Castro looks to broaden Halloween fun with night market

The Castro Halloween festivities resurrected two years ago will be changing tact this year, hoping to revive the spirit of the long-dormant street parties. This year, plans call for a celebration of the holiday with an expanded version of the neighborhood’s popular night market on Friday, October 31.

Halloween has had a long, tortured history in San Francisco’s LGBTQ neighborhood and was eventually shut down following violent incidents. In recent years community leaders have attempted a Halloween comeback but at a fraction of the size and shorter duration than the original unofficial street party.

“For the third year running the Civic Joy Fund, in partnership with many Castro neighborhood stakeholders, has worked to reimagine Halloween in the Castro in a way that both nods to what this hallowed tradition was for us but that also reflects what we want it to be,” Manny Yekutiel, a gay man who is executive director of the Civic Joy Fund, stated to the Bay Area Reporter on August 4. 

Yekutiel added, “Joyous. Safe. Helpful to our small businesses. Welcoming. Growing and investing in the successful Castro night market so that it happens on Halloween Friday is the natural extension of this reimagining. Here’s to new traditions.”

As the B.A.R. previously reported, Yekutiel spearheaded the effort to bring Halloween back to San Francisco’s LGBTQ neighborhood in some form two years ago via storefront activations, a costume contest, and a movie marathon at the Castro Theatre, drawing in Castro denizens such as the Castro Merchants Association and the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, a drag nun philanthropic group.

As the Castro and Civic Joy Fund worked together on burnishing Halloween, the nonprofit also launched a regular installment of its well-attended night markets that take place in neighborhoods around the city in the Castro. The Castro night market has been taking place on the third Friday of each month; with Halloween this year falling on a Friday, the October iteration will be moving to the fifth Friday so that they coincide. 

And due to new state laws, Senate Bill 76 in 2023 and SB 969 in 2024, introduced by Castro resident gay state Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), and city ordinances, bars in the footprint of the night market – and other entertainment zones in San Francisco – can sell alcohol for outdoor consumption.

Wiener stated to the B.A.R. that, “The Castro night market is a huge success for the neighborhood, and pairing it with our Entertainment Zone law makes the night market more fun while supporting our local bars and restaurants. Castro Halloween has been coming back organically in recent years, and it’s been peaceful and festive. I’m optimistic the city can make a Castro Halloween night market a big success.”

Gay Board of Supervisors President Rafael Mandelman, who represents the Castro on the board, told the B.A.R. he did not have thoughts to share as yet, except that, “It strikes me that there will need to be a higher level of public safety and interdepartmental coordination, so of course it will be important that they be on top of that. I would imagine there would be some additional neighborhood outreach given the history.”

Yekutiel stated it is to be determined whether, as in 2023 and 2024, merchants will receive cash to facilitate activating their storefronts on Halloween night, or whether the night market will suffice as far as Civic Joy Fund’s involvement. (The prior years’ storefront activations were timed to the Saturdays before October 31, not on Halloween proper, as Halloween night fell on weeknights those years.)

CG Events co-founder Chris Carrington, a gay man, has been the point person on organizing the Castro night markets. He told the B.A.R. in an August 4 phone interview that firm plans are still being made.

“We are still working on permitting, so nothing is really confirmed,” Carrington said.

Permits will be needed from the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency for street closures, Carrington said, as he hopes an expanded footprint will allow the event not only to close down 18th Street from Hartford to Collingwood streets, the usual footprint for the night markets, but to also close down the block between Collingwood and Diamond streets, as the June edition of the night market did. 

“That’s what our initial plan is,” Carrington said. “We’re still going through the planning process.”

The event would be from 5 to 10 p.m.

“It would be the Castro Night Market Halloween edition, not ‘Halloween in the Castro,’” Carrington wanted clarified. There would be a couple added stages, such as in the parking lot behind the Walgreens at 498 Castro Street, and on 18th Street at Diamond Street, as in June. 

There will be some idea about entertainment “probably within the next month,” Carrington said. 

“In September, we'll have an idea,” he added. “We’re still working on figuring out the details and how to keep people safe.”

Castro Merchants Association President Nate Bourg, a gay man, stated to the B.A.R. the event will be a natural fit.

“With Halloween falling on a Friday night this year, and following the tremendous success of our recent Castro night markets, we’re planning to shift October’s event from the traditional third Friday to October 31st,” he stated. “It’s an exciting opportunity to bring the community together for a festive, safe, and memorable Halloween celebration in the heart of the Castro. We’re working closely with city agencies and community partners to ensure a well-coordinated event that prioritizes public safety while showcasing the spirit and vibrancy of our neighborhood.”

Sister Roma of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence was similarly enthused.

“Halloween in the Castro?” Roma asked. “Sounds gay – I’m in! Let’s bring our queer high holiday home, bigger, safer, and better than ever!”

Halloween history
Halloween festivities in the Castro, which harken back to celebrations among queer people in the Tenderloin, North Beach, and Polk Gulch in the mid-20th century, became one of the premiere events of the year for the neighborhood by the 1970s, when it was known as an LGBTQ event.

But with the large crowds descending upon the Castro – including gay bashers – it became hard for the city to ensure public safety at the street party. In 2002, four people were stabbed on Halloween night in the Castro; but the death knell for the old-time Halloween festivities was in 2006, when nine people suffered gun-related injuries in a mass shooting while a 10th victim was trampled in the melee that marred the annual street party.

A heavy police presence stopped the event from occurring again, and by 2011 stakeholders agreed that the Castro shouldn't be the focal point of a region-wide celebration. Government policy became to direct people, as much as they'd listen, to diverse events in other neighborhoods, as well as to strictly enforce alcohol consumption and sale laws in the Castro.

As time has progressed, a more traditional Halloween celebration in the Castro has slowly reemerged in recent years with a more neighborhood and LGBTQ community focus.

Updated, 8/4/25: This article has been updated with comments from state Senator Scott Wiener.