Club Deluxe on Haight Street in San Francisco will remain open after the famed jazz bar’s owner and its landlord agreed to a new lease agreement brokered by Supervisor Dean Preston.
Deanne Fitzmaurice/ The Chronicle 2007UPDATE:33-year-old S.F. jazz bar closed for good after landlord conflict
Club Deluxe will remain open at its Haight-Ashbury location after coming to an agreement with the property owners on a new lease, Supervisor Dean Preston announced Tuesday.
Preston, whose district includes Club Deluxe, held a mediation Monday between the jazz bar’s owner and the property owner to resume lease negotiations that halted, the supervisor announced in a news release Tuesday.
Sarah Wilder, owner of Club Deluxe, and property owner Veritas Investments, previously said they couldn’t agree on a lease due todisputes over rent rates. In response to the closure announcement, the nonprofit San Francisco Heritagesaid last weekthat it was helping Wilde apply to receive legacy status for the business in an effort to help keep it open.
“I am grateful that all parties came to the table to keep the doors open and we were able to hammer out a deal,” Preston said in a statement. “It was true before, but even more so as we emerge from the pandemic — our arts and our artists are what make San Francisco, San Francisco. Long live Club Deluxe.”
Tuesday’s announcement comes three weeks after Wilde notified musicians in an open letter that the 33-year-old business would close — Aug. 27 was scheduled to be the last official day.
Preston said Wilde and Veritas were able to come to an agreement thanks to an ordinance passed unanimously by San Francisco supervisors in 2021 that cancels back rent for small businesses that were forced to close during the pandemic.
Two groups challenged the measure in court, saying the law conflicted with state law and would impact property owners, many of whom are small business owners. But a judge in April of this yearupheldthe law.
Preston, who proposed the measure, said at the time that the law would serve as a tool for some tenants and landlords who had been arguing over back rent and “dramatically change the negotiating dynamic between commercial landlords and small businesses.”
In the news release Tuesday, Wilde said: “Thank you so much for showing up, and showing your support for Club Deluxe.
“Your love of this venue has helped the landlord understand it is worth supporting this small business by offering a fair lease. Deluxe will be very happily staying at 1511 Haight St. hopefully for another 33 years!” she said.
Jeff Jerden, COO of Veritas, said in a statement Tuesday that the company appreciated Preston “for his work helping to get this deal done.”
“We are extremely pleased that Club Deluxe will continue to operate as it has for over 30 years,” said Jerden.
杰西卡·弗洛雷斯(she/her) is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email:jessica.flores@sfchronicle.comTwitter:@jesssmflores
