This week the Board of Supervisors unanimously approved landmark status for 1712-1716 Fillmore Street for its significance within the city's African American community. It was the site of famous jazz venue Jimbo's Bop City, which from 1950 to 1965 attracted acts like Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, and Ella Fitzgerald. The building used to be located over on Post Street, but was moved by the Redevelopment Agency to its current location during urban renewal of the Western Addition. Marcus Books was founded in 1960 by Julian and Raye Richardson as a space for Black intellectualism in San Francisco. Originally located on the 1800 block of Fillmore, the store was forced to relocate several times to avoid demolition during urban renewal. It moved into the Jimbo's building in 1980 and is still operated by the Richardson family. Landmark status was requested by the property owners, so there as a happy process in researching and evaluating the building without an opposition. For a city as diverse as SF, there were previously only four landmarks out of 260+ that were related to Black history. Technically the landmark status still needs a second approval by the Supes next week and then approval by the Mayor, but that's just a matter of crossing the t's and dotting the i's. · Landmark Designation Report - 1712-1716 Fillmore [SF Planning]
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