Hayes Street Closure — Permit Renewal Brief

Last updated: October 22, 2025

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At‑a‑Glance

• What’s happening: The street‑closure permit for the 400 block of Hayes is currently up for renewal. First hearing is at (ISCOTT) this Thursday 10/23.
• Why this matters: The closure has operated with persistent violations, political interference, and uneven benefits, deepening division in the neighborhood.
• Our position: Do not renew the permit. The temporary program has dragged on far beyond its purpose and morphed into something unrecognizable. A full-time street closure is disproportionate to the occasional events that could easily take place in existing open spaces — Octavia Boulevard, Proxy, Patricia’s Green, Linden Living Alley, the Hayes Valley Playground or underused sites such as Parcels R and S — without blocking a vital commercial corridor. Restore Hayes Street to regular public circulation/a functioning neighborhood street. Return event programming to the established pre-pandemic process that offered clearer rules, accountability, and a better balance of stakeholder input.

Familiar with this issue? You can skip ahead → click here for meeting details

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Key Findings

1. Chronic violations; enforcement deferred. More than 40 weeks of consecutive documented noncompliance — including parked vehicles, blocked access, unpermitted vendors, and traffic diversion with no meaningful correction. SFMTA staff have acknowledged these issues yet indicated they would “address them at renewal” rather than act when harm occurred.
   
2. Politics over policy. Staff reluctance to revoke or correct course has been repeatedly linked to political pressure from the District Supervisor. The result: policy decisions made to protect relationships rather than uphold standards.
   
3. Economic harm to retail; narrow benefits. Independent retailers report substantial sales declines and reduced access for customers and deliveries. Benefits concentrate among a handful of bars and restaurants. Shared Spaces parklets -the program’s intended tool remain under‑utilized, yet a full‑block closure persists.
   
4. Process exclusion. After counter-viewpoints opposing the continued closure emerged, City staff stopped engaging with our group and instead collaborated with a small inner circle aligned with the permit holder — the Hayes Valley Neighborhood Association (HVNA). Those who bear the costs and financial losses were systematically excluded from any dialogue.
   
5. HVNA/the Permit Holder. The HVNA, a private membership organization, has acted as de facto gatekeeper for the closure despite representing a minor portion of neighborhood stakeholders. The current permit structure has uniquely advantaged a small cluster of hospitality operators closely aligned with HVNA. This alignment blurs the line between private interest and public authorization, allowing a few actors to dominate the public right‑of‑way with limited accountability.
   
6. Local commerce vs. event spectacle. The closure has shifted the corridor from a functioning retail street to a festival-style venue, where temporary programming often overshadows everyday business activity. Hayes Valley welcomes visitors and customers, but a constant “event” environment distorts the local economy and displaces the regular rhythm of neighborhood life. Activities of this scale belong in existing open spaces — which are currently underutilized not in the center of our prominent business corridor.
   
7. Public safety and access risks. Recurring reports cite blocked emergency access, ADA barriers, and spillover traffic onto Grove, Fell, Oak, Ivy, Octavia and Laguna. These hazards persist in the absence of any credible management or enforcement mechanism.
   
8. Policy conflicts. The closure contradicts adopted planning frameworks for the Market & Octavia Area Plan, which identifies Hayes Street as a critical east‑west connector supporting neighborhood retail diversity and mobility. Converting it into an event‑based corridor undermines those objectives and lacks public consent.

Bottom line: A program that relies on deferring enforcement, sidelining stakeholders, and privileging politics over public trust cannot be renewed in good faith.

These findings make clear that the Hayes Street closure cannot be justified. Renewal would only deepen the failures already visible in the record.

For a detailed look at how this process unfolded including agency correspondence and Supervisor involvement …
read our companion report: → Behind the Process

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What Needs to Happen

1. Restore Hayes Street to normal circulation and access.
2. If temporary activations are desired, limit them to clearly permitted, time‑bound events with transparent community approval, management and opt‑in merchant participation.
3. Establish independent oversight for any desired use of the right‑of‑way.

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How to Participate

Send a letter NOW to SFMTA ISCOTT
the submission period has ended