The death of San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee early Tuesday morning was met with shock and sadness by Bay Area sports teams, who lost an ally as well as a big fan.
While Lee endured bigger political battles, it’s not surprising the man who once called himself “the Jeremy Lin of mayors” was able to find a way to mix politics and his love of sports to further impact the city.
For Lee, no project defined his sports fanaticism and San Francisco quite like the current construction project on the Mission Bay waterfront, where the Warriors’ new Chase Center home is being built. Lee, who spearheaded the city’s rigorous efforts with the Warriors to make the arena a reality, called it his “legacy project.”
Sadly, the man who reveled in the Chase Center’s success won’t be around to christen its opening for the 2019-20 season.
We are stunned and saddened by the news of @mayoredlee’s sudden death this morning. The lasting impact he leaves on the City of San Francisco is a timeless tribute to his incredible leadership and vision.
Full statement » https://t.co/Mxhl9pcc7X pic.twitter.com/CHFwL8qtze
— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) December 12, 2017
The Warriors released a statement in mourning the death of the 65-year-old Lee, expressing their eternal gratitude for his commitment to the building of their new arena.
“His love and passion for sports, including the Warriors, defined him as much as his witty humor and engaging personality,” the Warriors said in their statement.
Warriors president Rick Welts said Lee’s death hit him hard.
“This is a stunning day. He has become such a friend of so many of us here in the organization as well as his leadership and mayor,” Welts told the Bay Area News Group. “He was with us in Shanghai in preseason. He was with us the last time we went to China. He was on the site less than a month ago, and I remember the smile on his face as he looked out over all the construction.
“This, defined by him and others, is really going to be a big part of his legacy to San Francisco, bringing to the Warriors back to San Francisco,” Welts added. “Politics aside, there’s nobody that I talked to today on any side of the aisle who has anything to say about Ed Lee only says he was one of the most kind and humble public servants that they’ve ever met. He’s going to be missed.
“Condolences to his wife, Anita, and their two daughters. He’s going to leave quite a legacy in this city and will be sorely missed by everybody in the Warriors organization.”
The Warriors will hold a moment of silence for Lee before their game Thursday against Dallas at Oracle Arena.
In offering their condolences, the Giants called the personable Lee their “No. 1 fan” and the 49ers spoke of their admiration of Lee’s “compassion for others and his tireless work to effect positive change in both his city and throughout society.”
We were deeply saddened and shocked to learn of the sudden passing of Mayor Ed Lee. He was a true San Franciscan who devoted his life to serving our great city and to supporting those most in need. He was the Giants' number one fan (con’d) pic.twitter.com/G2a3dHXmzV
— SFGiants (@SFGiants) December 12, 2017
The #49ers mourn the loss of San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee.
Statement from the York family: https://t.co/laohRIUyCW pic.twitter.com/vCZ9SbgMZ9
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) December 12, 2017
Lee and his enthusiastic support for the Giants will be sorely missed, said Giants manager Bruce Bochy.
“Just horrible news,” Bochy said from baseball’s Winter Meetings in Orlando, Fla. “I just found out really an hour ago, and I had the chance to spend some time with him. He’s just a huge supporter of the Giants and I just loved his enthusiasm. You saw him during the parades, and when he came to the ballpark, he just had a real passion, and as I said enthusiasm for the Giants and the city of San Francisco.
“So it’s a tough loss for the city, just a real sad day and I feel for his family, how sudden this happened, we’re going to miss him.”
Although Lee enjoyed riding with the city’s winners, he also took his lumps when it came to sports since being appointed mayor in 2011. San Francisco lost the chance to host the 2017 America’s Cup when Lee couldn’t couldn’t strike a deal with Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison. More importantly, he couldn’t prevent the 49ers from leaving San Francisco for Santa Clara, a move in the works when former mayor Gavin Newsom was in office.
Make no mistake, Lee took the city’s loss of the 49ers hard.
“I was really kind of almost crying about the 49ers,” Lee once told the San Francisco Chronicle. “I kind of looked myself in the mirror and talked to some friends and said, ‘Am I going to let this thing eat at me? Am I going to be the downer mayor? I told myself, ‘No way.’ ”
Lee also wasn’t shy about sharing his sports views on sports radio host Gary Radnich’s show over the years. In fact, last month Lee helped celebrate Radnich’s 25th anniversary at KNBR-680 by declaring it “Gary Radnich Day” in the city.
What a shock. Loved being around Mayor Lee. RIP pic.twitter.com/CtkyAXDbbZ
— Gary Radnich (@GaryRadnich) December 12, 2017
Staff writers Mark Medina and Daniel Brown contributed to this report.
