As part of San Francisco’s quest to remake its struggling downtown into a destination, the city is trying to make it easier to have fun — and get tipsy — on public streets.
San Francisco this summer approved the state’s first “entertainment zone,” designating a block of Front Street between California and Sacramento as an area where restaurants and bars can sell alcoholic drinks outdoors.
But crowning a new party zone doesn’t automatically let the good times (and cocktails) roll.
“There’s a lot that needs to be worked out,” said Robbie Silver, president and CEO of Downtown SF Partnership, the community benefit district that includes the Front Street entertainment zone.
As part of the undertaking, the block needs to be revamped, programming and activations need to be instituted, and permits need to be wrangled.
“We’re definitely the guinea pigs to design the process,” Silver said.
Indeed, alcohol alone does not make for a successful entertainment zone.
“Most street closures fail miserably, because people think that all you have to do is stick a hippie out there with a guitar and beer, and then people will come,” said Ben Bleiman, owner of Harrington’s Bar & Grill on Front Street and president of the SF Entertainment Commission. “But that’s just not what happens. You have to make big investments in the vibe.”
‘Frankly, it’s a little terrifying’
To that end, Downtown SF Partnership pulled in architecture firm Gensler to redesign the street’s look and feel and strategize about the kinds of regular programming that could work there.
That small stretch of the Financial District is made up largely of mid-rise commercial buildings and dotted with bars that used to fill up with thirsty patrons for happy hour. However, office vacancies and remote work have hollowed out this customer base; even a long-standing McDonald’s closed last year.
Gensler’s initial rendering shows that string lights, greenery and art installations could create a vibe shift that would be enhanced by a live band or streetside vendors.
“I teared up when I saw it,” Silver said of the firm’s first “sizzle image” illustrating how the street could be transformed. “To have such a powerful visual of what the future can hold for a place like Front Street, which right now is so underutilized, is amazing.”
The street will host its entertainment zone debut on Sept. 20 with an Oktoberfest event. Revelers will be encouraged to don lederhosen and dirndls to dance to modern polka music, play games and drink from boot-shaped steins. German beer hall Schroeder’s celebrates Oktoberfest every year, but the entire block will collaborate on the party this fall.
“It’s going to be bigger and better than ever,” said Schroeder’s owner Andy Chun, noting that attendees will be able to roam the entire block and patronize multiple establishments.
But larger, signature events like this won’t be enough to bring downtown back to life. The goal is to offer regular programming on Front Street that could build momentum, giving businesses an opportunity to host outdoor happy hours, movie nights, live music or holiday markets.
“How do we make this space usable and interesting for the most people?” Chun said. “That’s the question that keeps me up at night, trying to think about the execution of this. We still have a lot of work to do and so much heavy lifting in front of us.”
Bleiman noted the colossal amount of time, effort and financial commitment needed to pull off successful programming on a regular basis: “It’s daunting,” he said. “Frankly, it’s a little terrifying.”
Permitting fun
A major challenge in putting on regular events is the coordination necessary between city organizations, including the San Francisco Fire Department, Entertainment Commission, SFMTA and Public Works, Chun said, describing the permitting process as time-consuming and expensive.
Big initiatives like First Thursdays and Bhangra and Beats Night Market have been a success, but smaller-scale activations can be harder. For example, some of Silver’s efforts to host events at Landing at Leidesdorff were delayed by slow permit approvals.
“It’s always been a challenge to go through multiple permit processes: One city department will say yes; another will say no or maybe,” said Silver. “It really has not been a standardized process.”
That’s where newly proposed legislation from Supervisor Aaron Peskin, a candidate for mayor, comes in. The plan aims to streamline the onerous permitting process, while exempting live music from Entertainment Commission review, and dramatically expand the number of downtown entertainment zones to 12, including Annie Street Plaza, Maiden Lane and Natoma Street.
If approved, the legislation would allow the four downtown community benefit districts, or CBDs, to become master permit-holders for new entertainment zones within their boundaries — and get permit approvals that last five years. CBDs fund neighborhood improvements, such as supplemental cleaning services or beautification projects, by collecting money from properties in the area.
Instead of an individual business needing to go through the permitting process for each event it wants to host, the CBD would hold a long-term master permit to manage events within its boundaries more efficiently and at a lower individual cost.
“This is a one-stop shop for collaborating small businesses, arts organizations and entertainment venues to activate the Greater Downtown at low-cost and without the same bureaucratic hurdles that have stymied progress up to this point,” Peskin said in a statement.
This legislation could speed up the event planning process at a time when there’s a lot at stake, for Front Street’s entertainment zone and for downtown San Francisco as a whole, Silver added.
“We can’t afford to wait any longer,” he said. “We need people to come downtown, not just for work but to play and, eventually, to live. We can’t take a year to close down a street.”
Making Front Street’s big dreams into a reality will require public-private partnerships and major fundraising, he added.
His group plans to target companies that want employees back in the office and landlords that want to make the neighborhoods around their buildings more vibrant. It will reach out to local hotels to get them to spread the word about events and will target ads at people in other neighborhoods to bring them downtown.
Bringing alcohol and events onto Front Street won’t be a “magic bullet” for San Francisco’s recovery, Chun says, but it’s a start.
“If we can actually show that there’s a glimmer of hope and an appetite to encourage people having fun, then maybe folks will come,” the Schroeder’s owner said. “We’re reading tea leaves, but that’s the hope.”