San Francisco City Hall reopens next month for in-person services

After more than a year of closure due to the pandemic, San Francisco City Hall will reopen to the general public on June 7, city officials announced Wednesday.

Mayor London Breed and City Administrator Carmen Chu said most in-person service will resume: marriage licenses, birth and death certificates, records, business registration and tax payments.

Counter service will be offered at several offices, including the Treasurer and Tax Collector’s Office, the Assessor’s Office, County Clerk and Office of Small Business.

The County Clerk is again booking appointments for in-person marriage ceremonies with no more than six guests.

Visitors will need to wear facial coverings upon entering City Hall and maintain a 6-foot distance from people outside their households. Regular security screenings will be conducted at Polk and Grove street entrances. The Van Ness Avenue entrance will remain closed.

Breed noted the “significant step” reopening City Hall represents, adding:

“City Hall is the heart of our civic life, where people can come to take care of their basic needs or take part in the most important moment of their life. It’s where we gather to mourn, to celebrate, and to share in the most important moments of our City. I’m so excited to see people back in this building, especially on that first day when we see weddings return. San Francisco is opening up again.”

Chu said in a statement:

“We’re excited to welcome back the weddings and people into City Hall, but more importantly, we are excited to ensure that those who haven’t been able to connect with us online or by phone have another avenue to access critical services.”

Board of Supervisors President Shanmann Walton said members of the board will reconvene for legislative chamber meetings as of June 15, though public comments will still be heard remotely.

In a statement, Walton said:

“For far too long, this pandemic has kept us away from each other, removed the personal interactions to serve our constituents, and prevented us from working together as a board in a more connected manner. We are excited to safely bring the Board of Supervisors meetings back to the chamber and this is the first step in moving towards reopening City Hall to provide access to the public.”

Counter services at the Clerk of the Board office will reopen in Room 244 on June 8 and will operate Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

People who want to visit district supervisor offices will be required to make an appointment.

Further details can be found online.

Jerold Chinn

Jerold serves as a reporter and San Francisco Bureau Chief for SFBay covering transportation and occasionally City Hall and the Mayor's Office in San Francisco. His work on transportation has been recognized by the San Francisco Press Club. Born and raised in San Francisco, he graduated from San Francisco State University with a degree in journalism. Jerold previously wrote for the San Francisco Public Press, a nonprofit, noncommercial news organization. When not reporting, you can find Jerold taking Muni to check out new places to eat in the city.