NYC is trying it's best to emulate San Francisco.
I really don't think so. First of all, you can't compare a city with over 8 million to one of less than a million. One of the ridiculous policies SF had was it's ridiculous homeless policy. Homeless folks were getting a big fat check for just chillin' and they flocked to SF. Actually I don't know where you live, but I have lived in NYC all my life and if anything, there's been a slight deterioration since Giuliani left office but it hasn't gotten terrible. For the most part, crime is fairly low for a city this size. OK, we're one of those very Blue cities....but really that is another topic.