PLAN FOR CONCERTS IN GOLDEN GATE PARK AND DOWNTOWN PLAZAS APPROVED
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Tuesday, September 12, 2023
Contact: Mayor’s Office of Communications, mayorspressoffice@sfgov.org
San Francisco, CA — Today the City’s plans for a series of ticketed concerts in Golden Gate Park following Outside Lands Festival and three Downtown locations beginning next year was approved by the Board of Supervisors. The concert series are projected to provide key economic benefits for San Francisco, while helping contribute to the prevention of cuts to City parks and programming.
Under the approved agreement, Another Planet Entertainment (APE) will hold two to three ticketed concerts in Golden Gate Park’s Polo Fields in August the weekend after the Outside Lands Festival for three years beginning in 2024. And as part of the agreement, concert producers will fund free Muni rides to and from the Polo Field for concert ticket holders. In addition to the concerts in Golden Gate Park, APE will also produce complimentary concerts at Civic Center Plaza, Union Square and Embarcadero annually, also for three years.
“This is great news for San Francisco, which has long been a destination for music, festivals and entertainment,” Mayor Breed said. “Outdoor music, whether it is a large festival or smaller performance in a plaza, make our city and our neighborhoods more vibrant and supports our local economy. I’m glad that Another Planet Entertainment will be building on the success of Outside Lands to bring more music and excitement to our city, including for our Downtown, to create more memorable experiences for everyone who lives, works and visits San Francisco.”
The agreement also increases Community Benefit Funding for neighborhood-specific projects and programs in the Sunset and Richmond District. APE, which produces the annual Outside Lands Festival, currently provides $25,000 annually to both District 1 and District 4. The agreement will increase these community funds by $10,000 per neighborhood.
“I support the additional ticketed concerts following Outside Lands in Golden Gate Park because they will pay for the free concerts downtown, keep our parks from facing a deficit, and offer more community benefits for Sunset residents,” said Supervisor Joel Engardio who represents the Sunset neighborhoods. “I appreciate Another Plant Entertainment taking time to work with the community to address any concerns as they fine-tune plans for the new concerts. It will be exciting to find out who is headlining those shows. We need more joy in San Francisco as we work to address the serious issues facing our city.”
The new summer concerts in the Polo Fields will have a footprint about a third the size of the Outside Lands Festival, and will accommodate smaller, headliner-focused events that will use a portion of Outside Lands’ existing infrastructure to minimize impact on the park. The City’s permit fees, $1.4 million for a two-day event and $2.1 million for a three-day event, will allow the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department to continue to offer programming to children, adults, and seniors across San Francisco, and care for its facilities.
Transforming Downtown into a leading arts, culture, and nightlife destination is one of the strategies of Mayor Breed’s Roadmap to Downtown San Francisco’s Futureplan, which aims to transform Downtown into a stronger, resilient, economic and global destination. Together, the concerts are expected to create hundreds of jobs.
“Outdoor concerts in San Francisco have a long and legendary history,” said San Francisco Recreation and Park General Manager Phil Ginsburg. “These concerts are more than just fun, however. They are ensuring our parks and playgrounds remain among the best maintained in the country while our citizens enjoy access to high quality recreation.”
“We are thrilled to have another opportunity to bring world class concerts to Golden Gate Park, one of the best urban spaces in the country,” said Allen Scott, Another Planet Entertainment President of Concerts and Festivals. “In addition to these major events in the park, bringing free performances to the heart of downtown in the city we love will be extremely gratifying to us as a local company.”
The agreement requires APE to maintain the same measures to lessen noise and traffic impacts as with Outside Lands, including a community hotline for neighbors, SFMTA officers directing traffic and enforcing parking laws in the neighborhood, offering shuttles to and from the event, and a dedicated area for rideshare drop-off and pick-up.
APE has partnered with the City for 15 years on Outside Lands. The festival has injected over a billion dollars into San Francisco’s economy since its inception.
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