After shuttering its doors in Civic Center last fall, La Cocina Municipal Marketplace could return soon in a new form.
Earlier this week, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors Budget and Finance Committee passed a resolution that would transform La Cocina from a food hall to a catering facility that would support women-of-color and immigrant food entrepreneurs who are part of its kitchen incubator program.
The City would also extend its lease with La Cocina by one year, meaning the space would operate at 101 Hyde St. through Dec. 31, 2026.
The full Board of Supervisors is set to vote on the proposed lease Tuesday in its next meeting.
Additional details of the proposed legislation included reimbursing La Cocina $106,528 for sidewalk accessibility improvements, which the market completed to bring the sidewalk outside the building’s front entrance up to present-day standards.
The City would pay for utilities — heating, ventilation, air conditioning, electricity and water — while also forgiving past utility payments of up to $115,000 as part of a COVID-19 rent forgiveness program.
The new lease would also allow the operation of a shared-use commercial kitchen.
The Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development oversees the 7,500-square-foot site, which The City purchased in 2016.
An MOHCD spokesperson told The Examiner that the department “understands the challenges faced by our city’s small businesses, including lower revenue resulting from reduced foot traffic and continually increasing operating expenses
“Since opening in 2021, La Cocina has proven to be a valuable asset for the community,” the spokesperson added. “The proposed lease amendments will help ensure the organization can continue to cultivate food entrepreneurs by offering affordable commercial kitchen space in downtown San Francisco.”
La Cocina’s original lease in Civic Center ran through the end of 2025, after which an affordable housing project was slated to be built on the lot. Last July, La Cocina announced its closure a year and a half before its planned closure. The market said the financial difficulties were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Before the shutdown, the market said it had seen revenue decline due to demand from fewer customers and increased operating costs. The Finance and Budget Committee reported that excluding depreciation, La Cocina had accumulated net losses totaling $1.8 million from fiscal 2020 to 2023.
“ This format change is our way of responding to the economic realities we are facing, including not achieving sufficient sales,” a statement on La Cocina’s website reads. “We hope to reduce costs and make this space accessible to more businesses in our incubator program to increase our impact.”
A document submitted by the Department of Health to the Committee on Budget and Finance noting that “the community supports the current interim use and the acquisition from an affordable housing developer that will occur at the end of the term rent. as well as the condition of the streets in the surrounding area
