San Francisco Dance Club Set To Close After Deadly Shootings
SAN FRANCISCO: Jelly's Supporters Protest Loss Of Lease Due To Unrelated Violence [Mike Mibach]
Updated on: 2010-08-14 02:08:12
Jelly's Dance Club is set to shut down next week after its landlord, the Port of San Francisco, said "Enough is enough, it's time for Jelly's to go."
Protesters beat drums and played music in protest outside the Port offices Friday evening.
Their goal was to keep the doors of Jelly's open.
"It's a place where people can dance and get the stress out," said Julie Ramirez of San Leandro.
The Port pointed to a number of shootings there.
On January 6, 2008, police say a 24-year-old man was shot and killed in the parking lot outside the club.
Last month, a 39-year-old man was shot and killed, also outside the club.
"This is the third shooting in the last two and a half years, two were fatal, one non-fatal," noted Renee Dunn Martin of the Port of San Francisco. "We decided to go ahead and terminate the lease because of concern of public safety."
There have also been shootings outside other San Francisco nightclubs this year.
Some city officials say certain clubs are magnets for violence.
In response, Mayor Gavin Newsom signed a measure into law this week giving the Entertainment Commission the power to revoke operating permits.
The city wants to put pressure on club owners to control the environment outside their front doors.
"We have no control over the city streets that's their job. Our job is to control the people inside our premises and that's what we've done for 16 years," said Jelly's owner Ricci Cornell.
Cornell and her attorney say Jelly's Dance Club is being unfairly targeted.
"The dispute that resulted in the shooting wasn't because something Jelly's had done it would have happened regardless, unfortunate, but would have happened regardless," said Jelly's attorney Matt Schultz.
Some of those who protested Friday night said if Jelly's goes so too does one of the last waterfront venues for musicians.
In one woman's eyes, it's not about public safety, it's about the port wanting a higher-paying tenant.
"If they turn that into a shopping mall, we'll have nowhere to go and they're only hurting themselves because part of the history of this city is being destroyed," said Joyce Ferman of San Francisco.
The port responded by saying the eviction is strictly about public safety and not about a valuable piece of waterfront property.
Jelly's was set to close the following Wednesday.
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Víctor Lei
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