Drinking booze outdoors during street festivals, night markets, performances and more could soon be legalized in some Berkeley commercial districts.
The city is considering establishing five entertainment zones where bars and restaurants are allowed to sell to-go alcoholic beverages for consumption from open containers during set times and events. In cases where roads are closed to traffic, drinking would be permitted in the street, but taking beverages outside the zones would remain illegal.
The zones would be located in parts of downtown, the Gilman District, Southside Berkeley, the North Shattuck district and on San Pablo Avenue, just south of University.
The change could enable expanded versions of existing festivals and events, or allow for new modes of nightlife in Berkeley.
Other cities, including Santa Monica, Sacramento and San Francisco, have introduced entertainment zones since the state legalized them at the beginning of 2024 with a goal of increasing foot traffic in commercial areas still struggling post-pandemic. Oakland is launching entertainment zones around Jack London Square, in Temescal and in two other neighborhoods this fall.
At its March 10 meeting, the Berkeley City Council approved a proposal asking staff to work with merchants to fine-tune rules for how the zones should work, such as how to enforce the legal drinking age of 21, when zones can operate (none would be allowed between midnight and 10 a.m.) and what type of beverages will be allowed. The ordinance will need to return to the council for final approval.
Councilmember Terry Taplin, who authored the proposal, was also behind a push last year to revitalize Berkeley’s nightlife scene, as a way to support struggling cultural institutions, help businesses and raise sales taxes, still below pre-pandemic levels.
Taplin told Berkeleyside that a Nightlife Council working group, including himself and his council colleagues Igor Tregub and Shoshana O’Keefe, has attended events at Spats and the UC Theatre and World Cup watch parties at Gilman District wineries — reviewing every experience, taking notes and “debriefing afterwards.” He said the World Cup got the group thinking about “how to build entertainment around “athleticism and sports, not just drinking.”
It’s a hard time financially for the city, which just closed a $30 million budget deficit with painful cuts to its social safety net. Taplin’s proposal for entertainment zones describes them as a way to increase foot traffic in commercial areas and hopefully reduce storefront vacancy rates.
“Support for these areas would allow the city and event planners to create permanent installations to support street events [s]uch as lowering bollards, street narrowing, and other accommodations,” Taplin wrote. “Activating public spaces in commercial districts will streamline special events, encourage arts and cultural programming, facilitate economic cross-pollination across nightlife industries, and attract commercial tenants.”
Taplin told Berkeleyside this month that when thinking about nightlife in Berkeley, the city is drawing inspiration from policies in New York, Melbourne and Montreal.
He said he expects entertainment zones could go live in Berkeley next year.
Where entertainment zones are planned in Berkeley
The staff referral calls for entertainment zones in five business districts, though more could be added later:
- Downtown: The whole square block southwest of Shattuck and University avenues — the heart of the city’s theater district, home to the UC Theatre, Berkeley Rep, Freight & Salvage, Revival Bar & Kitchen and Comal.
- San Pablo Avenue: Two blocks south of University Avenue — the trendy West Berkeley dining corridor where La Marcha, Head and Tails Barbecue, Acme Bar, the Mile Limit Wine Bar, Middle East Cafe, Nudi Blue and Mi Tierra grocery store are located.
- Gilman District: The whole square block around Donkey & Goat, Hammerling Broc Cellars and Tessier Winery, plus three more blocks on Camelia Street and Fourth Street — the city’s drinks district, where wineries throw first Friday parties and an annual festival.
- North Shattuck: The exact location hasn’t been spelled out, but it’s expected to encompass part or all of Berkeley’s gourmet dining district — possibly including the location of the North Berkeley Farmers’ Market outside CVS, and the street outside Saul’s, the Cheese Board, Chez Panisse, Crepevine and Via Del Corso.
- Southside: An approximately two-block stretch of Durant Avenue and one block of Telegraph, between Durant and Channing Way — the student corridor home to Cali’s Sports Bar, Gypsy’s Trattoria and Top Dog. It’s near where the Telegraph Holiday Fair has long been held.
How have entertainment zones worked in San Francisco?
In San Francisco, where there are now over 30 entertainment zones, how they work in practice varies widely.
In most areas, the zones are tied to street fairs, festivals and other specific events. In the Castro, for example, there’s a monthly night market with live music, drag shows and food trucks.
But on a five-block stretch of Valencia Street, it’s more of a party zone. People can order a to-go drink from any participating bar, get a wristband proving they’re over 21 and drink their beer or cocktail — served in a cup with a branded sticker — anywhere in the zone between noon and midnight daily.
Entertainment zones have been popular with San Francisco bar owners, some of whom told the San Francisco Chronicle that they’ve led to a significant spike in sales and have been worth the bureaucratic hurdles.
The zones have also sparked complaints in the city about loud noise and drunken revelers.
Merchants hope zones will ‘add more excitement’ to the city
Matthew Jervis, the Downtown Berkeley Association’s director of vitality, said his group had pushed the city to explore entertainment zones. He said he could see street closures, live music, food, vendors, and alcohol during the entertainment zone hours.
Alex Knox, the head of Telegraph Business Improvement District, said the Southside doesn’t need “super elaborate” entertainment to activate the area, and that he foresees the zones being an opportunity to host musical acts in the street and a monthly night market that could start in the “later half of the day” and end between 10 p.m. and 11 p.m. He said he likes how the model has worked in San Francisco. “I think there’s good potential particularly from a sports bar angle,” he said.
Andre Monk, general manager of Tap Haus, a German-style beer and pool hall on Durant Avenue said the entertainment zones will “add more excitement to Berkeley.”
“If people come to Berkeley to have more fun, it’s going to help all of our businesses,” he said.
Berkeleyside Editor-in-Chief Zac Farber contributed reporting to this story.
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