Friday, Halloween festivities returned in a big way to San Francisco’s Castro District with a twist: a Halloween Night Market. The Castro Merchants Association and the Civic Joy Fund adjusted the date of the neighborhood’s last Night Market of the year to coincide with Halloween in an effort to spur local business and to mark the holiday.
The Halloween Night Market ran from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. along four blocks of 18th Street. The streets were blocked off to make room for vendors, multiple stages with DJs and musicians, a costume contest, drag performances, and more.
The neighborhood was filled with Halloween revelers in all sorts of costumes, enjoying the Night Market and heading to nearby bars.
This Night Market is a big step for the Castro, which used to be considered one of California’s Halloween hotspots. That changed in 2006, when nine people were shot at the Halloween event in the Castro.
Since then, the city has moved away from those large-scale parties.
Organizers of the Night Market said they are trying to chart a different path and create a safer environment that still brings energy to the neighborhood. Organizers also emphasized that the Night Market will not be like the parties in the neighborhood from two decades ago.
“My hope is we are going to bring Halloween back to the Castro in a very fun and safe way,” said Justin Nunes with the Copper Bar and Kitchen.
At Copper Bar and Kitchen, staff said that the prior Night Markets in the neighborhood have helped boost foot traffic and business. They are hopeful the Halloween Night Market will bring even bigger crowds.
“Apart from all the ordering that happens before the big event, we are fully staffed tonight, all staff are hands on deck, and we also have door security tonight as well,” Nunes said.
The night market usually happens on the third Friday of the month, but organizers decided to push it a week to line up with Halloween.
“This is a way for us to create a lot of joy [and] create a lot of revenue for the neighborhood,” said Nate Bourg, the president of the Castro Merchants Association.
“Really, it’s for our entire community to do something wonderful and bring Halloween back in a safe and festive way,” Bourg continued.
Organizers said they have been working with both San Francisco Police and private security to be well-staffed for the Night Market and the holiday.
“We have been talking to the promoters of the event we are going to staffed appropriately it’s not going to be the Castro that was the big party in the past, but it’s going to be an activation, we’re going to look forward to it we’re staffed well everyone should have a safe and fun time,” said Paul Yep, the Interim Chief of the San Francisco Police Department.
Attendees at the Night Market on Friday told NBC Bay Area they enjoyed the celebration and felt safe there.
“I was kind of scared to come, because of how the political climate’s been doing, but seeing that it’s actually pretty safe and welcoming, it’s been nice so far,” said Gio Reyes, who came to the Night Market from Martinez.
Doug and Abi Konersman drove out from Reno to attend the Night Market.
“We’ve stopped at a few of the bars, and everybody is super friendly,” Doug Konersman noted.
Source: NBC Bay Area
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