Links from the ‘War on Fun,’ and why San Francisco music venues need support in face of unnecessary regulatory action
Before I moved out here, I was under the distinct impression that California was all about fun—an opinion bolstered by the incessant airing of a commercial, which assured me life on the West Coast involved board meetings only in so much as they included snowboards, surfboards and skateboards. But what Maria and Arnold failed to mention, is that fun itself is currently under assault in California.
That, at least, is the message being spread by a coalition of musicians, club owners and others, who say that the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control has “decided to step up harassment of bars, clubs, dance halls and live entertainment venues of all types” in San Francisco.
Among the most recent developments, Slim’s will be serving booze again tonight after the department suspended its liquor license for 10 days. The owners say the action was the result of noise complaints from a single resident—who, it should be noted, moved into the neighborhood approximately 19 years after the music venue opened its doors. SF Weekly’s All Shook Down music blog has the full story and also saw fit to publish a response from two of those noisy musicians:
Slim’s Liquor License Temporarily Suspended Due to Neighbor Complaints
Slim’s Noise Complaints: An Open Letter to Jeanmarie Guenot, the Club’s Angry Neighbor
The bigger story, however, is that Slim’s is just one of several clubs in San Francisco that have been on the receiving end of stepped-up enforcement by the ABC, which in the last few years has suddenly started taking all-ages venues to task for not making enough of their income from food sales—a requirement found nowhere in state law. Here’s some background on the dispute:
Ageless Music: The Battle Between Venues and ABC
A recent edition of “Music And … ,” a new monthly column by Ben Van Houten of The Bay Bridged, was devoted to a thoughtful editorial on the subject and why the action should be of concern to more than just indie music fans:
Five Ways to Think About the Crackdown on SF Venues
It should also be noted that Oakland venues have formed their own coalition to lobby for changes to city rules, such as a requirement that any club with more than one pool table had to pay a $1,040 fee. East Bay Express has some background on that issue:
Oakland Club Owners Fight Back
And finally, for those of you who think California has more important things to worry about than whether fans gathering to hear Wye Oak at Bottom of the Hill tonight are spending more money on drinks than sandwiches, I’ll echo Van Houten’s call to check out Stop the War on Fun and join the coalition’s Facebook group to stay updated on developments.
