Under Brown , San Francisco 's city hall was restored from damages sustained during the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake . Brown insisted on restoring the light courts and having the dome gilded with more than US$ 400,000 in real gold . The Embarcadero was redeveloped and the Mission Bay Development project began . Brown also oversaw the approval of the Catellus Development Corp. , US$ 100 million restoration of the century-old Ferry Building , the new Asian Art Museum , the new M. H. de Young Memorial Museum , the expansion of the Moscone Convention Center and San Francisco International Airport 's new international terminal . Brown worked to restructure the Housing Authority . Brown helped established an AFL-CIO housing trust to build affordable housing and he worked to increase the city 's share of federal and state grants . He oversaw declining crime rates and improvements in the city 's economy , finances , and credit ratings during his first term
1989 Loma Prieta earthquake
1989 Loma Prieta earthquake
Willie Brown (politician)