SF Supervisors Consider Nightly Curfew for Filet Mignon Liquor and Corner Markets

Preston said the initial order was “overbroad” and that limited hours could negatively impact some small business owners in the netting industry.

“Small Tenderloin businesses are struggling and deserve to be at the table on decisions that affect them,” he said in a statement in April after Breed introduced the proposal.

On Monday, he announced that his office was able to negotiate amendments to Breed’s proposal that will allow convenience and convenience stores licensed by the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control to operate until 2 a.m. . The changes also include a six-month impact assessment of affected businesses and other protections.

Starlight Market, a 50-year-old convenience store on Ellis Street, is one of the stores that could later operate under the amended ordinance. The market, owned by Ahmed and Mohammed El Barak, is generally open from 6 a.m. to 2 a.m.

Ahmed said midnight to 2 a.m. was an integral part of Starlight’s operations.

“It’s the two hours where a lot of people finish work, like at a restaurant, and they come to get their food, and they get last-minute alcohol,” he told KQED. Having to close at midnight could destroy his business, Ahmed said.

Mohammed said people also come to Starlight Market late at night because it is a safer place.

“People say, ‘We come here to feel safe,’” Mohammed said. “Would you rather be in a dark place or a bright one?” If this policy is adopted, the situation will become even bleaker. Think about it this way. The homeless are still on the streets. Would this make them safer?

In March, the Board of Supervisors unanimously passed an ordinance introduced by Preston that restricts the opening of new smoke shops in the Tenderloin, addressing concerns about drug paraphernalia often sold in those stores.

If Breed’s proposal is approved, food and retail stores within a four-by-five block area would be subject to the curfew. Stores operating during restricted hours could be fined up to $1,000 per hour by the Department of Public Health.

Supervisors on the Planning and Transportation Committee will vote Monday at their 1:30 p.m. meeting on whether to recommend the ordinance to the full board.

KQED’s Sara Hossaini and Juan Carlos Lara contributed to this report.