Entertainment commission reconditions Cafe Kokomo permit after chaotic youth party, orders promoter checks and age limits

The San Francisco Entertainment Commission voted to recondition the place-of-entertainment permit for Cafe Kokomo after a June private event escalated into multiple fights and reported robberies, including officers’ discovery of a loaded firearm in a backpack near a transit platform. The commission’s action adds promoter vetting requirements, requires the venue to keep a binder of permits and emergency plans on site and bars anyone under 21 from attending while entertainment is present.

Lieutenant Knight of Bayview Station described the June event as a rapidly growing gathering that overwhelmed security: plainclothes officers reported fights in the street and inside the club, and officers later found a loaded gun in a backpack left near a nearby platform. Knight said the gathering had been advertised and promoted in ways that the club and station had not fully tracked; he called the resulting robberies and injuries “an unfortunate event” and urged tighter controls on promoters and private-event screening.

Cafe Kokomo manager Jason (first identified at the hearing) acknowledged the venue "dropped the ball" in vetting a promoter who presented the event as a fundraiser and a Sweet 16; he told the commission the club did not profit from food or drink sales that night and that the promoter misrepresented how the event would be organized. Knight and Inspector Edwards said the promoter—identified in police follow-up as Terrence Smith—has been tied to similar problematic promotions elsewhere and that venue staff failed to check references or demand adequate documentation and insurance.

Chair Blackstone criticized the venue’s failure to vet the promoter, saying, “not checking out your promoter is blatantly just dumb.” The commission also heard that the club had previously taken steps to improve outreach and sound mitigation, but members said the promoter lapse was serious because minors were present and the incident had produced victims.

Under the reconditioned permit the commission adopted, Kokomo must: 1) refuse entry to anyone under 21 during events when entertainment is present; 2) use only promoters who are registered on the commission’s promoter registry and show proof of liability insurance naming the venue as additional insured; 3) maintain an on‑site binder containing the venue’s permit, security plan, emergency contacts and the promoter contract; and 4) provide a calendar of events to the Entertainment Commission and coordinate binder contents with SFPD to ensure responder readiness. Commissioners said staff and SFPD will continue spot checks and require a return hearing if problems recur.

The commission’s move to recondition the permit passed by recorded voice vote with Commissioners Perez, Hyde, Joseph, Lee, Tan and Campagnoli recorded as Aye on the motion to impose the new conditions. The action follows police accounts that the promoter sold tickets and that the crowd size reported by officers ranged into the hundreds, estimates that the commission and police said underscore the safety risk when promoters and venues do not follow established procedures.

The commission directed staff to confirm promoter registration practices and to monitor Kokomo’s compliance, including surprise inspections and follow-up reporting at future meetings.