While SFMTA faces a $307- 322 million budget deficit, the agency continues to subsidize a street closure that delivers minimal public benefit and clear fiscal harm.
Direct Costs to SFMTA and Taxpayers
- Signage Fees: Under the terms of Shared Spaces Permit No. 1316522, the permit holder (HVNA) is required to pay for SFMTA-installed temporary tow-away/no parking signs during closure hours. At a conservative estimate of ~$550 per weekend, this equates to ~$28,600 per year in revenue SFMTA is not collecting. Weekly monitoring consistently shows these required signs are missing.
- Muni Reroute Costs: The closure forces the 6 Hayes/Parnassus bus to detour (including trolley-to-motor coach changes). SFMTA has acknowledged this costs $1,500 per week — $75,000 per year. By comparison, the annual permit fee is just $1,280.
Combined direct cost: Well over $100,000 per year borne by SFMTA and San Francisco taxpayers — for a program riddled with noncompliance. These figures also do not include the Hayes Street Public Life Study, which public documents suggest will cost nearly half a million dollars and includes evaluating ways to maintain or expand the closure.
Instead of enforcing existing permit conditions and collecting owed revenue, SFMTA has now approved PPP (Public Property Permit) expansion in Hayes Valley for the same entities — continuing the pattern of expanding private use of public space while core obligations go unaddressed. Read more on the PPP expansion
This approach is particularly concerning amid SFMTA’s budget deficit.
This Pattern Must End
The Hayes Street closure is no longer a low-impact “activation.” It has become an entrenched use of public right-of-way that imposes real costs on transit operations, parking enforcement, and neighborhood commerce — while the permit holder evades basic obligations.
We call on SFMTA to revoke Permit 1316522 immediately due to sustained noncompliance. Continuing to subsidize this program while failing to enforce its terms or collect required revenue is indefensible — particularly during a historic budget deficit and amid unanswered questions about why this street remains closed at all.
Further Reading: