There are currently five to-go cocktail-serving “entertainment zones” either approved or proposed in San Francisco, but Mayor Lurie is pushing for five more, to bring more high-octane street parties during events where streets are closed to traffic.
It was back in January 2024 when state Senator Scott Wiener proposed his “entertainment zone” bill, which maybe should have been called an “alcohol zone” bill, because it involved the legalization of to-go alcohol sales at bars and restaurants rather than any actual form of entertainment. But since that bill passed, we’ve seen these entertainment zones pop up on Front Street in the Financial District, outside the Chase Center, and in Cole Valley.
Since then, Supervisor Rafael Mandelman has proposed another entertainment zone be established in the Castro, while Supervisor Stephen Sherrill has put forward legislation to have one on Union Street.
Mayor Daniel Lurie just looked at all of them and said, “Hold my beer.” The SF Business Times reports Lurie is proposing five new entertainment zones in one fell swoop. Okay, to be fair, it’s a proposal from Lurie, plus Supervisors Matt Dorsey, Jackie Fielder, and Danny Sauter.
But the end result is the same, which is that these areas granted entertainment zone status would give their bars and restaurants the blessing to sell to-go beer, wine, and cocktails, and revelers would be able to legally guzzle from their open containers during events for which the streets are closed to cars.
Here’s where these five new entertainment zones, if approved, would be located:
- Valencia Street (between 16th and 21st streets)
- Pier 39
- Ellis Street (between Stockton and Powell streets)
- Folsom Street (between Seventh and Eighth streets)
- Yerba Buena Lane and Jessie Square (between Market and Mission streets)
The legislation is expected to be proposed at Tuesday's Board of Supervisors meeting, which does not mean it becomes law Tuesday, it just means that one or more of the above-named supervisors will give a little speech. This type of legislation generally takes about two months from the day it is proposed until when the law passes (if it passes).
But that means these neighborhoods could have their open container parties up and running in perhaps early June.
Entertainment zones are not to be confused with the trendy new night markets or the monthly Downtown First Thursdays parties, but they are very similar. You can buy and carry around open-container alcoholic beverages within the event’s boundaries, but you can’t take that drink outside of the event’s designated boundaries, nor can you take that drink inside an establishment. And again, these open-container parties can only happen at permitted events where the streets are closed to cars.
It’s funny that Lurie announced these new proposed entertainment zones just hours after Mission Local published a very interesting op-ed called “Downtown SF recovery plan leans heavily on getting young people drunk." That piece quotes House of Shields owner Dennis Leary as saying that business is great during these to-go cocktail events, but the next day business goes back to being “tumbleweeds.”
Still, it’s one great day for business that bars (and their tipped staff) would not otherwise have, and so these entertainment zone proposals have always passed without any political opposition. But Mission Local notes that might not be the case for Lurie’s plan to add 20 more liquor licenses to Union Square, as there’s definitely opposition from bars and their tipped staff who feel things are too financially precarious for them to add a new wave of competitors right now.
Image: Downtown First Thursdays
