It's been a while since we checked in with the Top of Broadway Community Benefit District, which has been working to improve a stretch of North Beach that houses many bars, nightclubs, restaurants and adult shops. 

We caught up this week with board member and vice president Joe Carouba, who runs all eight strip clubs in the Broadway zone, and was instrumental in setting up the CBD. He told us the group recently got a grant to look into widening its reach, and it's still working on safety, beautification and other goals for the area.

In late 2015, the CBD lost two important forces: board president Stephanie Greenburg and executive director Benjamin Horne. Greenburg left the group primarily because she's only in the city part-time for the next year or so, making holding on to the job a logistical challenge. Horne resigned to take a position as deputy director of the Union Square Business Improvement District.

So Top of Broadway brought in New City America, a consulting group with deep knowledge of CBDs, grant writing and expansion. “We thought New City America was the perfect fit to help with all those areas," Carouba told us. "When Ben left, we thought we needed someone with a lot of experience, and it’s hard to do, because it’s a part-time position. Between [Stephanie] and Ben, that was a big loss. That’s another reason we thought we needed someone with experience, so we didn’t have this huge learning curve."

The group recently landed a grant—not to exceed $25,000—from the San Francisco Office of Economic and Workforce Development, in order to do a survey on a possible expansion. Right now, the district includes all of the properties on Broadway from Columbus Avenue to roughly Montgomery Street, and on Kearny Street from Broadway to Pacific, along with a few others. (The map and more details are online.) Carouba said the group met  with business owners in Jackson Square this week, to discuss expanding to that area.

Jackson Street.

While the two areas might have different priorities, he believes they could create two different management plans under the same CBD, sharing any administrative costs. "[Top of Broadway's] priorities are safety, cleanliness, beautification, marketing," Carouba said. "Jackson Square's might be identity, marketing."

Carouba said making Broadway safe, clean and fun remains a priority for the CBD. "We think we’ve done a really great job on security on Broadway," he said. "We’ve been at it two years; we’ve reduced crime 70 percent.” He said the group wants to make Broadway "accessible for our neighbors and for San Franciscans."

Carouba also said the CBD would like to see some more businesses activated. Businesses like restaurants, bars, and nightclubs are booming, but the area currently offers little in the way of daytime destinations.

There's also a big group of new businesses on the way, including new hot pot restaurant Fondue Chinois, the potential hotel and sushi bar in the former Crow Bar, and the expected rebirth of the Lusty Lady space as a new bar from the Tosca crew. Another bar-restaurant, Prohibition, is still in the works, too. However, there's still no happy hour happening at Hue nightclub, as they continue to promise. 

The CBD is also excited for the debut of Chinese culinary complex China Live at 644 Broadway in the fall, and the expected buildout of Teatro ZinZanni at Broadway and the Embarcadero, which should provide important bookends for the district and help bring more visitors and locals to the area. The process of developing a historical marker program for the district is still ongoing, but Carouba wants the group to also focus on the future, not only the past.

"I’m really excited about Teatro ZinZanni," Carouba said. "We thought about going east on Broadway, and that’s up for discussion. I’m excited about 644 Broadway. We talked to them about being an associate member. I think there’s some good things happening in the neighborhood.”