what drew me here,” he said. “Being born and raised in Seattle, I wanted to get away from the rain and of course sunny California was attractive. But the main attraction was a kind of feeling that freedom of expression and maybe a person of a different ethnic background could be welcomed and succeed.” | “California, particularly San Francisco, has always been an opening, welcoming atmosphere. That’s kind of what drew me here,” he said. “Being born and raised in Seattle, I wanted to get away from the rain and of course sunny California was attractive. But the main attraction was a kind of feeling that freedom of expression and maybe a person of a different ethnic background could be welcomed and succeed.” |
| Mr. Lee said he felt responsible as mayor for maintaining San Francisco as an “international beacon.” | Mr. Lee said he felt responsible as mayor for maintaining San Francisco as an “international beacon.” |
| “People come here to innovate, they want to have the ideas, they want to challenge themselves with different languages and different cultures and be successful at the same time,” he said. | “People come here to innovate, they want to have the ideas, they want to challenge themselves with different languages and different cultures and be successful at the same time,” he said. |
| The mayor was a symbol of the city’s changing demographics from a white majority to what the mayor called a “majority of minority groups.” Whites made up 42 percent of the population in the 2010 census, while Asians constituted a third of the population, Latinos around 15 percent and African-Americans 6 percent. Electing its first Chinese-American mayor was a major milestone for a city that has a long history of discrimination against Chinese people. | The mayor was a symbol of the city’s changing demographics from a white majority to what the mayor called a “majority of minority groups.” Whites made up 42 percent of the population in the 2010 census, while Asians constituted a third of the population, Latinos around 15 percent and African-Americans 6 percent. Electing its first Chinese-American mayor was a major milestone for a city that has a long history of discrimination against Chinese people. |
| Mr. Lee became mayor in January 2011 when, after weeks of disputes, the board of supervisors elected him by a 10-to-1 vote as the city’s interim leader. | Mr. Lee became mayor in January 2011 when, after weeks of disputes, the board of supervisors elected him by a 10-to-1 vote as the city’s interim leader. |
| After consistently expressing a reluctance to hold the job on a permanent basis, Mr. Lee entered the electoral race in August 2011 and was elected in November, a time of tremendous change for the city as the technology industry became increasingly influential. | After consistently expressing a reluctance to hold the job on a permanent basis, Mr. Lee entered the electoral race in August 2011 and was elected in November, a time of tremendous change for the city as the technology industry became increasingly influential. |
| Mr. Lee was a graduate of Bowdoin College, where he received a full scholarship. After graduating, he moved to the Bay Area in 1975 to study law, and quickly became involved in the housing issues that would define his early career. His understanding of Cantonese and Taishanese helped him win the trust of immigrant communities, on whose behalf he fought as part of the San Francisco Asian Law Caucus. | Mr. Lee was a graduate of Bowdoin College, where he received a full scholarship. After graduating, he moved to the Bay Area in 1975 to study law, and quickly became involved in the housing issues that would define his early career. His understanding of Cantonese and Taishanese helped him win the trust of immigrant communities, on whose behalf he fought as part of the San Francisco Asian Law Caucus. |
| After a decade, he left that organization and worked in five different city departments under four different mayors. In 1991, he became the city’s human rights commissioner, and in 2005 was appointed city administrator. | After a decade, he left that organization and worked in five different city departments under four different mayors. In 1991, he became the city’s human rights commissioner, and in 2005 was appointed city administrator. |
| At his first swearing-in, in 2011, he commented on his rise from housing advocate to virtually unknown civil servant to city leader. | At his first swearing-in, in 2011, he commented on his rise from housing advocate to virtually unknown civil servant to city leader. |
| “Decades ago, I was about as anti-establishment as one could be,” he said. “But today, like you, I’m trying to make the establishment work for all San Franciscans.” | “Decades ago, I was about as anti-establishment as one could be,” he said. “But today, like you, I’m trying to make the establishment work for all San Franciscans.” |
| He is survived by his wife, Anita, and his two daughters, Tania and Brianna. | He is survived by his wife, Anita, and his two daughters, Tania and Brianna. |
| Mr. Lee presided over one of the most explosive periods of growth in the city’s history. Two decades earlier, San Francisco’s business establishment was lamenting how the city had lost its headquarters status as financial institutions like Bank of America were acquired and Chevron left for the suburbs. | Mr. Lee presided over one of the most explosive periods of growth in the city’s history. Two decades earlier, San Francisco’s business establishment was lamenting how the city had lost its headquarters status as financial institutions like Bank of America were acquired and Chevron left for the suburbs. |
| When Mr. Lee took office, San Francisco, like the country, was still grappling with the aftermath of the Great Recession. Facing a yawning budget deficit and an unemployment rate above 10 percent, Mr. Lee worked to bring employers back to the city, becoming a strong booster of the technology industry, development and growth. The city quickly rebounded and found itself grappling with an affordable housing crisis and a backlash against the tech sector that culminated in the 2013 Google bus protests. | When Mr. Lee took office, San Francisco, like the country, was still grappling with the aftermath of the Great Recession. Facing a yawning budget deficit and an unemployment rate above 10 percent, Mr. Lee worked to bring employers back to the city, becoming a strong booster of the technology industry, development and growth. The city quickly rebounded and found itself grappling with an affordable housing crisis and a backlash against the tech sector that culminated in the 2013 Google bus protests. |
| Mr. Lee easily won re-election in 2015. This year, the housing issues are again weighing on the city, and residents have projected their frustrations onto the mayor. A column in The San Francisco Chronicle in May, headlined “Where’s Ed Lee, our fading mayor?” questioned his ability to contend with the challenges facing the tech hub. | Mr. Lee easily won re-election in 2015. This year, the housing issues are again weighing on the city, and residents have projected their frustrations onto the mayor. A column in The San Francisco Chronicle in May, headlined “Where’s Ed Lee, our fading mayor?” questioned his ability to contend with the challenges facing the tech hub. |
| “Lee lacks the dynamic and visionary leadership that it takes to manage the explosive growth that’s been rocking San Francisco in recent years,” the columnist, David Talbot, wrote. “As a result, the city seems less affordable and more difficult to live in than ever.” | “Lee lacks the dynamic and visionary leadership that it takes to manage the explosive growth that’s been rocking San Francisco in recent years,” the columnist, David Talbot, wrote. “As a result, the city seems less affordable and more difficult to live in than ever.” |
| But Mr. Lee could still be forceful on issues that mattered to him, and he retained his passion for immigrant rights. In January, in his State of the City address, he insisted that San Francisco would remain a sanctuary city “now, tomorrow, forever.” | But Mr. Lee could still be forceful on issues that mattered to him, and he retained his passion for immigrant rights. In January, in his State of the City address, he insisted that San Francisco would remain a sanctuary city “now, tomorrow, forever.” |