There is a lot of speculation about what will happen next at the Clay, but the one thing known for certain is that the San Francisco Film Society (SFFS) wants to buy or lease the Clay. Given the strong protections San Francisco now has in place for historic theatres, there is little risk that the Clay will be anything but a theatre as long as there is a viable option for the Clay to continue to operate as a theatre (this hasn’t been the case for other S.F. theatres lost in the last decade). Fortunately, SFFS has both the will and the wherewithal to not only preserve the Clay, but to elevate it into one of the country’s premiere specialty film venues. SFFS had been negotiating with the Clay’s owner and hopefully discussions will resume soon.
There is a lot of speculation about what will happen next at the Clay, but the one thing known for certain is that the San Francisco Film Society (SFFS) wants to buy or lease the Clay. Given the strong protections San Francisco now has in place for historic theatres, there is little risk that the Clay will be anything but a theatre as long as there is a viable option for the Clay to continue to operate as a theatre (this hasn’t been the case for other S.F. theatres lost in the last decade). Fortunately, SFFS has both the will and the wherewithal to not only preserve the Clay, but to elevate it into one of the country’s premiere specialty film venues. SFFS had been negotiating with the Clay’s owner and hopefully discussions will resume soon.