The San Francisco city attorney’s office announced today that it has shut down three illegal gambling dens and two illegal nightclubs, including one that kept Mission Street neighbors up at night for weeks.
“I appreciate that the property owners cooperated with our demands to put an end to this wildly illegal conduct,” wrote City Attorney David Chiu in a press release Wednesday morning. “This outcome brings real relief to the neighbors who endured the chaos caused by these illegal gambling dens and nightclubs.”
Mission Local reported in January that after-hours parties were being held at a commercial space at 3261 Mission St. near 29th Street until the early hours of the morning, involving pounding music, gambling machines, and alcohol being served without a permit.
“You could hear it blasting through the building with all my windows closed and me watching TV,” said one neighbor at the time. Another added: “I thought I was crazy … I was, like, ‘Is anyone else hearing this?’ It’s incredibly loud.”
The events were widely publicized on social media — until publication of Mission Local’s article, when posts by promoter Paulo Ferreira were deleted.
Following visits to the site, on Jan. 6 the city attorney’s office sent a letter to property owner Shirley Conway requiring her to put an end to the unsanctioned activity. It was unclear whether she was aware of what was happening at the time.
As of March 19, the city attorney’s office wrote in the press release, “The owner reached an agreement with her tenants to bring them into compliance, hired a property manager to monitor compliance, and is working with a lawyer to pursue additional enforcement.”
Illegal gambling dens and nightclubs were also shut down at 57 Leland Ave., 5530 Mission St., 1201 Cayuga Ave., and 4461 Mission St. Problematic tenants at each of these properties were evicted or promptly vacated after the property owners received letters from the city.
Across all five clubs, 25 gambling machines were seized, alongside stolen firearms, ammunition, and, in one case, methamphetamines.