The project, which still requires building permits before construction can begin, would convert a two-story, 7,516-square-foot building near the city's historic Leather and LGBTQ Cultural District into a bathhouse with a controlled entrance, secure changing facilities, showers, saunas, steam rooms, and a lounge and wellness area. The commission approved the project with conditions requiring noise attenuation and lighting measures, and the operators requested a planning-code variance to avoid fully transparent windows.

The approval comes 40 years after most commercial sex clubs and bathhouses in San Francisco closed amid fears and panic surrounding the HIV/AIDS crisis in the 1980s. By 1984, the city had sued operators of such venues, calling them a public nuisance. The issue was polarizing at the time: many in the gay community saw the closures as punitive and myopic, while others argued the restrictions were critical for protecting public health.

In summer 2020, the Board of Supervisors voted to rescind the ban on bathhouses. In May 2022, then-Mayor London Breed signed an ordinance introduced by Supervisor Rafael Mandelman that allowed traditional gay bathhouses and other adult businesses to reopen in historically LGBTQ neighborhoods such as the Castro and South of Market.

Vincent Page, an associate city planner who introduced the project at the commission meeting, spoke about its cultural significance. "Promoting legal, safe and private adult sex venues is viewed by the LGBTQ community as a way to overcome the lingering stigma of a painful chapter in the history of the city's queer community, by once again welcoming these safe and identity-affirming spaces into our city," Page said.

Advances in medicine and disease prevention have greatly reduced the spread of HIV and the risk that people living with HIV will develop AIDS. San Francisco recorded 136 new HIV diagnoses in 2025, compared with 545 in 2006, according to public health data.

Kevin Born, founder of Ashbury Construction and the project's sponsor, said the plans aim to balance history with modern standards. "We believe the project can honor SF's LGBT history while demonstrating a contemporary modern building around health, professional and neighborhood accountability," Born said. He estimated the space could open late next year and said operators were considering a 24-hour operating schedule, similar to Berkeley's gay bathhouse, Steamworks.

Jonathan Ojinaga, owner of Azucar Lounge and a board member of the Leather and LGBTQ Cultural District, spoke in favor of the project during public comment, saying it would turn a "dark, inactive building" into a lively anchor that could bring foot traffic and positive economic energy to the neighborhood's business ecosystem. "This project is necessary, compatible and highly desirable," Ojinaga said. "It's exactly what our neighborhood needs."

Planning Commission President Amy Campbell said she couldn't think of a better and more appropriate location, emphasizing the importance of keeping the space safe, well-maintained and respectful of its neighbors.

The approval represents a milestone for LGBTQ visibility and neighborhood revitalization in a district long associated with queer history, and it signals a shift in how the city regulates adult businesses after decades of restriction.