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Family members and community clash at Port meeting over Jelly’s eviction after fatal shooting
Summary
Public comment at the Port Commission focused on the pending eviction of Jelly’s nightclub after a fatal shooting outside the venue; family members urged eviction, while the club’s owners and supporters said Jelly’s complied with police and cited cultural and economic harm if closed.
A long public-comment period at the Port Commission meeting on Aug. 24 centered on the pending termination of Jelly’s lease after a fatal shooting occurred outside the club several weeks earlier.
Family members of the deceased urged the commission to treat Jelly’s as a public nuisance and to deny efforts by the club to resist eviction. “To allow Jelly’s to continue doing business as usual would be a slap in the face of each and every family member,” said a speaker identifying himself as representing the family of the murder victim.
Owners and attorneys for Jelly’s, and dozens of musicians and community members, countered that the violence occurred outside the establishment, that the club has complied with police and the Entertainment Commission, and that closing the venue would harm musicians and small businesses. “This shooting, while tragic, is not Jelly’s fault,” said an attorney for the club. He said the club had installed security, hired guards, and cooperated with police and that other waterfront venues had experienced incidents without being shut down.
Speakers also alleged infrastructure problems near the venue. Jelly’s counsel said the club spent more than $20,000 to replace corroded port piping that was discharging sewage near Pier 50; the club has argued those maintenance issues and other port conditions contributed to the dispute over the lease.
Several longtime patrons, musicians and venue advocates warned of cultural displacement and loss of income for artists if Jelly’s is closed; one speaker said she had circulated a petition with more than 1,000 signatures in support. Conversely, family members of the victim described repeated violent incidents and urged decisive port action.
The meeting record shows a series of competing claims and no immediate commission action on the eviction at this meeting; several speakers also raised broader waterfront planning and CEQA concerns and announced a lawsuit challenging recent planning actions.
