San Francisco District 2 Supervisor Catherine Stefani cast the sixth vote Tuesday to remove an amendment that would have landmarked fixed, orchestra-style seating at the Castro Theatre — dealing a crushing blow to activists who've been trying to block Another Planet Entertainment's plans to make major changes at the historic moviehouse.
The amendment, introduced in April by District 5 Supervisor Dean Preston, a straight ally, was opposed by gay District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, who represents the LGBTQ Castro neighborhood on the board. Mandelman's opposition was joined in recent days by gay District 4 Supervisor Joel Engardio and straight ally District 11 Supervisor Ahsha Safaí, as the Bay Area Reporter first reported.
Mandelman made a motion to remove the fixed-seating amendment, which passed 6-4, with District 9 Supervisor Hillary Ronen absent. A subsequent vote on the interior landmarking was approved 9-1 with Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin (D3) casting the dissenting vote.
Peskin told the B.A.R. after the meeting that "at that point it was a protest vote."
"The Castro Theatre is a landmark," he emphasized. "The whole reason for the interior landmarking was really about preserving the cultural icon that is the Castro Theatre. When we basically gave them the green light for a party palace, it's like 'why did we even go down this road?'"
Peskin told the B.A.R. after the meeting that "at that point it was a protest vote."
"The Castro Theatre is a landmark," he emphasized. "The whole reason for the interior landmarking was really about preserving the cultural icon that is the Castro Theatre. When we basically gave them the green light for a party palace, it's like 'why did we even go down this road?'"
Safaí and Stefani had been identified as swing votes on the matter last week by Jeffery Kwong, a gay man who is the president of the Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club, during a town hall.
At the meeting, Stefani said that though she understands both sides of the issue, it's Mandelman's support for removing the amendment that swayed her.
"I know there are strong feelings on this topic and I appreciate the hundreds of people who reached out to me," said the supervisor, who represents the Marina and Cow Hollow neighborhoods. "What I want to really focus on is the fact that Supervisor Mandelman is not only my colleague, he is also my friend and he's someone I trust greatly, someone I know cares deeply about his community, cares deeply about his district, and cares deeply about the LGBTQ+ community. He's someone I trust, someone I admire, who's honest and hardworking, and when he comes to me and tells me this is what he wants to do in his district and thinks this is best, I'm going to honor that."
Peskin, who voted for the fixed-seating amendment in committee, saw things differently. Peskin, who represents North Beach and Chinatown, said it's "nothing short of tragic that this interior landmarking of the Castro Theatre has invoked division and anger, and sadly, intentionally sowed."
Peskin invoked Harvey Milk, the late gay Castro supervisor, who asked that the movie palace first be landmarked (which it was in 1977) after the 1963 demolition of the Fox Theatre on Market Street.
"I don't think we need to make this decision beholden to the inertia of one party's investment," Peskin said, referring to APE.
District 7 Supervisor Myrna Melgar and Mandelman said that the vote shouldn't be considered a referendum on APE's plans. The latter called landmarking the space under the original historic preservation commission recommendations "good preservation hygiene."
"The sentiment in the neighborhood, at least as I am reading it, is strongly in support of the APE project," Mandelman said. "The Castro Merchants, Harvey Milk's own merchants group, is highly supportive of it."
Indeed, last week the merchants voted overwhelmingly to drop conditions it had previously set for endorsing APE's plans, as the B.A.R. reported.
Mandelman and Safaí disagreed with the Fox comparison.
"This is not like the Fox Theatre," Safaí said. "We are not talking about demolishing. We are literally talking about restoring frescos, restoring chandeliers ... but also for it to be an adaptable space."
Gay APE spokesperson David Perry was jubilant in his statement to the B.A.R.
"Thank you San Francisco Board of Supervisors. Everyone who treasures the Castro Theatre, the Castro neighborhood, and the film and LGBTQ programming that is so much a part of both should be grateful tonight," he stated. "An irreplaceable international icon now has the ability to be preserved, restored and to evolve for this and future generations."
Stephen Torres, a queer man who is executive co-chair of the Castro LGBTQ Cultural District, one of the many groups opposed to APE's plans, told the B.A.R. after the vote, "Although we are disappointed that the Board of Supervisors did not take this opportunity to mandate proper stewardship over a threatened community asset, we will continue to support the broad coalition of community stakeholders as they seek to ensure that community self determination. We are grateful to the supervisors who have stood by our position."
Peter Pastreich, a straight ally who is the executive director of the Castro Theatre Conservancy, which is opposed to APE's plans, condemned the decision.
"The Castro Theatre is a beloved landmark and a vital community asset, and should be treated as such," Pastreich stated. "Today's vote, indicating the supervisors' willingness to see San Francisco's last movie palace desecrated so that a for-profit organization can make more profit, showed a lack of understanding of the Castro Theatre's broad cultural significance that we very much regret."
Gay Neighbors for a Restored Castro Theatre co-chair Mike Murray told the B.A.R. that his group is "thrilled about today's vote to preserve the historical and cultural significance of the Castro Theatre while allowing it to adapt and thrive in the 21st century."
"We also applaud Supervisor Mandelman's recognition of the strong neighborhood support for APE's restoration plan, which we hope will move forward at Thursday's joint commission meeting," he continued.
Speaking to the B.A.R. on June 5, Safaí said he spoke with about 50 people as he discerned how he'd vote, including Castro residents and small business owners.
"As someone that's a son of an architect and city planner who understands the historic importance of a building like the Castro Theatre, if this plan did not do everything it could to preserve all aspects of the build it's not something I would support," he said, referring to APE's stated plans for the theater.
In addition to Preston and Peskin, the other supervisors who voted against Mandelman's amendment were Shamann Walton (D10) and Connie Chan (D1).
Long road to vote
The imbroglio over the theater began in January 2022, when APE — which runs the Outside Lands music festival in Golden Gate Park and the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium downtown — was announced as the new operator of the 101-year-old Castro Theatre.
Some Castro neighborhood organizations, and LGBTQ and film groups — such as the Castro LGBTQ Cultural District and the Castro Theatre Conservancy — formed the Friends of the Castro Theatre Coalition in opposition to the proposed changes.
APE has recently stated that it will screen films about one-third of the time the theater is open, which has dismayed moviegoers and many others.
The supervisors will take a second and final vote on the landmarking ordinance June 13.
A certificate of appropriateness on APE's plans will be taken up by a joint meeting of the historic preservation commission and the planning commission on Thursday, June 15, at 11 a.m. (It'd initially been scheduled for June 8, but was postponed.) Public comment will be allowed on the matter at the meeting.
The decision by the oversight bodies is likely to be appealed to the supervisors.
Updated, 6/7/23: This article has been updated with comments from Supervisor Peskin and with the new date for the joint meeting of the planning and historic preservation commissions.
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