A homeless man sleeps on the sidewalk in San Francisco, California © JUSTIN SULLIVAN / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / GETTY IMAGES VIA AFP

Once the calling card of America's most populous state, San Francisco today is showing the bruises of political mismanagement as residents flee for the emergency exits. Can anything save the famed city of seven hills?

In 1879, the American poet Ina Coolbrith attempted to capture the beauty and grandeur of the fabled US coastal city, which continues to serve as host for thousands of artists, writers and progressive thinkers, with her poem 'To San Francisco'.

Fair on your hills, my City,
Fair as the Queen of old,
Supreme in her seven-hilled splendor
You, from your Gate of Gold,
Facing the orient sunburst,
Swathed in the sunset gleams,
Throned in an ultimate glory,
City of mists and of dreams!

Coolbrith would most likely be appalled by what has become of her beloved city today: intractable poverty, homelessness, drug abuse, and shuttered storefronts are just some of the problems now plaguing California's once exquisite cultural gem.

A friend of mine, Mark, who is employed in San Francisco's tech industry, described the situation he is confronted with on his daily commute to work by bicycle.

"In the past, I'd be able to make the ride into the city in about 20 minutes, but I'm constantly forced to change my route due to the sidewalks being taken over by makeshift shelters and drug addicts," he said.