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Commission approves renovation permit for 124 Columbus; applicant pledges culinary focus and ADA upgrades
Summary
Commission granted Christopher Burnett a place-of-entertainment permit for the historic Purple Onion building at 124 Columbus with police conditions requiring recorded security video and on-site manager for third‑party events.
The Entertainment Commission approved a place-of-entertainment permit for 124 Columbus, the property long known as the Purple Onion. Christopher Burnett, the applicant and managing member of the LLC that owns and will operate the space, described plans to renovate the historic basement venue, add ADA access, and run a culinary-focused business with ancillary comedy and music programming.
Burnett told the commission the project will include a production kitchen of roughly 1,000 square feet, an ADA lift to the basement, upgraded egress staircases and efforts to maintain the building’s historic facade with the Historic Preservation Society’s input. “We are looking to renovate the building…bring it back to life, and still provide comedy there,” Burnett said.
SFPD Central Station officer Steve Mathias recommended conditions including retaining security video for a minimum of 30 days and requiring a manager on-site when third-party promoters are used. The commission moved to approve the permit with those police conditions and recorded unanimous approval in roll call.
The permit approval includes standard operational conditions and neighborhood outreach commitments documented in Burnett’s application packet. Burnett and staff will coordinate required inspections and the SFPD has asked the licensee to provide surveillance video to police upon request.
