North Beach residents in need of an adjustment may soon have to look elsewhere, as one of the only two chiropractic offices in the neighborhood could be forced to close in the new year.
Dr. Chae Park opened his North Beach Chiropractic practice at 401 Francisco St. in 2012, with hopes of creating what he calls a "beneficial healing environment" for the community. He'd like to stay in his current home long-term, but his lease is set to end in July 2016, and the landlord has proposed tripling his rent a. At that price, it's not likely he'll be able to keep the doors open.
Photo: Nathan Falstreau/Hoodline
Becoming a chiropractor wasn't always Park's plan. Though he did well in school and excelled in the sciences, Park says he never felt compelled to work in medicine, even though he's always been sensitive to energies, or “chi”—something he feels is paramount in the healing arts. As a first-year college student studying biology, he was required to attend a workshop for careers in the healing arts, and even then, none of the panel speakers piqued his interest.
But at the end of the event, he happened to meet a chiropractor standing near the exit, who explained that the job would allow him to develop close relationships with his patients and be an integral part of their healing. “I would be able to help them not only get healthier, but live greater lives ... and that’s what kept me interested,” Park said.
As a result, Park dropped out of the private university he was attending and enrolled as a pre-med student at California State University at Long Beach, studying kinesiology and athletic training. After graduating, he moved to the Bay Area to complete his Doctor of Chiropractic degree at Life Chiropractic College West in Hayward.
As a fully fledged chiropractor, Park ran several established offices, but ultimately decided to open his own in the space on Francisco Street. While the unit needed a lot of work, he was attracted to the neighborhood and the exposed brick in the building, so he took out loans and plowed his personal savings into the renovation, which included knocking down walls, among other upgrades.
Photo: Dr. Chae Park
In his first year in North Beach, Park would see clients in the midst of construction. Despite noise and other inconveniences, his “practice members,” as he calls them, were loyal and continued to make appointments.
Park said that he was “excited to settle in” to the neighborhood; a particular turning point was when he was invited to an art opening for several of his practice members at Live Worms Gallery. “It was at that opening that, for the first time, I really felt like part of the North Beach community,” he said.
After construction was completed, North Beach Chiropractic's business started to pick up, and for the first time, Park said, he was “out of the red.” But just as he wrapped up his renovations, North Beach Chiropractic's building was sold. The new landlord removed two tenants on the bottom floor (an acupuncturist and the San Francisco Cheese School) and began his own renovations, prolonging the disruption of Park's practice for another year. (We reached out to Park's landlord multiple times for comment, but didn't hear back as of press time.)
Park (right) with artist Ed Handelman. (Photo: Chae Park)
When Park contacted the new landlord about the possibility of adding additional outdoor signage, he learned that his lease might not be renewed. According to Park, the landlord wants to either take over the space to expand his own architectural firm, or raise the rent closer to market rate after the termination of the current lease. Park says he wouldn't be able to afford the latter option. “I feel like I was never given a chance to grow."
The potential loss of a business that directly serves local residents has disappointed many. “While North Beach is justifiably famous for restaurants and nightlife, this is also a residential neighborhood that needs easy access for [residents’] everyday needs," North Beach Business Association board member Kathleen Dooley told us via email. "This is why we need to retain as many neighborhood-serving business spaces as possible, to keep some balance in our community.” (For more on the NBBA's work to protect neighborhood-serving businesses, check out this story from July.)
Park hopes to negotiate a new lease that will allow him to stay past July, but if he can't make a deal, he's looking at other potential spaces in North Beach and the Divisadero corridor.
