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Joel Rosenblatt

Joel covers the forces in San Francisco — money, business, personalities, local law, and politics — that bind the city and pull it apart. He most recently worked for Bloomberg News reporting on state and federal courts.

Previously, he covered the crime beat for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and was a freelancer in New York City. Before that, he served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Senegal. He was born and raised in Denver, Colorado, studied public policy at Occidental College in Los Angeles, and has a Masters degree from Columbia Journalism School.

A budget brawler’s inside-outside game

As Mayor Lurie’s budget deadline approaches, Anya Worley-Ziegmann leads rallies outside his office and talks with people who work within it

May 20, 2026

Protesting Mayor Lurie’s budget cuts outside his office

A group of 250 brought chants and personalized pleas directly to Room 200, but went unanswered by Lurie

May 13, 2026

Man arrested for allegedly assaulting Mayor Lurie’s bodyguard to be freed

Held on multiple charges, Tony Phillips will be released under electronic monitoring Friday

May 7, 2026

Fire on the Fountain: Vaillancourt was torched during deconstruction

Trash inside the brutalist sculpture at Ferry Plaza was ignited by a blowtorch

May 6, 2026

Jackie Fielder’s absence comes at a critical time for her district and the city

With her leave, the D9 supervisor’s steadfast opposition to Mayor Lurie is on hold

May 5, 2026

The skater who refused to bail on the Vaillancourt Fountain

As the city dismantles the brutalist public artwork, Thrasher cover boy Zach ‘Ducky’ Kovacs remembers his epic 'drop in'

April 27, 2026

Department of Public Health talks of ‘rebalancing’ and ‘consolidation’ as union and community worry about layoffs and clinic closures

SEIU 1021 was out in force as Daniel Tsai made the city’s case for cutting jobs while preserving the social safety net

April 22, 2026

‘He knows that this is going to devastate people in need’: Staff and clients fight for an elder care clinic that may close amid Lurie’s budget cuts

At a rally at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, supporters of South East Mission Geriatrics did not back down

April 16, 2026

Mahmood pushes back on Lurie’s plan to cut Tenderloin youth clinic 

District 5 supervisor says mayor’s proposal to close the Larkin Clinic as part of $400 million budget cuts isn’t final

April 14, 2026

A brutal setback for fans of Vaillancourt Fountain

Judge’s decision puts the controversial sculpture one step closer to removal

April 9, 2026