The Eagle Tavern, a gay bar that was a 30-year-old SOMA mainstay until it closed last April due to a rent increase, is going to re-open, at least according to its web site.

From the site:

It is our pleasure to announce that the Eagle will fly again! Your new hosts, Mike and Alex, will reopen the bar as the S.F. Eagle. It will take a couple of months to do the much-needed repairs and upgrades that the property requires, but some upcoming events are already in the works prior to the opening of the bar. Please check this website periodically for new announcements coming soon.

The bar and patio located at 398 12th Street has long been a special place, not only to the LGBT community, but to the entire community for decades, not to mention the live music community as well. We just couldn’t let such a historic place like this disappear!

We will continue to host fundraisers for all the organizations from the past, as well as welcoming new ones to make the S.F. Eagle the pride of our community once again.

We look forward to seeing all of you very soon!

Today San Francisco Supervisor Scott Wiener told us he was very happy that the Eagle has re-landed. "A lot of us fought very hard to keep The Eagle Open," he said. "Having people that want to re-open it as The Eagle is great news." Wiener said he and Supervisor Jane Kim worked with the new proprietors, Alex Montiel and Mike Leon, to gain a lease.

Wiener also discussed the significance of The Eagle. "The Eagle has been a very important cultural nightlife venue in the LGBT community for several decades. In particular the Sunday beer bust has been a wonderful community gathering to raise money for nonprofits, especially HIV providers. So The Eagle is something that's very important to a lot of us."

Last year at a rally for The Eagle, Wiener told KQED's Joshua Johnson how important nightlife in general is to many in the LGBT community. "Our bars and our clubs are our gathering places," Wiener said. "For a lot of gay people, when you come out, your family are sometimes the people that you're meeting in these bars."

[ad fullwidth]

Here's video of that discussion...

At the time, Johnson's blog post on that event drew a number of comments from Eagle fans, including the following:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As i have seen many of the local people support such a great place; but for many more of us who do not have that community in our local areas we travel to places like THE EAGLE. We seek to learn and be a part of something that is so wonderful that it allows us to feel okay and safe to be who we are. The Eagle and the people of The Eagle share build and grow the tradition and the lives of so many. Please keep the fight strong for a place that has been so good to so many. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Eagle is my home away from home. i have been to hundreds of benefits there where money was raised for Lyon Martin Clinic or toys collected for the SF Firefighters Toy Drive. On Thanksgiving there is turkey and dressing for all of the folks who would perhaps have to go to a shelter or do without on that day. We have to fight back and SAVE THE EAGLE.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hopefully, the new place will end up being just as important to its customers.

Eagle TavernEagle Tavern

Eagle Tavern, Iconic Gay Bar, to Reopen

The Eagle Tavern Closes

Future of SF's Eagle Tavern Uncertain; Fans Rally to Stop Shutdown