San Francisco, CA
Century-old San Francisco institution to close for more than a year

The exterior of the Castro Theatre in San Francisco.
Michele Falzone/Getty Images
The Castro Theatre is about to go dark for more than a year as Another Planet Entertainment prepares to break ground on its hotly contested renovation plans for the century-old San Francisco movie palace. The $20 million remodel is slated to begin in early spring 2024, with completion scheduled for the summer of 2025, the Berkeley-based concert production company said in a news release Monday.
“Another Planet Entertainment is thrilled to begin the work to restore the Castro Theatre to its 1922 architectural glory and ensure its continued place in the hearts of film lovers, music lovers and the LGBTQ+ community,” Mary Conde, senior vice president for Another Planet, said in a statement.
Beyond “restoring the magnificence of Timothy Pflueger’s original design,” Conde said plans include improving upon ADA accessibility throughout the theater, including in the audience, onstage and backstage, installing a new heating and air conditioning system, expanding the lobby, and increasing the theater’s concession offerings to include wine, spirits and food from local eateries. Restoration of the original proscenium arch is also underway, as is the removal of the theater’s 800 fixed orchestra-level seats, which have been the subject of intense public debate and is slated to be replaced by “flexible seating” that can be moved in and out of the theater to create standing room for concerts and other live events.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
The changes, Conde said, “will make the Castro a venue that respects its heritage while embracing new, and ever more diverse audiences.”
Plans for the Castro were vehemently opposed by a number of community advocates over the past two years, who criticized Another Planet’s lack of transparency and abrupt announcement that it would be taking over operation of the theater in January 2022. Neighborhood organizations including the Castro LGBTQ Cultural District and the Castro Theatre Conservancy formed the Friends of the Castro Theatre Coalition, expressing fear that physical changes to the theater would result in the reduction or loss of the affordable LGBTQ-focused and film-focused programming the historical landmark is known for. Hundreds packed the theater for a lively raucous town hall meeting hosted by Another Planet in August 2022, where the company’s renovation plans were first shared in a public setting. Subsequent hearings at San Francisco City Hall were heated and would often go on for hours.
Though one February vote recommended expanding the historic theater’s landmark status to include “both exterior and interior character defining features, and update the statement of significance to include LGBTQ historical associations,” city officials ultimately voted last October to allow the removal of the hundreds of orchestra-level seats, in addition to approving a proposed use expansion that would allow for further changes to the space, including the ability to sell liquor on the second floor.
People wear T-shirts reading “Save the Seats” during a community meeting held at the Castro Theatre.
Courtesy of Jesse Oliver Sanford
Another Planet is now contracting with EverGreene, which claims to be the largest specialty contractor in the U.S. and is focused specifically on the preservation of historic buildings, artifacts and works of art, according to its website. The company is headquartered in Brooklyn, New York, with regional offices in Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
“One of the defining features of the Castro is the tent-like painted ceiling which has been obscured from view for decades,” Jeff Greene, executive chairman and founder of EverGreene, said in a statement. “This element will be conserved and restored along with the unique sgraffito murals on the side walls, bring[ing] the whole back into harmony with Pflueger’s original vision.”
Another Planet is also partnering with Bay Properties, Inc., and the Nasser family, which owns the theater, on the construction efforts. The aforementioned ceiling will be one of the first features to be restored when the theater closes, as well as the neon sign, David Perry, a spokesperson for Another Planet, said in an email Tuesday.
A packed house at the Castro Theatre.
Mark Mainz/Getty Images
It’s not clear what events are planned for when the theater does reopen. In March, Another Planet said it would “commit to hosting LGBTQ+ activities and artists as frequently as possible, with no less than 25% of programming.” Perry told SFGATE at the time that the company plans to hold about 170 events at the venue per year at the theater — a figure that still may change or increase. The daily repertory film screenings the Castro was once famous for are not part of that current plan; Perry said they were “not financially viable in a post-COVID, post-Netflix world.”
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
Leading up to the closure, the Castro is scheduled to host drag cabaret duo Kiki & Herb, indie soul singer-songwriter Ginger Root, as well as screenings of “It’s A Wonderful Life,” “Die Hard” and John Waters’ “Female Trouble.” The San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus is slated to hold their annual Christmas Eve performances, and January will bring live podcast recordings of Bob the Drag Queen and Monét X Change’s “Sibling Rivalry” and the award-winning “Welcome to Night Vale” featuring musician Danny Schmidt, as well as a slew of SF Sketchfest events.
An evening with stand-up comedian and actor Marc Maron is slated to be the last show at the venue before a special closing event on Feb. 4 that will be open to the public, after which programming will temporarily come to an end.
More on the Castro Theatre

San Francisco, CA
Smash Burgers With a San Francisco Pedigree Are Landing in Downtown Portland

The burger game in Portland is getting another fighter in the ring. PLS on Sixth is opening inside the Hotel Zags, taking over Dave Machado’s former Nel Centro space. This is the second PLS restaurant, technically; the first opened in August 2023 inside San Francisco’s Hotel Zeppelin, near the city’s tourist-friendly Union Square. Like the first restaurant, the main attraction here are smash burgers and “crazy” shakes,
More than just food, the restaurant offers beer, nonalcoholic drinks, and cocktails. The outdoor patio has been revamped, too, with firepits, games including cornhole and tic-tac-toe, and activities for kids such as a playhouse and sandbox. In a press release, representatives said weekend DJ events and happy hours are on deck, too, making this addition to the Cultural District more than just a hotel restaurant. The restaurant’s grand opening launch party is on Thursday, May 22 starting at 4 p.m.
Taquito food cart/prodigal son returns
On Tuesday, May 20, Carlos Mendoza and Anthony La Pietra will bring buzzy food cart Tito’s Taquitos back to Multnomah Village as a full-fledged restaurant. Oregon Live reports the two will open in the former Little Big Burger at 7705 S.W. Capitol Highway, just a mile or so from the original food cart’s location. This third location will have a full liquor license; this news comes after La Pietra turned the original Tito’s into chicken wing and burrito cart, Alita’s, meaning no more food carts and just physical spaces for Tito’s.
Italian deli and bar on East Burnside Street
Five years into pizza dominance Dimo’s Apizza is taking over its next-door space. Dimo’s Italian Specialties is under construction with owner Doug Miriello telling Oregon Live this new space will serve as deli market, bar, and Fridays through Sundays a “refined white tablecloth supper club.” The planned opening is set for June.
NE Fremont Street cocktail bar opens for breakfast
With an elephant mascot in tow, Hi-Top Tavern is serving coffee and pastries at 7 a.m. seven days a week. Bridgetown Bites spoke to Ezra Caraeff, one of the owners, about the new offerings. That looks like hometown hero Coava Coffee on bar, Flour Market pastries, breakfast tacos, and lunch offerings.
San Francisco, CA
Family of San Francisco Recology worked killed on the job in 'complete shock'

Alfredo Romero Jr., 61, pictured alongside his family in this undated photograph. Romero died on the job at a Recology site in San Francisco.
SAN FRANCISCO – The family of a longtime Recology worker who died on the job says the company has provided little information about the circumstances of his death.
Workplace death
What we know:
Alfredo Romero Jr., 61, of Fremont, was working Friday morning at the 501 Tunnel Ave. recycling facility, located on the border of San Francisco and Brisbane, when he died in a workplace accident, according to a statement from his family.
Romero was a longtime mechanic who had worked in the garbage industry for more than 40 years.
Featured
3 workers killed at San Leandro company; Cal-OSHA has no power to shut down
Three workers in the last eight years have been killed at a family-owned metal scrap recycling business, and the San Leandro company has been fined for more than 60 safety violations as far back as the 1990s – possibly the worst safety record of any similar company in the last 10 years in California, a review of federal data shows.
Recology confirmed the fatality that day but did not release details about how the accident happened, saying only that the incident remains under investigation.
The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, or Cal/OSHA, has opened an investigation and has six months to issue any citations if violations are found.
Family statement
What they’re saying:
“It was a complete shock when I got the call from Recology telling me that my dad was in an accident at work and that he passed away,” said Michelle Romero, the victim’s daughter. “I couldn’t imagine what kind of accident could have resulted in his death and the company wouldn’t tell us. They would only say that it was being investigated.”
Michelle Romero said her father came from a long line of men in the garbage industry.
“Garbage workers are our family and family friends. He should have never died at work that day,” she said. “It is our sincere hope that all the lessons this horror can teach are actually learned, so that it never happens to anyone else. We are truly devastated.”
Romero is survived by three children and four grandchildren.
A GoFundMe page has been launched to help cover funeral expenses.
The Source: The family of Alfredo Romero Jr., previous KTVU reporting.
San Francisco, CA
Second fire at San Francisco elementary school prompting some concern

A second fire at an Outer Richmond elementary school has families wondering if it’s foul play.
The fire destroyed a playground’s equipment at Lafayette Elementary School late Sunday night, after another fire earlier this month damaged a storage container.
Throughout the day on Monday, many people stopped by Lafayette Elementary School to see the damage for themselves, including parent Sean Phillips.
“I think we’re all in disbelief,” said Phillips. “I mean, why would someone do this.”
His son and third grader at the school, Sebastian, echoed his sentiment.
“I mean, who would do that,” Sebastian questioned. “There was nothing wrong with the play structure.”
A fence has been put up around the structure to keep every safe. Sebastian said it made him sad to come to school and see it.
“Especially for the kindergartener’s because they love that thing so much,” Sebastian said.
San Francisco Fire said initial calls came in around 10:30 Sunday night, and they were able to put the fire out quickly but not before serious damage was done.
Just yards away from the playground is a burned storage shed. That fire happened in the early hours of May 1.
The Lafayette Elementary School PTA said every item in the container was damaged or destroyed, from sweatshirts to handmade decorations.
Fire investigators are looking into if either was set intentionally, but Phillips thinks two fires in less than three weeks looks suspicious.
“It doesn’t sound like it was someone trying to stay warm,” said Phillips. “It sounds like someone just wanted to see something going up and see what’s going on right now. Media reports, people getting upset.”
The school sent an email to parents notifying them about what happened and the ongoing investigation.
In the email, school leaders said they are taking the situation seriously.
“SFUSD has arranged for a security guard to visit our school every night through the end of the school year to complete an inspection and help ensure the safety of our campus. Lastly, the San Francisco Police Department will make regular patrols of the school overnight,” the email said.
Phillips said that helps but he still feels unsettled.
“I think it’s that feeling of intrusion,” explained Phillips. “It’s like when someone breaks in your house and does something. You know you’re safe, the intruders gone, but you feel invaded.”
The PTA President, Erin Feher-Montoya, said parents will be gathering at the school yard Tuesday morning at 8 to decorate the fence around the playground with drawings and ribbons to make it look more friendly and less upsetting for the students.
-
Education1 week ago
A Professor’s Final Gift to Her Students: Her Life Savings
-
Politics1 week ago
President Trump takes on 'Big Pharma' by signing executive order to lower drug prices
-
Education1 week ago
Harvard Letter Points to ‘Common Ground’ With Trump Administration
-
Culture1 week ago
Test Yourself on Memorable Lines From Popular Novels
-
Culture1 week ago
Book Review: ‘Original Sin,’ by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson
-
News1 week ago
As Harvard Battles Trump, Its President Will Take a 25% Pay Cut
-
News1 week ago
Why Trump Suddenly Declared Victory Over the Houthi Militia
-
News1 week ago
Austin Welcomed Elon Musk. Now It’s Weird (in a New Way).