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Entertainment commission hears SFPD account of stabbings and mass fight on Broadway; staff outlines permit enforcement steps
Summary
Central Station Officer Steve Mathias told the commission about a series of recent violent incidents — including a Feb. 17 large-scale fight on Broadway and an aggravated stabbing tied to a club exit — and staff described stepped-up permit enforcement, lighting and security coordination at problem parking lots.
Central Station officer Steve Mathias told the San Francisco Entertainment Commission on Feb. 5 that police are investigating several recent, serious incidents tied to nightlife venues and nearby streets.
"About 01:55 is when the call came out. Large scale fight ... up to 200 people fighting in the street," Mathias said, describing the Feb. 17 incident on Broadway and Columbus that prompted an all-city response and five arrests. He also reported an aggravated assault earlier in the month in which a victim was stabbed multiple times after leaving a club and a separate robbery that left another victim in a coma.
Why it matters: commissioners said the incidents underscore risks associated with third-party promoters, poorly lit parking lots and after-hours crowd movement. Staff and SFPD representatives described practical steps the city is pursuing to reduce risk: working with permit-holders on security plans, improving lot lighting and surveillance, and using permit conditions and citations when promoters are not on approved lists.
Northern and Central Station staff have already placed new conditions on venues involved in the incidents, Mathias said, and permit officers are coordinating to require clearer security staffing where necessary. "They were not [on our list]," Raj, a commission staff member, said about an outside promoter at one venue; he added that an unlisted promoter can expose permit-holders to citations.
Commissioners asked staff whether private parking-lot attendants can help prevent loitering and reduce fights; Mathias replied that, as private-property actors, attendants can ask people to leave and that the department may cite a permit-holder when amplified or unauthorized promotion contributes to disorder. The commission also discussed whether loitering and unamplified street noise are enforceable under disturbing-the-peace standards; staff said those issues present legal gray areas and often hinge on complainant willingness to sign statements.
What’s next: staff said it will continue to coordinate with SFPD permit bureaus and station captains, monitor venues operating under conditional permits, and consider permit conditions that require security staff, lighting improvements or other mitigations for problem locations. The commission asked staff to track enforcement actions and to ensure conditional permit-holders do not operate after hours until final sign-offs are complete.
