The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake caused destruction and loss of life throughout the Bay Area. The city banded together to treat the skyrocketing number of sick and led the way in developing a model for HIV/AIDS care that became the national standard. AIDS was recognized by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and San Francisco was ground zero for the devastating disease. This decade was also marked by devastation. Ronald Reagan ruled the White House, and while the Republican president was widely hated and protested in San Francisco at the time, some liberals today might even say he wasn't so bad.
The Cold War ended and the Berlin Wall fell. Artists and musicians could afford to live in the city and they led their bohemian lifestyles in the warehouses of SoMa and the Victorians of the Mission District and the Haight.ĪLSO: Why the 1960s were the best time ever to live in San Francisco
The technology industry was only just beginning to bubble up and jobs were plentiful - but rents were still low. The average price of a two-bedroom rental in 1980 was about $475 and by 1990 it had climbed to about $975, according to data from San Francisco's Rent Board.
