Meetings - May 21, 2019 - Minutes

Meeting Date:

May 21, 2019 - 5:30pm

Location:

Related Meeting Content:

Agenda

Entertainment Commission
City and County of San Francisco

Draft Meeting Minutes

Room 416, City Hall

1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place

San Francisco, CA. 94102

Tuesday, May 21, 2019, 5:30 P.M.

Regular Meeting

COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Ben Bleiman (President), Dori Caminong (Vice President), Bryant Tan, Steven Lee, Laura Thomas, Dave Falzon

COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: Al Perez

STAFF IN ATTENDANCE: Executive Director, Maggie Weiland; Deputy Director, Kaitlyn Azevedo; Senior Analyst, Dylan Rice; Commission Aide, Crystal Kennedy

THE MEETING WAS CALLED TO ORDER BY PRESIDENT BLEIMAN AT 5:30 PM

SPEAKER KEY:

+ indicates a speaker in support of an item;

- indicates a speaker in opposition of an item; and

= indicates a neutral speaker or a speaker who did not indicate support or opposition

CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL

1. General Public Comment - No public comment.

Members of the public may address the Commission on items of interest to the public that are within the subject matter jurisdiction of the Commission. With respect to agenda items, members of the public may address the Commission for up to three minutes at the time such item is called.

2. Approval of Meeting Minutes. Discussion and possible action to approve the minutes of the May 7, 2019, Commission meeting. [Discussion and Possible Action Item]

MOTION: Commissioner Caminong moved to approve the May 7, 2019 minutes, Commissioner Thomas seconded the motion.

ACTION: Approved Minutes for May 7, 2019

AYES: Commissioner Thomas, Commissioner Caminong, Commissioner Bleiman, Commissioner Lee, Commissioner Falzon

NAYS: None

3. Report from Executive Director: Legislative/Policy Update: nothing to report; Staff and Office Update: Update on Director Weiland’s participation as an online panelist for the Amplify Music in Our Los Angeles Conference: A Conference Amplifying and Connecting the Music Scenes of Los Angeles - "Being a Music City in Other Cities" Panel; Update on Board of Appeals Actions: nothing to report; Corrective Actions: nothing to report. [Discussion Item]

=Director Maggie Weiland gave the Commission a brief update about the UCLA Center for Music Innovation where she had the opportunity to speak to a virtual panel. She was alongside people from other cities who do similar work with the industry. They talked about the challenges that cities are facing across the United States around music, music programming, and artists, and how they can continue to be supportive and get creative in the policy work they do. The common theme of the panel was that everybody is facing displacement issues right now. She was the first to speak on the six person panel and everybody echoed the challenges that San Francisco is facing in terms of density and growth, and having to deal with displacement.

Regarding the vacant Senior Management Analyst position, she said she has moved forward in the process and should have an update for everybody hopefully by the first meeting in June. It looks like the person they are considering as a final candidate may be beginning the middle of June or the beginning of July.

Commissioner Tan arrived at 5:40PM

4. Report from Deputy Director: Deputy Director Kaitlyn Azevedo reports on recent venue inspections and activities. [Discussion item]

New Complaints

5/10/2019 7:48:00 AM

Jones

620 Jones St

LLP

Noisy patrons all night at Jones Bar at 620 Jones St, San Francisco CA. Currently it's almost 11:30 pm and the bar operates so late that neighbors can't sleep with the loud noise coming from the outdoor bar. ACTION: Deputy Director Azevedo forwarded complaint to the owner who confirmed they did not have live music the night before. The complaint was anonymous and staff was unable to follow up.

5/10/2019 7:48:00 AM	Jones	620 Jones St	LLP	Noisy patrons all night at Jones Bar at 620 Jones St, San Francisco CA. Currently it's almost 11:30 pm and the bar operates so late that neighbors can't sleep with the loud noise coming from the outdoor bar. ACTION: Deputy Director Azevedo forwarded complaint to the owner who confirmed they did not have live music the night before. The complaint was anonymous and staff was unable to follow up.
5/16/2019 11:37:00 PM	St. Mary's Pub	3845 Mission St.	Applying for LLP/MAD/BP	St Mary's Pub - Numerous complaints about this bar. It has gotten progressively worse since 2013 when new ownership took over. They have removed the soundproofing and play music really loud until 2am but there is also a lot of general noise from the patrons until 4-5am. The building is mixed-use for years and the tenants upstairs cannot sleep and it is impossible for tenants to live with the soundproofing removed. There must be some sort of tenants’ rights against this. ACTION: Inspector Fiorentino responded to 311 complaint. The speakers are situated close to the ceiling. Deputy Director followed up with the owner who said they didn't know about a DJ performing and they planned to move the speakers away from the ceiling. Per Director Weiland, an NOV was issued.

Site Inspections

5/7/2019 10:41:31 PM	The Blue Light	1979 Union St.	N/A	Director Weiland received a call from SFPD about Blue Light operating without an entertainment license. Inspector Savino went to Blue Light and they had a DJ for Taco Tuesday. He explained they must have a permit to have entertainment. Deputy Director Azevedo spoke with the owner and explained the permitting process. They are not zoned for a POE but can apply for an LLP and they have a pool table and need a BP.
5/18/2019 2:09:09 AM	Arena SF	2565 Mission St	POE	Inspector Fiorentino took a sound reading at closing and found them operating above their sound limit. He gave them a verbal warning.

5. Report from the Senior Analyst: Dylan Rice shares an update on digital enhancements for permitting one-time events and industry education initiatives. [Discussion Item]

Senior Analyst Dylan Rice reported on the digital enhancements and education initiative to support the City’s efforts to improve efficiency and customer service experience for permitting. A new online application was launched for the one-time outdoor event permit on May 1, 2019 and about 20 permits have been processed so far. There has been positive feedback from the event producers and some SFPD permit officers.

The next S.F. Outdoor Events Network mixer will happen in late July and the topic will be “success through vendor management.” The discussion will be about events that become more complex with multiple vendors with different experience levels, needs, and capacities, and how you can efficiently and successfully manage them.

6. Police Department Comments & Questions. This item allows any member of the SFPD to address the Commission regarding matters related to nightlife and public safety. [Discussion Item]

SPEAKERS: None

7. Hearing and Possible Action regarding applications for permits under the jurisdiction of the Entertainment Commission. [Discussion and Possible Action Item]

Consent Calendar:

All matters listed hereunder constitute a Consent Calendar, are considered to be routine by the Entertainment Commission, and will be acted upon by a single roll call vote of the Commission. There will be no separate discussion of these items unless a member of the Commission, the public, or staff so requests, in which event the matter shall be removed from the Consent Calendar and considered as a separate item at this or a future hearing.

Consent Agenda:

EC-1522 – Chen Bin Huang of Supreme Crab S-Corp, Supreme Crab, 245 Jefferson St., Limited Live Performance Permit.

SPEAKERS: = Deputy Director, Kaitlyn Azevedo, staff report

= Deputy Director Azevedo stated the only consent item on the agenda was for an accessory use permit. There is no opposition from the public, and the police department has no added conditions.

MOTION: Commissioner Tan moved to approve the consent agenda, Commissioner Thomas seconded the motion.

ACTION: The Limited Live Performance Permit was conditionally granted to the applicant.

AYES: Commissioner Thomas, Commissioner Caminong, Commissioner Bleiman, Commissioner Lee, Commissioner Falzon, Commissioner Tan

NAYS: None

ABESENT: AL PEREZ

SPEAKERS: = Deputy Director, Kaitlyn Azevedo, staff report

Regular Agenda:

b) EC-1524 – Victor and Silvia Ormeno of KH LLC, Kimbara, 3372 19th St., Change in Ownership and dba Change, Place of Entertainment.

= Deputy Director Azevedo stated the permit application that was scheduled for the hearing has requested a continuance to be moved to the June 4, 2019 hearing. They had some paperwork trouble and they were not able to get their items together and requested a continuance to be more prepared at the future hearing.

MOTION: Commissioner Thomas moved to continue the agenda item to the July 4, 2019 hearing at the request of the applicant, Commissioner Falzon seconded the motion.

ACTION: Continuance was granted for the permit application to the June 4, 2019 hearing.

AYES: Commissioner Thomas, Commissioner Caminong, Commissioner Bleiman, Commissioner Lee, Commissioner Falzon, Commissioner Tan

NAYS: None

ABSENT: AL PEREZ

8. Discussion regarding neighbor complaints for #EC-1172 Limited Live Performance permit for dba Jones located at 620 Jones Street, San Francisco, CA. 94102. [Discussion Item]

= Jordan Langer, owner of 620 Jones Street

= Jordan Langer is the owner and partner at 620 Jones and has operated successfully for about ten years. Over a year ago his business partner, Pete Glikstern, stepped in and started running the project on a full day-to-day basis. In the past, Jones has informed their neighbors of the scheduled programming via phone calls, e-mail, and flyers. However, due to ongoing complaints from neighbors in more recent times, Jordan asked the Entertainment Commission to help facilitate a sit down meeting with the complainants so they can speak with them in person. He would like to talk to them directly to see what Jones can do to make their neighbors’ lives better, and to prove they are moving forward in a good faith effort to resolve this problem. Having the Commission involved will help make sure this is not a recurring problem, and he feels they can resolve it together.

9. Commissioner Comments & Questions. [Announcements]

ADJOURNMENT 6:25PM

SPEAKER KEY:

+ indicates a speaker in support of an item;

- indicates a speaker in opposition of an item; and

= indicates a neutral speaker or a speaker who did not indicate support or opposition

CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL

1. General Public Comment -- No public comment.

2. Approval of Meeting Minutes. Discussion and possible action to approve the minutes of the May 7, 2019, Commission meeting. [Discussion and Possible Action Item]

MOTION: Commissioner Caminong moved to approve the May 7, 2019 minutes, Commissioner Thomas second the motion.

ACTION: Approved Minutes for May 7, 2019

AYES: Commissioner Thomas, Commissioner Caminong, Commissioner Bleiman, Commissioner Lee, Commissioner Falzon

NAYS: None

ABESENT: Commissioner Perez, Commissioner Tan

Commissioner Tan arrived at 5:40PM

= Director Maggie Weiland gave the Commission a brief update about the UCLA Center for Music Innovation where she had the opportunity to speak to a virtual panel. She and Senior Analyst Dylan Rice have a relationship with Gigi Johnson who runs the program in UCLA that is geared toward people in the industry from all over the United States. She was alongside people from other cities who do similar work with the industry where they talked about the challenges that cities are facing across the United States around music, music programming, artists, and how they can continue to support and get creative in the policy work they do.

= Commissioner Falzon asked if there was an update on hiring for the enforcement position.

= Director Maggie Weiland said she did not have a public announcement, but they were moving forward in the process and they should have an update for everybody hopefully by the first meeting in June. It looks like the person they have definitely considered, as a final candidate may be beginning the middle of June or the beginning of July.

= President Bleiman asked if there were any good takeaways from the UCLA conference.

= Director Maggie Weiland said it was interesting to see that everybody is facing displacement issues right now, and that was the common theme. She said she was the first to speak on the six person panel and everybody echoed the challenges that San Francisco is facing in terms of density and growth, and having to deal with displacement. Hopefully, we can try to find a creative way to prevent displacement here in San Francisco, but we may be at the cutting edge and be able to help our other municipalities in the same struggle.

4. Report from Deputy Director: Deputy Director Kaitlyn Azevedo reports on recent venue inspections and activities. [Discussion item]

New Complaints

5/10/2019 7:48:00 AM

Jones

620 Jones St

LLP

5/10/2019 7:48:00 AM	Jones	620 Jones St	LLP	Noisy patrons all night at Jones Bar at 620 Jones St, San Francisco CA. Currently it's almost 11:30 pm and the bar operates so late that neighbors can't sleep with the loud noise coming from the outdoor bar. ACTION: Deputy Director Azevedo forwarded complaint to the owner who confirmed they did not have live music the night before. The complaint was anonymous and staff was unable to follow up.
5/16/2019 11:37:00 PM	St. Mary's Pub	3845 Mission St.	Applying for LLP/MAD/BP	St Mary's Pub - Numerous complaints about this bar. It has gotten progressively worse since 2013 when new ownership took over. They have removed the soundproofing and play music really loud until 2am but there is also a lot of general noise from the patrons until 4-5am. The building is mixed-use for years and the tenants upstairs cannot sleep and it is impossible for tenants to live with the soundproofing removed. There must be some sort of tenants rights against this. ACTION: Inspector Fiorentino responded to 311 complaint. The speakers are situated close to the ceiling. Deputy Director followed up with the owner who said they didn't know about a DJ performing and they planned to move the speakers away from the ceiling. Per Director Weiland, an NOV was issued.

Site Inspections

5/7/2019 10:41:31 PM	The Blue Light	1979 Union St.	N/A	Director Weiland received a call from SFPD about Blue Light operating without an entertainment license. Inspector Savino went to Blue Light and they had a DJ for Taco Tuesday. He explained they must have a permit to have entertainment. Deputy Director Azevedo spoke with the owner and explained the permitting process. They are not zoned for a POE but can apply for an LLP and they have a pool table and need a BP.
5/18/2019 2:09:09 AM	Arena SF	2565 Mission St	POE	Inspector Fiorentino took a sound reading at closing and found them operating above their sound limit. He gave them a verbal warning.

Speakers:

= Deputy Director Kaitlyn Azevedo gave the enforcement report.

Deputy Director Azevedo said the enforcement is highlighted for the point of discussion. There are two highlighted notes about Jones that would be discussed during the Jones item later in the agenda. She said that St. Mary's Pub is a location they are currently working with to bring into compliance. They are currently underway in applying for a Limited Live Performance permit and a Billiard Parlor permit. Inspector Fiorentino received a 311 complaint that he responded to, and found they were having entertainment this past Saturday. Per Director Weiland, Deputy Director Azevedo issued a Notice of Violation and has been in conversation with the owner. She said she feels things will be buttoned up with this venue from here on out. The other location highlighted was the Blue Light on Union Street. Captain Engler reached out to Director Maggie Weiland because there is a new owner of the Blue Light and they are having entertainment without a permit. She said Inspector Savino checked it out, they had a D.J., and now she is working with them. The location is not zoned for a Place of Entertainment now, but they are eligible for a Limited Live Performance permit, and they have a meeting set up next week to bring them bring them into compliance. They also have a pool table and will be getting a Billiard Parlor permit as well. She said the final location highlighted tonight is Arena S.F. One complaint came in since the last hearing. Inspector Fiorentino visited the location a couple of times and he took a sound reading after the new sound limit was issued, and found them operating above their sound limit, and gave them a verbal warning. Deputy Director Azevedo said aside from sound, they have been in compliance.

= Commissioner Caminong asked a question about Emporium coming up a lot on the hearing notes and if neighbors are reacting to the sound complaints from the music, and if their lines and clientele are being unruly.

= Deputy Director Azevedo stated that as far as the crowds, lines, and unruliness, they have not had complaints since she has taken on the enforcement reports. She said they are still experiencing an ongoing complaint and are still trying to determine whether it is coming from Emporium or the Independent. Inspector Savino has been out a number of times to get sound readings they feel comfortable with, and tomorrow they are doing a final sound test for the Independent. Director Weiland will be reviewing that data to issue new sound limits for those locations.

= Director Maggie Weiland stated the fact that they have gone out so many times to the venues has forced them to be cleaner in their security as well.

= Commissioner Lee inquired about Temple’s new sound limit and if there was a big change from the previous sound limit. He also asked if they had installed the wall they planned to build to mitigate sound coming from the front area.

= Director Maggie Weiland said they had some abatement done and assumed the sound limit was a little bit higher. She said she was not aware if they had closed the front area.

= Deputy Director Azevedo said their sound limit did increase due to the sound abatement they completed. She also stated they hired someone to stand at the door to open and shut it so there was no lag in the door being held open.

= President Bleiman inquired about St. Mary’s Pub, and the owner indicating that they didn't know if it was a D.J. Performing.

= Deputy Director Azevedo stated the owner was not aware there was a bartender that allowed someone spin records that evening. Deputy Director Azevedo did make the owner aware of what happened. She said there seemed to be a lack of communication between the staff and the owner. She also stated that the owner is aware of the neighborhood outreach that needs to be done.

= Director Weiland said the owner of St. Mary’s Pub is also aware that a Limited Live Performance permit requires entertainment to end at 10PM, and this event was happening at 11:15 P.M.

= President Blieman said it sounds like according to the complaint that some of the tenants are upset in the building and that might get in the way of in Limited Live Performance Permit.

= Director Maggie Weiland said that is up to Commissioners how they condition the permit, but the Inspector Fiorentino noticed that the speakers were mounted to the ceiling and suggested an easy fix would to pull those down.

= Deputy Director Azevedo said the applicant is aware of a certain tenant, and told her at the intake meeting they may encounter some opposition from that specific person. She said they are monitoring if there are complaints coming in, and if there is entertainment occurring, and trying to check on that for truthfulness.

5. Report from the Senior Analyst: Dylan Rice shares an update on digital enhancements for permitting one-time events and industry education initiatives. [Discussion Item]

Senior Analyst Dylan Rice reported on the digital enhancements and education initiative to support the City efforts to improve efficiency and customer service experience for permitting. They launched a new online application for the one-time outdoor event permit on May 1^st, and Crystal Stewart has been a wonderful partner in making that happen. They have processed ten permits, and have five that are currently being processed. They will see a lot more coming in soon as the season gets busier. There has been positive feedback from the event producers as well as some of the permit officers from police stations on the new process. They will no longer use the PDF’s for these permits. This is a digital end to end application process, and you can now use your mobile device to show your permit and send it to an inspector or a police officer at your event. There are also automated e-mail notifications when there is a status change and when there is a confirm receipt, so that is an enhancement in terms of making it more communication friendly. And, there is no longer two separate application forms for events with entertainment or amplified sound. They are also going to be moving the sound truck permit and the one-time indoor event permits onto this new software platform. He is currently creating those templates now, and the goal is to have those live by the end of June. He received a notice from the City's Chief Digital Officer that the City is going to be transferring to the new SF.GOV platform starting this Wednesday. They will eventually be changing the website into that new platform and they will be doing it in phases.

The next mixer, which is the S.F. Outdoor Events Network, is going to happen in late July. The topic will be “success through vendor management.” Which will discuss events that become more complex with multiple vendors with different experience levels and different needs, capacities, and how you can efficiently and successfully manage them for their success and your event’s success. Events Locker was one of the sponsors at the Summit and they rebranded to Event Hub, and they will be a program partner on this particular mixer. They will do a presentation on best practices and tools for improving event management. Michael Bleau, who is the C.E.O., will give a brief presentation. Dylan will also lead a mini panel, and identify a few larger cultural events that have complex social vendors and structures, and how to talk about challenges and opportunities for vendor management.

6. Police Department Comments & Questions. This item allows any member of the SFPD to address the Commission regarding matters related to nightlife and public safety. [Discussion Item]

SPEAKERS: None

ACTION: None

7. Hearing and Possible Action regarding applications for permits under the jurisdiction of the Entertainment Commission. [Discussion and Possible Action Item]

Consent Calendar:

Consent Agenda:

EC-1522 – Chen Bin Huang of Supreme Crab S-Corp, Supreme Crab, 245 Jefferson St., Limited Live Performance Permit.

Regular Agenda:

EC-1524 – Victor and Silvia Ormeno of KH LLC, Kimbara, 3372 19^th St., Change in Ownership and dba Change, Place of Entertainment.

SPEAKERS: = Deputy Director, Kaitlyn Azevedo, staff report

= Deputy Director Azevedo stated the only consent item on the agenda was for an accessory use permit. There is no opposition from the public, and the police department has no added conditions.

MOTION: Commissioner Tan moved to approve the consent agenda, Commissioner Thomas second the motion.

ACTION: The Limited Live Performance Permit was conditionally granted to the applicant.

AYES: Commissioner Thomas, Commissioner Caminong, Commissioner Bleiman, Commissioner Lee, Commissioner Falzon, Commissioner Tan

NAYS: None

ABESENT: AL PEREZ

SPEAKERS: = Deputy Director, Kaitlyn Azevedo, staff report

MOTION: Commissioner Thomas moved to continue the agenda item to the July 4, 2019 hearing at the request of the applicant, Commissioner Falzon second the motion.

ACTION: Continuance was granted for the permit application to the June 4, 2019 hearing.

AYES: Commissioner Thomas, Commissioner Caminong, Commissioner Bleiman, Commissioner Lee, Commissioner Falzon, Commissioner Tan

NAYS: None

ABSENT: AL PEREZ

8. Discussion regarding neighbor complaints for #EC-1172 Limited Live Performance permit for dba Jones located at 620 Jones Street, San Francisco, CA. 94102. [Discussion Item]

= SPEAKERS: Vice President Caminong

= Jordan Langer, owner of 620 Jones Street

= Director Maggie Weiland

= Vice President Caminong requested the applicant appear to discuss what has been going on at 620 Jones. She said looking at the record of complaints, there are over 20 complaints from some of the neighbors around the outdoor programming. It seems to have slowed down in the last few months, which is great, but she wanted to hear more from the applicant around why that the complaints decreased. In terms of the conversations that they are having with the neighbors, what is the game plan around ensuring that these complaints continue to stay down, and what are the strategies they are in implementing to successfully continue to do programming.

= Director Maggie Weiland said there was a data point correction. They said there were 41 complaints in the last year when they put their synopsis together, but there were actually 29. It was a miscount because there were 41 entries in the enforcement timeline, but only 29 of them were complaints.

= Jordan Langer said he is an owner and partner at 620 Jones and has operated successfully for about ten years. Over the past year they gone through some different changes. Over a year ago his business partner Pete Glikstern stepped in and started running the project on a full day-to-day basis and they got busier. There was a very long period of time they didn't have a lot of complaints. He was very active in the first number of years at Jones, and every one of the neighbors had his personal cell phone number. He talked to them and invited them down for dinner and had conversations with them rather with them calling 311. They would get the direct phone call if it was too loud or if something was going on. He said fast forward to this past year, they have fallen off a little bit with their business, and therefore, the complaints stopped because they just weren't that busy. When his business partner Pete stepped back in, they started to get busier and they started to get more complaints. They have actively been reaching out to their neighbors to have communications with them. He recently asked the Entertainment Commission to facilitate some of that mediation so they could sit down and connect with their neighbors. They would absolutely love the opportunity to sit down and speak with what he believes are two main complainants. He said if you look at their ten year history at 620 Jones, they have had significant success in communicating with their neighbors, having conversations with them, and coming up with solutions to the point where they have installed windows into resident’s units and put people in hotels. He said they have gone above and beyond to make sure they are a good neighbor, but now it is a little bit of a different time because there are new people living nearby and they haven't had the opportunity to speak with them yet.

Over the course of the past couple of months, the complaints have subsided. Based on the interaction he has had with Deputy Director Azevedo, some of the complaints weren't even coming from 620 Jones. He understood twenty-nine complaints is a lot, but they have a track record of being able to prove that they can successfully navigate through and with the neighborhood to make sure they are not just in the neighborhood, but they are also an integral part of what makes Jones a staple of San Francisco nightlife.

= Commissioner Falzon asked if he could speak to what Jones’ upcoming programming will look like since we are coming into the summer months and has he been giving notice to his neighbors. He asked what he was asking for from the Entertainment Commission in regard to mediation.

= Jordan Langer said they communicate very regularly with the neighbors they have access to by letting them know what is going on by phone calls, e-mail, and flyers. He said he was asking for a sit down meeting with the individuals to talk to them to see what Jones could do to make their neighbors’ lives better, and be able to facilitate mediation and to prove they are moving in a good faith effort to resolve this. Having the Commission involved will help make sure this is not a recurring thing and he knows they can resolve it.

= Commissioner Thomas said it was helpful to acknowledge some of the complaints were coming in at times when they were dark or not open, so just because there are 29 complaints doesn't mean there were 29 instances when they were violating their conditions. There are a couple times when they got a Notice of Violation because they were operating outside of the bounds of their Limited Live Performance permit, but those dropped off which is great. She suggested they work to engage these residents and at least put in place a better communication strategy, which might also help the neighbors identify the source of the sound that is disturbing them and hopefully the owners of Jones can get them to engage.

= Director Weiland said they tried to reach out to facilitate mediation and they will circle back to the complainants. It will be good to have herself, the Deputy Director, and Pete and Jordan in the room with the two complainants or anyone else interested. If they are nonresponsive, she is not sure what else they can do aside from responding to complaints as they come in if they are in the field to check on compliance.

= Commissioner Tan said Jones was a great venue and he remembered when they were putting in windows for the complainants for their Limited Live Performance and he was curious how the windows were working out.

= Jordan Langer said one woman in particular was very happy. After they worked out the windows, she has come to the meetings in support of what they do and has written a number of letters of support to the Entertainment Commission for not only 620 Jones but also other projects they manage.

= Commissioner Tan suggested that they make sure that all of the contact information is up-to-date so that they know who to call in case any of the residents are bothered, and it gives an extra olive branch to the neighbors.

= Commissioner Lee said the owner is a tenured person who was doing enough and he applauds his efforts for being here to reach out. He said the owner is doing his part and it was evident he was trying to meet with the complainants.

= President Bleiman said 620 Jones is a unique venue and is uniquely suited to get a lot of complaints because of the nature of the indoor and outdoor space. The citations were a breach of trust; it is one thing to have a neighbor complaint about noise, but another to find somebody acting outside of their permit. The Commission often sees that of rookie operators who don’t know the rules. Going forward, if they know somebody doesn't want to talk to them, the Commission can try to help. Getting us involved is hopefully helpful, but at the end of the day it is the permit holder’s responsibility. The Commission is happy to help and wants to find solutions.

9. Commissioner Comments & Questions. [Announcements]

= Commissioner Falzon had a meeting on May 6^th with Halcyon and they received a very extensive tour up to the roof. There has been quite a bit of work done to the place since the previous owners. The entire roof is foamed that didn’t exist years ago. The skylights are sealed and insulated. They have recently provided a bid to do some of the first phase sound abatement work and, unfortunately, it appears that the management is not happy about the costs involved. The group is not quite where he would like to see it but, nonetheless, the meeting was productive, and there has been great communication. He also mentioned that last week was Law Enforcement Appreciation Week.

= Commissioner Thomas said there is an event on the future of queer nightlife that going to be hosted at Manny’s and Jolene’s, (which is the newest queer nightlife establishment) on June 3rd at 7:30PM at Manny’s on Valencia and 16^th, and she was looking forward to hearing about the future of queer night in San Francisco.

= Vice President Caminong said she and Director Weiland and Deputy Director Azevedo joined some city officials and comedians on the steps of City Hall this morning to save the Punchline. She said we are looking at so many different businesses in San Francisco with nightlife and restaurants forced to close because of displacement issues. She gave a shout out to Supervisor Peskin for introducing a zoning measure to preserve the building as entertainment space, and the Punchline family for bringing attention to this cause.

ADJOURNMENT 6:25PM

Meetings - May 21, 2019 - Minutes

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