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Entertainment Commission approves Live Nation's temporary America's Cup Pavilion with noise, scheduling limits
Summary
After hours of public testimony both for and against, the San Francisco Entertainment Commission approved Live Nation's permit for a temporary America's Cup concert pavilion at Pier 27/29, limiting the series to 30 paid concerts, curfews and sound-mitigation requirements and assigning enforcement to existing commission penalties.
The San Francisco City and County Entertainment Commission voted April 2 to approve Live Nation's permit for a temporary America's Cup concert pavilion at Pier 27/29, clearing the way for a five-month onshore concert series tied to the America's Cup races this summer.
Live Nation Chief Operating Officer Matt Presoff told the commission the pavilion would be temporary, with a maximum general-admission capacity of about 9,000 and plans to remove all site improvements by Oct. 31. He said the company reduced the program from 40 paid concerts to 30, has committed more than $150,000 for acoustic materials, will use A1 audio engineers to monitor sound and will operate a noise hot line that will share data with the San Francisco Police Department.
The commission's motion — approved unanimously — limits the concert series to 30 paid events, allows up to 10 large-capacity shows of roughly 7,000'to—2,000 attendees, and sets curfews of 10:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. The commission added an exception allowing a Sunday that precedes a city holiday to be treated as a weekend night if Live Nation chooses to schedule it that way. Enforcement and fines will be handled under existing Entertainment Commission policy.
The decision followed a lengthy public comment period. Opponents, including a newly formed neighborhood group represented by Tom Lippy, urged the commission to require a supplemental environmental impact review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), arguing that expanding concert capacity and frequency from the base EIR requires additional CEQA analysis. "When the severity of an identified impact increases, you must do a supplemental EIR," Lippy said, citing traffic and noise concerns and offering engineering and acoustical studies for the record.
Supporters included small-business and arts organizations and sailing advocates who said the pavilion would drive tourism, create jobs and broaden the America's Cup audience. "Live Nation has taken unprecedented efforts to reach out to the community," said the president of Local 16 theatrical stage technicians, G. Anthony Phillips, and the SFPD representative praised Live Nation and the neighborhood steering committee for their ongoing collaboration.
Commissioners emphasized that the permit was limited and temporary and that staff and Live Nation must pursue the sound mitigations they laid out in writing. The commission also clarified that the planning department had already set limits on the venue footprint and that Live Nation committed not to seek a permanent venue or to reapply imminently to create a permanent amphitheater at the site.
The commission asked staff to monitor compliance and to continue working with neighbors and city agencies on transportation, sound monitoring and event operations. The motion passed with ayes recorded by name; the minute record lists commissioners voting in favor.
