Four Entertainment Permits Sail Through as Downtown Street Party Tops $31M in Spending

The San Francisco Entertainment Commission approved every permit on its April 8 docket without opposition, clearing the way for the Portola Music Festival's fifth year at Pier 80, another 12-month cycle of Downtown First Thursdays, a new entertainment permit for a Mission District billiards lounge, and ambient sound for a downtown public art installation. One application — for the Hideaway Cafe — was continued after the applicant missed its neighborhood outreach deadline.

• Downtown First Thursdays renewed after generating $31 million in small-business spending across 400,000 cumulative attendees

• Portola Music Festival returns to Pier 80 for Sept. 26–27 with 40,000 daily capacity and a 31% drop in sound complaints

• The Hall, an upscale billiards lounge on Mission Street, wins entertainment permit for DJs, comedy and live bands

• Yerba Buena Partnership secures sound permit to pair ambient music with a 95-foot projection art installation downtown

• Hideaway Cafe postponed after missing neighborhood notification requirements

The Commission voted 4-0 to renew Into the Streets' one-time outdoor event permit for Downtown First Thursdays, the free monthly street party that occupies four downtown blocks on the first Thursday of every month from 5 to 10 p.m. Vice Chair Cyn Wang recused herself from the vote.