An LGBT archival center in downtown San Francisco plans to relocate as its rent continues to increase and its collection outgrows its current space.
The GLBT Historical Society maintains its archives in an office building on Mission Street near Third where it pays a discounted monthly rent under $8,000. In April its rent will increase by $1,000 a month, according to society officials, and its current lease expires March 30, 2016.
"It is a very discounted, fair rent for downtown San Francisco. Even so, it is way more than we can afford and it will keep going up. So we just simply have to move," said Paul Boneberg, the society's executive director, in an interview this week with the Bay Area Reporter.
Meanwhile, the organization is seeking a five-year lease extension for the GLBT History Museum it operates in the city's gay Castro district. The cultural institution has been renting a storefront on 18th Street from the national pharmacy chain Walgreens and its current lease is set to expire November 30, 2015.
The museum soft-opened in mid-December 2010. Its yearly attendance is now at 15,000 and has been growing 10 percent annually.
In early July the historical society sent Walgreens, headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois, a letter seeking to enter into lease renewal negotiations. It would like to sign another five-year lease for the museum, which recently received a brand new permanent exhibit in its main gallery space.
"Walgreens has been very generous to us," said Boneberg. "We expect they will work with us to allow us to stay in that space. But it's a decision they are going to have to think about as a large company and come back to us. We are hopeful."
Walgreens' regional director for government relations, Jennifer Kurrie, did not respond to a request for comment by press time Wednesday. When the company faced opposition to its plan to expand its specialty pharmacy on 18th Street into the adjacent storefront, it agreed to share it with the gay museum, paid to build out the space, and has leased it at below-market-rates to the society.
On average, the society has paid $3,500 a month, well below the going rate for retail spaces in the Castro. Should it need to relocate, Boneberg said, "the museum needs to be in a subsidized, discounted space."
Gay District 8 Supervisor Scott Wiener, who represents the Castro at City Hall, brought up the status of the gay museum's lease to company officials earlier this summer during a meeting to discuss other matters.
"This museum is very popular in the community. People want this museum to remain a part of the Castro," said Wiener. "Walgreens has been an integral part of the neighborhood for many years, and I know Walgreens knows the importance of the museum."
After the meeting, at which Walgreens executives didn't state if they would extend the museum's lease, said Wiener, he encouraged society officials to proactively approach the company.
"This location has been terrific for the museum. It's become a key part of the Castro's cultural draw and it's helping our neighborhood stay connected to our LGBT past," said Wiener. "It is important the museum continue, and I am glad to see they are thinking ahead and reaching out to Walgreens to seek a lease extension."
Search Underway for Archive Space
Having spent a decade in its current Mission Street location, the historical society plans to relocate its offices and archives within the next 18 months. The archive, according to society officials, is one of the largest collections of queer historic materials in the world.
Among its holdings are 517 manuscript collections ranging in size from one folder to more than 100 linear feet; 4,000-plus periodical titles with complete runs of many historic publications; more than 70 linear feet of ephemera dating to the 1910s; and approximately 80,000 photographs, with the earliest images from the 1880s.
"Our space needs are paramount. It has to be a location large enough, 5,000 square feet minimum," said Boneberg. "It has to be secure. It has to be wheelchair accessible. It has to be climate controlled."
While the society is "willing to look anywhere" in the Bay Area for a new site for its archives, said Boneberg, it would like to remain in San Francisco since the city has been a major financial backer over the years.
"What we want to do is find a home that is affordable and functional for us for at least a decade, if not more than a decade," he said. "We are not trying to just move to a cheaper office. We want to find a discounted space well suited for the needs of the archive."
The Board of Supervisors, at the request of Wiener, set aside $100,000 in city funding in the 2014-2015 fiscal year budget earmarked for LGBT archival work. Administered by the city's Grants for the Arts program, the funding is expected to assist the GLBT Historical Society in covering the cost of moving its archival collection to a new location.
"We are working with the society over the next few years to try to help make sure they are going to be able to have a really good space to move to," said Wiener.
The money is in addition to the $50,000 Mayor Ed Lee designated for the historical society in his budget. The funding is a continuation of the fiscal support the nonprofit has received from the city for several years now.
According to its most recent tax filing, for 2012, the society's revenue was $448,701 while expenses totaled $509,133, resulting in a deficit of $60,432. In June the historical society launched a fundraising campaign highlighting to its donors the "multiple serious challenges" it is facing, from the need for a new archival space to its museum lease.
Boneberg, who earns $71,757 a year, declined to state how much the society would like to raise. He did say this week that the appeal for donations "has gone very well."
The nonprofit recently received a $75,000 grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission, part of the National Archives, to complete a survey of its audiovisual and photograph collections, process as much of its backlog of nearly 200 linear feet as possible, and prioritize materials for future digitization.
The society is using the funding to hire a second, full-time archivist to oversee the project, called "Visions and Voices of GLBT History."
"The Mary Richards collection is an example of the materials we'll be able to process thanks to this grant," stated Marjorie Bryer, the society's archivist. "It contains more than 150 audiotaped interviews with notable community leaders, such as Jose Sarria and Pat Norman."
For more information about the society and its museum or archives, visit http://www.glbthistory.org