As has been widely (and a bit hysterically) reported, the owners of the Elbo Room space might want to turn the historic bar into condo room.
But that can’t happen until Nov 1st 2015 when the lease is up, co-owner Matt Shapiro has just assured us.
We’ve tried to calm the masses of fans the Elbo Room has accrued over the decades. So has Shapiro, who posted on FB back when the story broke: “Once again, We Are Not Closing, if we were, I’d be freaking out... the building owners (close friends of ours), submitted a proposal (which has to be public), but are not acting on it at this time.”
Today, he had this to say over email: “We are aware of the building owners' plans to build condos on this property…Whether they get approval from the city and how long it will take is really anyone's guess. The one thing that is definite is our lease goes for another year. The owner has been keeping us informed and up to date, and we are not yet sure of our status as an historical location.” He also posted, again, to FB.
Socketsite’s updated coverage and a Bold Italic commenter note that the pre-application meeting for the project, at which the owners will officially present their plans to the building’s neighbors, has been scheduled for November 6 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Mission Police Station Community Room.
So don’t panic yet, but bring a sense of urgency to the meeting, head over to the bar after, and maybe set a reminder to freak out a year from now.
Here's a shot of the Elbo Room honoring its past lesbian bar incarnation, Amelia's, during Pride, as it does annually.
[H/t: Socketsite; images courtesy of the Elbo Room and via Flickr user Lindsay Eyink]
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