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Photo by James Nagel // Written by Mike Frash //

San Francisco is changing. Rapidly. As technology jobs increase every day in the Bay Area, high-income people from all over the world are moving into San Francisco, which has always been a transitory City.

Case in point, the February median price of a one-bedroom apartment:

Supperclub, I-Beam, Cafe Cocomo, Lucky 13 & The Lexington, have all bit the dust or have a significant threat to their existence. There is development in the works near both The Independent & Slim’s…the threat to the arts in San Francisco is real and it’s happening now.

Supervisor London Breed is introducing legislation that to protect nightlife venues from new developments. The legislation prevents venues from being shut down if they are operating within their permits, requires developers to work with venues before they start construction, and ensures that all potential tenants of a new development know about the local venues before they move in.

SF bar & venue owner Ben Bleiman has organized this petition you need to sign (it will a take a couple minutes), which aims to gather support for Breed’s new legislation.

300 more signatures are needed in the next four days to fulfill this petition (at the time of publishing), which will show a unified voice to SF City Hall. It’s the only way to ensure our world-renowned nightlife will continue to thrive throughout this period of rapid change in SF.

Click here to sign the petition.

Bleiman writes:

As a bar/venue owner in San Francisco, I have seen time and time again how one new neighbor or a group of new neighbors from a recently developed “market rate” property can force beloved nightlife venues to endure lawsuits, harassment and even closure. These venues’ only “infraction” was conducting their businesses legally and as they have for years before the new developments. Supervisor London Breed has bravely and rightly proposed a commonsense solution, and I enthusiastically, wholeheartedly support her legislation!

Protect live music in San Francisco by joining this petition and spreading the word.

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