"I grew up in that bar. I spent more time there than I did in my own home." Rick Figari reflects on his deep connection to the Ha-Ra Club, where his parents met and where he has countless memories.
Back when London Breed was still mayor, her idea to clamp down on the notorious drug trade and nighttime street circus that pervaded the Tenderloin District was to shut down corner liquor stores earlier in parts of the Tenderloin, and prohibit them from doing business between midnight and 5 am. That proposal got passed into law in June 2024 (taking effect the following month), and liquor stores on this 20-block area of the Tenderloin are now forced to close at midnight.
Fred and Desmond aren't in a salon. They're on the sidewalk outside the Kelly Cullen Community building on Leavenworth Street, a popular gathering area for Tenderloin residents during the day that on most days hosts an outdoor barbershop. Beneath the cape, Fred sits on a wooden diner chair. Others nearby chat or doze on overturned milk crates, wheelchairs, or the steps into the building, when they're not gated off to prevent loitering.
On Tuesday, he will introduce a resolution calling on city leaders to fund violence prevention programs for the neighborhood's youth, who he says are getting caught up in the area's drug and crime troubles. Across the city, programs like these are credited with reducing violence by helping young people who might otherwise be recruited by criminal enterprises with after-school programs, job training opportunities, or just a space to hang out.
After an Urban Alchemy community ambassador was fatally shot on the job last month, San Francisco lawmakers Tuesday rallied behind the nonprofit, whose future role in the city has been in question in recent months. "We cannot deliver on safe and clean streets in the Tenderloin without Urban Alchemy, full stop," said Supervisor Bilal Mahmood, who represents the neighborhood. Mayor Daniel Lurie, District Attorney Brooke Jenkins and other city supervisors also praised the ambassadors' ability to connect
After moving to the Bay Area in 2007, Meghann Adams bounced around: Oakland for a few months, the Mission for a year. Before the 42-year-old found her current home, she said, lowering her voice: "I lived in Noe Valley for a year... It's not me." So, four years ago, she moved back to the grittier, working-class Tenderloin, where she'd felt more at home.
The SF First Thursday Art Walk makes 27+ galleries available late night to the public for an art walk every first Thursday from 6-10 pm. This is not a bar crawl. Each location is either a traditional gallery or a retail space with room dedicated to fine art. Occasionally there are special events to showcase local independent artists along with food trucks and more. SF First Thursday Art Walk First Thursdays | 6-10 pm Tenderloin and Lower Polk District FREE
FREE ($10 suggested donation) | Join us for a special screening of two classic episodes of The Streets of San Francisco, the iconic 1970s crime drama that turned the city into its stage-and the Tenderloin into one of its most evocative backdrops. PLUS: A virtual message from a special guest star! Register via Humanitix These episodes, partially filmed on location in the TL, offer a rare window into the neighborhood's visual and cultural landscape during a time of transformation and tension.
We keep it moving, hustling with the changes, thinking outside the margins. Saying farewell to venues calling it quits and acknowledging local labels and artists on the rise.
