Vacant to Vibrant is a city-funded program that aims to revive San Francisco’s Economic Core (aka “Downtown”) by helping small businesses, entrepreneurs, artists, and cultural organizations activate vacant storefronts to revitalize the area and promote economic recovery.

As part of the greater vision of Mayor Breed’s Roadmap to Downtown San Francisco, Vacant to Vibrant will provide a window into what the future of Downtown can look like with public participation — innovative, creative, vibrant, and multifaceted.

SF New Deal will provide activators with grants ranging from $3000 - $8000, as well as technical assistance in navigating pop-up ideation, marketing, permitting, compliance and operations.

SF New Deal will provide participating property owners with resources to cover tenant improvements and utility expenses valued at up to $5,000.

The initial focus for Vacant to Vibrant will be on activating cohorts of pop-ups in downtown San Francisco. The first phase of this program will support a group of 17 activations, all launching in late September 2023 in the Financial District.

The first cohort of Vacant to Vibrant will launch in September. Applications are currently being accepted for future cohorts set to launch in 2024.

If accepted, participants will be offered a space for three months, with leases signed by SF New Deal. SF New Deal, in partnership with the San Francisco Office of Small Business, will support activators interested in extending leases in navigating conversations with property owners and brokers, but cannot guarantee a long-term placement.

Not necessarily! Vacant to Vibrant will provide technical assistance support in a variety of areas to help ensure success, but we are looking for applicants with a certain degree of pop-up readiness and previous experience operating retail, food, or arts spaces/events in the San Francisco community.

If you’re a pop-up activator, you can apply here!

If you’re a property owner/manager, look here to find more information on how to get involved!

SF New Deal (SFND): SF New Deal is a nonprofit that strengthens neighborhoods by making it easier for under-resourced small business owners to succeed. To learn more about SF New Deal’s activities and impact, please visit sfnewdeal.org

Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD): The Office of Economic and Workforce Development advances equitable and shared prosperity for San Franciscans by growing sustainable jobs, supporting businesses of all sizes, creating great places to live and work, and helping everyone achieve economic self-sufficiency. For more information, please visit www.oewd.org

All applications will go through a review process in which they are scored by an advisory committee made up small business owners, artists and representatives from arts institutions, community based organizations with a presence downtown, and property owners. High-scoring applications will be chosen to advance to the next round where the potential pop-ups will be pitched to various property owners and managers. Those selected by participating property owners will be awarded grants and provided with technical assistance to bring their proposals to life.

Please allow 6-8 weeks to hear back about our decision regarding your application. If you have any questions during the process, please feel free to email us at vibrantsf@sfnewdeal.org

If selected, SF New Deal will provide you with a dedicated project manager to oversee the pop-up permitting process and liaise with the property owner/manager. SF New Deal will be a resource to help streamline the process from your approval to the eventual pop-up opening.

If you know someone who would be excited to operate a pop-up or host a pop-up, please direct them to our Pop-Up Activator application and Pop-Up Host application, respectively. If they have any questions or need assistance in applying, we can be reached at vibrantsf@sfnewdeal.org. You can also give our team a heads up by filling out our general interest form.

Participating spaces must be on the street level, and equipped with wifi, one or more restroom facilities, and basic utilities.

We are accepting and reviewing applications from property owners with spaces of all sizes, but are prioritizing spaces that are under 5,000 square feet. We do anticipate that there will be a need for larger spaces on a case by case basis.

We’re happy to answer any questions you might have about Vacant to Vibrant. You can send us an email at vibrantsf@sfnewdeal.org, or give us a call at 415-480-1185.