The paperwork for a proposed ballot measure to establish a “Good Neighbor Commission” has been submitted to San Francisco’s Department of Elections.

As envisioned, San Francisco’s existing seven-member Entertainment Commission would be renamed the “San Francisco Entertainment and Good Neighbor Commission;” an additional four commissioners would be added; and the responsibilities of the Commission would be expanded and enhanced “to better serve the San Francisco community regarding matters of entertainment and key related issues regarding health and safety.”

The Commission would be tasked with enforcing San Francisco’s existing Good Neighbor Policy, which states: “Where nighttime entertainment activities…are conducted, there shall be procedures in place that are reasonable calculated to insure that the quiet, safety and cleanliness of the premises and vicinity are maintained.”

One of the Commission’s specific tasks would be to uphold the monitoring requirements and response times to noise complaints in the city, ensuring that “Noise complaints from persons living or working within .5 miles (2640 feet) of a major event center (capacity greater than 5,000) or from specific addresses within .5 miles of a major event center, will be addressed and monitored within 45 minutes of the complaint being made for the 1st and 2nd complaints registered per 6 month period, per person or address.”

The Commission would be empowered to revoke event and entertainment-related permits, a power and duty that will be applied “to ensure that any major event centers/places of entertainment do not interrupt or interfere with accessibility to health care services, provision of services or treatment including in and around hospitals and medical/research centers.”

And yes, if you guessed the initiative is targeting the future Warriors Arena and Event Center and its forecast traffic, crowds and noise, you’re correct.

20 thoughts on “Initiative to Establish a Good Neighbor Commission in San Francisco”
    1. “Within one year after the operative date of this Article, and annually thereafter, the Entertainment Commission shall submit a report to the Mayor and Board of Supervisors analyzing the fee revenue generated from the issuance, renewal and processing of applications for entertainment-related permits, and proposing fees therefor that will cover the annual operating costs of the commission. Within three years of the operative date of this Article, the Board of Supervisors shall establish fees for entertainment-related permits at levels sufficient to cover the estimated annual operating costs of the commission.”

      Well, see, it’s free money, ‘cuz promoters will pay an infinite amt to stage in SF.

      1. But in terms of the actual budget for the Commission, which is far from infinite as proposed: “Subject to the availability of funds, the commissioners shall (i) receive compensation of $50 per [monthly] meeting and (ii) be reimbursed reasonable expenses incurred for authorized activities on behalf of the commission pursuant to written policies and procedures adopted by the commission and approved by the Board of Supervisor.”

        1. Might we ask, then, with this level of largesse…NOT! involved what would motivate people to serve? Sure SF is filled w/ philanthropists – look how many people contribute to websites for nothing – but might not having the power to revoke permits for (potentially lucrative) events encourage unseemly behavior…$50/month + all the “unused” tickets you want.

          1. These positions seem ripe for graft. I imagine the interested parties would fork over much more than $50 a month to keep complaints to a minimum.

        2. The real cost is not in salaries, it’s in gumming up the system. Of course, to its proponents that’s a feature, not a bug.

  1. “The Commission would be empowered to revoke event and entertainment-related permits, a power and duty that will be applied “to ensure that any major event centers/places of entertainment do not interrupt or interfere with accessibility to health care services, provision of services or treatment including in and around hospitals and medical/research centers.”

    Please don’t make me laugh like this….snot in running out my nose. “empowered to revoke event and entertainment-related permits….” Right. The entertainment commission is a joke…always has been and always will be no matter what they call it.

  2. San Francisco, if someone can think of it, we can figure out a way to over legislate it. This is comically west coast. People are preparing to get angry and inconvenienced in a couple of years. Are we upset at everything? The city is boxing me into reluctantly becoming a believer in smaller government.

  3. Ooh. I think I finally found a commission I watched to be a member of. I imagine it comes with lots of free tickets to events to do research. Free beer, free food, valet parking….

    1. The smug cloud from Mission Bay / Dog Patch is going to merge with the one from Telegraph Hill and destroy the SoMaFiDi… it’s going to be total carnage. Either that or create the MissBDoPa District.

  4. ‘Good Neighbor’? Sounds more like ‘Nazi Neighbor’ Commission to me. What are they going to do when any neighbor can complain about noise — shut down an NBA game or a major concert? I think the Giants have shown that they can manage the crowds and traffic pretty effectively for a venue more than twice the size of what Chase Center will feature. Yes, there will be peak traffic before and after games, but this is a city after all.

  5. This is a joke right?

    The Entertainment Commission actions to date are the antithesis of anything doing with being a good neighbor!

    As a group they are all in with the late night club industry. They are a conflict ridden group. Want proof? Attend just one meeting of the commission.

  6. Graft, fraud, and self-dealing are already an issue with commission members. The last thing they need to have is a way to bring in more cronies to suck up the free tickets and money.

  7. UPDATE: While the formal title of the “Good Neighbor” initiative has been changed to “Expanding the Size and Duties of the Entertainment Commission​,” the proposed impact of the measure remains the same.

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