San Francisco hosts free St. Patrick's Day block party on Front Street
The Downtown SF Partnership brought its latest free block party to the Front Street entertainment zone to celebrate St. Patrick's Day.
The Irish holiday festivities started at 2 p.m. and was set to continue until 10 p.m. on Front Street between California and Sacramento.
Irish food, drinks, and dancing took over the block as revelers celebrated the holiday. Even a little rain didn't dampen people's Celtic spirits. Right at the center of it all was Harrington's Bar and Grill.
Owner Ben Bleiman says he looks forward to Saint Patrick's Day all year.
"This is our Super Bowl Weekend at Harrington's," Bleiman said about the holiday. The Irish Bar has been around for 90 years, but this year is a little different.
California Senate Bill 76, which went into effect in January of 2024, allows cities and counties to authorize consumption of alcoholic beverages on public streets, sidewalks, or public rights-of-way during special events. The block of Front St. where the St. Patrick's Day party took place was the first established entertainment zone in the city last year.
"Having the entertainment zone changes the whole game here," said Bleiman. "It makes it so much easier for us to sell outside and for us to make money and participate outside so it's a huge deal for us."
The entertainment zone's first event in September, Oktoberfest on Front, drew an estimated 10,000 attendees to the stretch of Front St. between California and Sacramento. According to San Francisco officials, participating businesses reported a 1,500% increase in sales for the day. The Halloween-themed "Nightmare on Front Street" festivities followed at the end of October.
Those events were also hosted by the Downtown SF Partnership (DSFP) as part of their ongoing efforts to help revitalize the area and energize local businesses.
Samantha and Jeanette Wolfe were among the hundreds of people to cap off their long St. Patrick's Day weekend at Harrington's.
"This is our third day in a row," said Jeanette Wolfe about their weekend long celebration.
"She's always loved Ireland," Wolfe added, pointing at her daughter.
The Wolfes said the addition of the entertainment zone drew them back to an area that was once part of their St. Paddy's celebration routine.
"We used to come to Harrington's back in 2012, 13, and 14," said Samantha, recalling past St. Patrick's Days. "We used to always come here for Patty's Day, so we were happy they were doing a block party because they haven't had one for awhile."
Bleiman worked with city leaders to get the zoning done. At the time he was talking with Mayor London Breed. Now that Daniel Lurie is mayor, Bleiman is happy to see him at the event supporting the city's entertainment zone.
"We've had this one and it's the 4th event and now we're expanding around the city because this one has worked so well other neighborhoods are asking for their own and we're going to deliver," said Lurie about future entertainment zones.
Bleiman believes legislation like this will continue to revitalize the city.
"It's bringing people back downtown," said Bleiman. "It's bringing people to the office who maybe wouldn't have went to the office. It's bringing people from the Bay Area and beyond downtown to San Francisco which is exactly why we wrote the legislation to make entertainment zones in the first place and to activate downtown in a new way."
The Downtown SF Partnership plans to host more free events within the entertainment zone in the future. The Downtown SF Partnership is a non-profit organization with the goal of creating a more vibrant, active downtown that helps support San Francisco's economic development.
