Entertainment Commission approves Treasure Island loudspeaker permit and allows issuing permits without sound-test while inspector vacancy persists

The San Francisco Entertainment Commission voted to approve an outdoor loudspeaker permit for Treasure Island through 1:00 a.m. and later approved a temporary change to permit processing that allows staff to issue place‑of‑entertainment permits without an official sound test while the commission searches for a new sound inspector.

When the Treasure Island permit came up, staff reported the applicant was absent but that the Treasure Island Development Authority had approved land use through 1 a.m. Southern Station officer Simon Chen said the police had no concerns with the loudspeaker permit. A motion to approve the permit through 1:00 a.m. carried with commissioners voting in favor and the chair recording the motion passed.

Commissioners later took up a separate operational issue: several place‑of‑entertainment permits had completed inspections but were pending issuance because the commission does not currently have a sound inspector available to run decibel tests. Staff told commissioners approximately four permits were ready and about six more would enter the queue soon. Director Kane said staff had checked with the city attorney and could issue permits using the Good Neighbor Policy’s audibility standard — essentially whether sound is audible outside a venue — until a new sound officer is on staff.

A commissioner moved that the commission allow staff to issue place‑of‑entertainment permits without an official sound test until the sound inspector position is filled. Commissioners debated enforcement and remedies for complaints, and a member of the public suggested contracting with a third party to perform temporary tests. The motion passed, with a majority recorded as aye and one commissioner recorded as a nay.

Staff said they will continue to respond to noise complaints and will use complaint-driven investigations, and that venues that receive complaints may be subject to follow‑up testing or sound‑mitigation requests (for example, soundproofing or bass‑level adjustments). The commission noted the approach is intended as a temporary operational fix tied to the inspector vacancy and that staff will incorporate a recorded decibel standard in permits once testing capacity is restored.

The commission additionally handled routine procedural items at the same meeting, including approval of minutes from Nov. 19, 2013 (the minutes motion passed with one abstention).