Twitter 'X' Sign Removed After Three Days... Musk-San Francisco Mayor Feud Continues

Demolition Follows Complaints Without Authorities' Approval
San Fran Mayor: "No One Is Above the Rules"

Elon Musk dismantled the large structure installed atop the headquarters building after changing the social networking service (SNS) Twitter's brand to the alphabet 'X'. The removal came just three days after X installed the structure amid conflicts with the city of San Francisco, and the long-standing feud between the city and Musk, which had been clashing for some time, is expected to continue for the foreseeable future.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

Bloomberg reported on the 31st of last month (local time) that the large 'X' shaped structure on top of Twitter's former headquarters building in San Francisco was dismantled. Earlier, Musk, chairman and chief technology officer (CTO) of X, posted a video on his account on the 28th of last month showing the large 'X' shaped sign installed, captioned "Tonight, our headquarters in San Francisco."

The removal appears to have been prompted by the city of San Francisco raising issues over the installation of the structure without permission. Additionally, the city reportedly received about 20 complaints, including that the bright light emitted from the large structure made it difficult to sleep. The structure was dismantled directly by X. CNBC speculated that X might not be completely removing the sign but temporarily dismantling it to carry out modifications or to obtain city approval.

London Breed, mayor of San Francisco, recently emphasized in an interview with Bloomberg regarding the installation of the 'X' sign, "The difficulties we face related to Twitter and what happens there show that no one is above the rules." She added, "No one cares if you do something different or creative in your space, but you cannot change signs, obstruct traffic, or do anything without anyone's permission."

Musk has clashed multiple times with city authorities, including Mayor Breed. After Musk revealed in October last year, following the acquisition, that he had placed beds in part of the office for overnight stays, effectively using it like a hotel, city authorities conducted an investigation to determine if this violated building codes. In response, Musk criticized the city in December last year, saying, "San Francisco is attacking a company that provided beds for tired employees instead of keeping children safe from fentanyl. London Breed, where are your priorities?"

In April, when Bob Lee, founder of the mobile payment service Cash App, was stabbed to death in downtown San Francisco, Musk pointed to "widespread violent crime in San Francisco" as the background for the incident. When Musk claimed that "criminals are often released immediately even after being caught," San Francisco's judicial authorities and city government promptly refuted this as "false information."

The Washington Post (WP) recently reported, "San Francisco once tried to win Twitter's favor. Now it has become a source of headaches," adding, "The relationship between Twitter under Musk's leadership and its hometown San Francisco is increasingly concerning."

Musk had previously pointed out last year that California, where San Francisco is located, was once a land of opportunity but has now become a place with excessive regulations, lawsuits, and high taxes.

However, Musk stated that there are no plans to relocate X's headquarters. Despite having laid off many employees since the acquisition and being sued for unpaid office rent, the company intends to keep the headquarters as is. On the 29th of last month, he said, "Many places have offered significant incentives for X to move its headquarters out of San Francisco," but added, "People expect X to leave, but we will not do that."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.