The San Francisco LGBT Community Center, now in its 14th year, is about to undergo a significant renovation to increase its nonprofit workspace, improve the lobby area, and create a more efficient layout. The construction will take roughly six months and run about $6.5 million, but the organization plans to keep its programs running the entire time. 

"We're incredibly excited about the changes, and want to stress that all of our programs will continue to function throughout the renovation," executive director Rebecca Rolfe told us. "We're in a four-story, 37,000 square foot building, and these changes will make the building more efficient overall."

The renovation should begin in March, running through late fall or early winter. It's being funded through a grant from the city, as well as the New Markets Tax Credit, part of a community renewal act. 

All of the renovations will be to the building's interior, focused primarily on "tripling our current space for nonprofit partners, which helps serve our community with more affordable office spaces for these organizations," Rolfe said. "In turn, it generates more revenue for the Center, and brings in more community-serving and community-building groups."

Center staff and clients marching at Pride.

The additional nonprofit office space, which could come open as early as September, will be prioritized for organizations that provide a diverse range of services to the Center's visitors, including primary medical care, mental health and substance abuse treatment, and legal services. One example is the nonprofit gay/bisexual Latino organization Aguilas, which uses space in the Center. (It will remain open throughout the renovation.)

The lobby will also get a new look, with additional community meeting spaces and enhancements to the Rainbow Room, the building's largest event space.

Rolfe stressed that the Center wants to keep things moving as usual. "There may be certain events and event space rentals that have to happen off-site or will take a temporary break, but all workshop and programming rooms will continue," she said. 

"Overall, we're very happy about the coming changes and look forward to welcoming more groups, improving our lobby area, and designing the flow of the space more efficiently," Rolfe said. 

You can learn more about the renovation on the Center's website, and check out a profile we did on Center last year.