San Francisco LGBT Community Center
The building tells two stories at once. On one side stands the Fallon Building, a Victorian Queen Anne home and commercial building erected in 1894 by Carmelita Lodge Fallon. On the other, a modern glass-and-steel addition faces Market Street, the boulevard that serves as the spine of San Francisco's LGBTQ geography. Together they house the San Francisco LGBT Community Center, a nonprofit that opened its doors in March 2002 and has since become one of the most active queer community institutions in the country. The juxtaposition of Victorian preservation and contemporary architecture mirrors the center's mission: honoring the deep roots of LGBTQ life in San Francisco while building something new.
From Landmark to Living Room
The Fallon Building at 1800 Market Street is a San Francisco Designated Landmark, number 223 on the city's register. When the center was incorporated in 1996, the decision to preserve the Victorian structure while adding a modern facility sparked debate. Some preservationists opposed altering a historic building; others recognized that adaptive reuse was the best way to ensure the building's survival. The compromise produced a 35,000-square-foot solar-powered facility that opened in 2002, one of the first community centers in the country to generate its own electricity. The building accommodates offices for nonprofits, event rental spaces, a computer lab, and community gathering rooms. In 2016, a $6.5 million renovation project expanded capacity and improved the lobby circulation. The final cost reached $10 million, and the completed renovation was celebrated on April 9, 2017.
Services That Meet People Where They Are
The center's programming addresses the practical realities of LGBTQ life in an expensive city. Economic development services include housing assistance, financial literacy programs, employment services, and small business support. Youth services offer drop-in navigation, mental health counseling, and housing programs for young people who may have been rejected by their families. Community programs provide information and referral services, arts and culture events, and volunteer opportunities. The center operates on an annual budget of approximately $6 million, funded by a combination of city government grants, rental and event income, and individual and institutional donations. A staff of about 46 people manages programming that serves thousands of community members each year.
Market Street's Anchor
The center's location on Market Street is significant. This boulevard has been the geographic and symbolic center of San Francisco's LGBTQ community for decades -- the route of the annual Pride parade, the address of countless queer-owned businesses, and the street where Harvey Milk walked to work at his camera shop in the Castro. At 1800 Market, the center sits at the intersection of several neighborhoods, accessible from the Castro, the Mission, Hayes Valley, and SoMa. Its position makes it a crossroads rather than a destination, a place where the diverse strands of San Francisco's queer community -- which encompasses enormous differences of race, class, age, gender identity, and politics -- come together around shared needs and shared space.
From the Air
The SF LGBT Center is at 37.77N, -122.42W, on Market Street between Octavia and Laguna in San Francisco. Market Street is the diagonal boulevard clearly visible from the air, running from the Ferry Building to Twin Peaks. The center is near the intersection where Market crosses several east-west streets in the Upper Market area. Nearest airports: KSFO 11nm south, KOAK 9nm east.