But people obviously don't want the "goods", by and large. Otherwise the city would budge.

Thats such a wild assumption. Your saying the government always folows the will of the public? Theres nothing people want that governments are giving them?

The crosswalk and, in SF, curb restrictions at intersections were more about a limitation on man power. And crosswalks probably had an element of needing proper process because of California's extreme "participatory" governance. Ironically the people complaining about lack of responsiveness are part of the same group who pushed--and keep pushing--for participatory governance--but feel frustrated by the deadlock it creates.

unless the city governance is in the pocket of the wealthiest members of the city's population, and those members don't want the goods. I witnessed this first hand in Los Angeles when I lived there.

Huh? Are cities near you known for quick and easy-to-navigate bureaucratic processes?

[citation needed]