Author: AdminSFLD

Here are a few generic safety suggestions:

• Pick up a free safety whistle at bars and other venues around the Cultural District!
  • Blow three times if you need assistance.  Repeat as needed.
  • Blow your whistle when you spot danger.
  • If you hear a whistle, move towards the sound.  Call 911 if serious.  Add your whistle to the sounds if safe to do so.
• Narcan and fentanyl test strips provided by the Cultural District are also widely available.
  • Please view this Overdose Prevention in Nightlife – Training Video, featuring Kochina Rude
• For emergency safety or medical issues, please dial 911.
• For non-emergency police matters, please call the SFPD at 415-553-0123.
• For outdoor cleanliness issues please use https://sf311.org/  — The Soma West CBD will receive the notification, and get on it ASAP.
• For graffiti removal, or other cleanliness- or safety-related services, visit somawestcbd.org/services.
• If you are visiting from a location without dedicated bike lanes, be extra alert wherever you see green pavement markings.
• Respect pedestrian crosswalk lights and “no pedestrian crossing” signs.
• Be respectful and polite to people on the street, but remain alert.
• Before you leave with someone you meet in a bar, introduce them to a friend, an event host, a bartender, or the door security staff, and listen to any feedback they may offer about them.
• Do not leave your beverage unattended.
• Be part of the solution.
• Lots of great safety information resides on the SafetyBlows website.
• Castro Community on Patrol offers periodic self-defense and other trainings.
• The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence have launched an initiative to promote safer hookups, called Safety First, Sexy Second.
• Other useful phone numbers;
  • City Services and Information;  311
  • Southern Police Station:  415-575-6000
  • Mobile Crisis Team:  41-970-4000
  • Comprehensive Child Crisis:  415-970-3800
  • SFMTA Parking Enforcement:  415-553-1200
  • SF Animal Control (Emergency Dispatch):  415-554-9400
  • Suicide and Crisis Call Line:  988
  • SOMA West Community Benefit District Services:  888-415-7662 or service@swcbd.org
• See also our Community Safety Resources page.

We are a membership organization; our members elect our Board of Directors and our President. Three Board seats (each for a three-year term) and the Board President (for a one-year term) are elected each year.

You could be on the ballot. If you have been active with the District, now is the time to consider running.

Nominations opened on July 9, 2025, and will close at 5:00 pm Pacific Time on Friday, August 8, 2025.  

Being a Director of the LEATHER & LGBTQ Cultural District means having a voice in the future of our South of Market neighborhood: helping it to thrive during current challenges and remain the vibrant, safe, and uniquely kinky space we all love and enjoy.

Elections happen online. They start at the end of the Candidates Night Event (Monday, August 11, 6pm, via Zoom), and close at 5 pm on August 18.

For more information, or to nominate yourself, please review the full details on our Board Elections 2025 Information Page. 

Nomination Form

The June meeting of the Diversity Committee has been canceled. The next meeting will be on Thursday, July 3, from 6 to 7 pm.  Diversity Committee Facebook event.  Diversity Committee Zoom link.  Contact the Committee chair to get on the mailing list for this Committee, or for more info!

The next meeting of the Communications Committee will be Thursday, June 12, from 6 to 7 pm.  Communications Committee Zoom link.  Facebook page. Contact the committee chair to get on the mailing list for this Committee, or for more info!

The next meeting of the Land Use Committee will be on Monday, June 16, at 6;00 pm. Land Use Committee Meeting Zoom Link. Facebook page.  Contact the committee chair for more info, or to join this Committee.

The next meeting of the LEATHER & LGBTQ Cultural District Board of Directors will be Wednesday, June 18, 2025, from 6 to 8 p.m. As always, all are welcome to attend, and time is reserved for public comment.  ASL interpretation provided if requested ten days in advance. To participate, use the Board of Directors Meeting Zoom link, or call 1-408-638-0968 and use Meeting ID: 847 8906 0820 and Passcode: 972086.  Board Meeting Facebook page.  Draft agenda.  Minutes of past Board meetings. Please contact manager@sflcd.org if you have questions.

The Arts and Culture Committee is now meeting on the third Thursday of the month to allow committee members to participate in SOMA Nights. The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, June 19, from 6 to 7 pm.  Arts and Culture Committee Facebook page.. Zoom link.   Please contact the Committee chair to get on the mailing list for this Committee, or for more info!

The District’s second Town Hall of 2025 is set for Saturday, June 21, 1 – 3 pm, at the Folsom Street Community Center.  For details, please visit Town Hall.

The next free walking tour of SOMA is Sunday, June 22, starting at 1 pm.  it’s called ‘SOMA Origins: Bars, Bathhouses and Beyond’, it starts at the corner of Ringold Alley and 9th Street, and lasts 1.5 to 2 hours. We walk just under a mile, and there are no hills. It is free, but registration is required. Learn more and register here.

The next SOMA NIGHT will be Thursday, June 26, starting at 5 pm, organized by the SOMA West CBD, with over 20 business participating, plus a special fashion show, music, and vendors,  Enjoy special offerings and discounts at the bars, stores, and restaurants between 6th and 8th streets on Folsom from 5 to 9 pm, then party in the Cultural District until 2 am.  Visit soma-nights.com/ for more details.

On Sunday, June 29, the LEATHER & LGBTQ Cultural District will be hosting  Leather Alley at Pride!  We will have kinky demos, DJ music, sampling house top stations, open air play area, and club tables to foster community building. Sign up to volunteer here.