Warriors' parade a much needed boost for BART and downtown San Francisco businesses

SAN FRANCISCO - The Golden State Warriors Victory Parade brought hundreds of thousands of fans to San Francisco and put Market Street in the national spotlight.

The crowds, noise, and bustling streets a welcome sight in an area of the city that was hit hard during the pandemic.

Isabel Hernandez, a San Francisco resident said, "It was so empty the past 3 years and now everybody was here showing pride for the warriors and I loved it."

At John’s Grill, hungry fans packed the tables.

"Business was booming," said co-owner John Konstin. He said at one point, the line for to-go food and drinks went all the down the street past Powell Street.

Konstin said, "We were closed for 8 months during the pandemic so we experienced this downtown area how decimated it was. So fast forward to today and it’s a thing of the past. It’s so beautiful to see."

Some businesses got a boost from the players themselves. In the middle of the parade, Draymond Green made a pit stop at Ghiradelli to get his family some ice cream.

Fans were encouraged to use public transit to get to the event. Bart spokeswoman Alicia Trost said ridership was at a post-pandemic high.  "We haven’t seen crowds like that since before the pandemic," said Trost. "The downtown sf stations really came alive people were having so much fun."

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The biggest change this year is there were no public speeches. Instead, players and coaches spoke at a private ceremony that was broadcast on tv.

Warrios fan Dinario said he went to all the parades when the team played in Oakland and wanted to see the speeches live. "It was like half a parade kind of," he said. "That’s what we were waiting for. That was the climax of the parade. And they took it out so it was kind of empty a little bit. But a championship is a championship."