California continues revitalization efforts after pandemic

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 969, authored by Sen. Scott Wiener (D- San Francisco), which allows cities and counties across California to create local ordinances creating “entertainment zones” where local bars and restaurants can sell alcohol to-go in designated areas.

The measure makes statewide provisions in a previous Wiener bill, 2023’s SB 76, that authorized the city of San Francisco to adopt ordinances establishing “entertainment zone” boundaries where local restaurants and bars could sell open container to-go alcoholic beverages to be consumed off premises.

The Alcohol Beverage Control Act previously restricted venues serving alcohol by time, manner and place, not allowing beverages to be taken outside of establishments even if the events were outside. Venues were limited to selling and serving within their physical, permanent locations.

“Before, when you had a big street fair, you’d be busy inside, but everybody drinking outside would be going to a tent and getting it (alcohol),” Ben Bleiman, the owner of Harrington’s Bar and Grill in San Francisco and founder of the California Nightlife Association said. “Now it allows the businesses to sell to-go alcohol, only plastic cups, within that designated area.”

According to a press release from Sen. Wiener’s office on Sept. 28, Front Street hosted its first entertainment zone event last week with an Oktoberfest celebration.

Front Street is San Francisco and California’s first ever entertainment zone, and the three participating businesses reported a larger number of attendees than last year, increased foot traffic over regular Fridays and an increase in revenue.

According to Bleiman, Oktoberfest was Harrington’s Bar and Grill’s busiest day and it was “very good financially” after a slow August.

“If you take Friday, Oktoberfest in San Francisco, our best guess is that we had about 9,000 people there. We are expecting, on a good day 3000 to 3500, that was our goal,” Bleiman said.

Blieman says nightlife will be the reason for a thriving downtown because now people go into the office when they want to, not because they have to, and they need a reason to return to downtown San Francisco and downtowns across California.

“I believe very strongly that entertainment won’t be a part of the recovery of downtowns across the state,” Bleiman said. “It will be the driving force.”

Marina Texeira who owns the Torch Club in Sacramento, a live music venue which has been around for nearly 90 years, said in an interview that the pandemic took a toll on the Torch club because they were closed for 16 months.

“It’s a two-fold. We’re a live music venue and we don’t necessarily have an outdoor area,” Texeira said. “As well as we don’t serve food, so we are basically the first to have to shutter and the last to reopen.”

Texeira said that she’s noticed trends have changed since the pandemic in how late people are willing to stay out.

“We have early shows, you know, some at 4 p.m. and some at 6 p.m.,” Texeira said. “Then we have an even show at 9 p.m. and typically that’s done by midnight. So, it’s not like the 2 a.m. close anymore.”

Texeira said that she isn’t sure if the Torch Club would be able to do something like an “entertainment zone” regularly because of its location on 15^th street and because the Torch Club doesn’t have a patio area, but she sees the potential of entertainment zones.

Though there is no “entertainment zone” currently in the city, Sacramento is approving ordinances to help businesses being in more patrons.

The Sacramento City Council has approved creating a more streamlined permitting process for small businesses to host live events according to The Mayor’s Office of Community Engagement in March.

“I believe very strongly that entertainment won’t be a part of the recovery of downtowns across the state….It will be the driving force.”

Jennifer Singer, the Associate Media and Communications Manager for the City Manager of Sacramento, said in an email that the Limited Entertainment Permit (LEP) is intended to remove requirements such as building inspections for small businesses who want to add entertainment to their core business operations

According to Singer, the ordinance is still being developed and finalized by staff and should be reviewed and adopted by the city council by the end of the calendar year. Singer said the ordinance should remove requirements like time consuming building inspections for smaller businesses if they apply for an LEP.

“If SB 969 is signed into law, the city will work with stakeholders like our property-based improvement districts to identify locations to designate as entertainment zones,” Singer said.

In a statement, Wiener said California’s entertainment zones are similar to initiatives in states like Michigan, which came in in response to COVID-19 business closures and recovery efforts after the pandemic.

The Michigan city of Rockford created the Rockford Outdoor Refreshment Area (RORA) after the legislature passed a bill there as a response to COVID-19.

Rockford city manager Thad Beard said that RORA was created to assist businesses in remaining open when social distancing measures were still in place and indoor dining was not available.

Beard says the legislation created “social districts” with a commons area where patrons could legally walk around with a drink in their hand.

According to Beard, RORA has eight members whose participation is distinguished through signage and stickers purchased through the Chamber of Commerce.

“In order to remain legal within the statute, you have to use an approved cup, and that cup has to identify the restaurant or bar in which you purchased it,” Beard said.

Beard said RORA does this by having a uniform sticker that is modified for each business so that they each have their own stickers for their cups. Customers are not allowed to take cups from one establishment into another.

According to Beard, the statue in Rockford was approved for a year but after its success, the measure was made permanent.

“I think the intent actually came to fruition in the sense of enhancing a local business and the residents, like the restaurants, are [stronger] because of it,” Beard said.

Mahrukh Siddiqui is a Capitol Weekly intern. Click here for more information about Capitol Weekly’s Public Policy Journalism Internship.