A historic Japantown site with ties to LGBTQ history is close to becoming the first property tied to San Francisco s Japanese American community to be designated a city, state and national landmark. Having already won California and federal recognition, the site is set to secure city recognition later this month.
The Board of Supervisors land use and transportation committee voted 3-0 Monday in support of naming the Japanese YWCA/Issei Women s Building at 1830 Sutter Street a city landmark. The full board is expected to adopt the landmark request at its April 13 meeting.
It will become only the second local historic property related to San Francisco s Japanese community and the fifth having to do with the LGBTQ community to be granted such recognition. The city s historic preservation commission endorsed granting it local landmark status in November, months after the property was officially listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Three LGBTQ community leaders have won appointment to San Francisco s Immigrant Rights Commission, helping to double queer representation on the civic advisory body. At its March 9 meeting, the Board of Supervisors unanimously voted 11-0 to seat the trio of out applicants along with three straight people seeking to be reappointed.
Commissioner Jessy Ruiz Navarro, who is originally from Mexico and the advisory body s lone transgender member, secured her reappointment. When she joined in 2019 Navarro was the panel s first commissioner whose primary language isn t English.
Joining the commission is artist Lucia Obregon Matzer, a queer immigrant from Guatemala who became a U.S. citizen four years ago, and gay Walnut Creek resident Luis Zamora, who works in San Francisco as a facilities supervisor at law firm Morgan Lewis & Brockus LLP and is the current public policy chair for the Golden Gate Business Association, the country s oldest LGBTQ chamber of commerce.
The members of a San Francisco supervisors panel are recommending that their colleagues start the process to landmark a gay-owned bar in the city s South of Market district.
At its meeting January 25 the supervisors land use and transportation committee unanimously voted 3-0 in support of having the city s historic preservation commission consider if the Eagle Bar, an important entertainment venue located in the Leather and LGBTQ Cultural District, should be designated a city landmark. It would be the third gay bar location in San Francisco given such status if approved, and the first LGBTQ city landmark located in SOMA and related to queer leather culture.
Hearings on requests from supervisors to landmark two LGBTQ historic sites in San Francisco are expected to take place in the coming weeks. If approved for listing, they would bring the number of properties in the city granted local landmark status specifically for their ties to LGBTQ history to six.
At its February 17 meeting the city s Historic Preservation Commission is scheduled to vote on landmarking the home where the late lesbian pioneering couple Phyllis Lyon and Del Martin lived throughout most of their 54 years together. Gay District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman authored the resolution unanimously supported by the Board of Supervisors to begin the landmark process for the property at 651 Duncan Street.
A San Francisco supervisor is open to landmarking the Bank of America building in the Castro after the financial giant initially posted signs that appeared to ban impromptu memorials.
A group of LGBTQ community members reclaimed the memorial space at the intersection of Castro and 18th streets January 18 Martin Luther King Jr. Day and posted memorials of recently-deceased Black LGBTQ leaders after the bank removed the signs.
The office of gay District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman indicated that he would propose the city landmark the historic site if community members raise their voices in support. Gay state Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) said that he spoke with Bank of America officials to resolve the situation in hopes another community group may take over stewardship of the area.