Merchant FAQ
Answers for Fillmore Street merchants. If yours isn’t here, send us a message.
Membership
Any business located on or near Fillmore Street. Not sure whether you qualify? Ask us and we will tell you.
Fill out the short application. When you submit it, you go straight to the payment page. You can pay by card or ask for mailing instructions to send a check.
Merchant membership is $250 a year, corporate is $650 and affiliate is $850. See what each includes on the membership page.
The association is a business league, exempt under section 501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code, not a charity. Dues are not deductible as a charitable contribution. Many businesses can deduct membership dues as an ordinary business expense, so please check with your accountant. The IRS lists the association as Fillmore Merchants & Improvement Association (EIN 94-6088736). Gifts to the Fillmore Jazz Festival Preservation Fund, a separate 501(c)(3) nonprofit, are handled differently, so ask the Fund about deductibility.
Your listing
Send us your new hours, phone number, website, photos or description through the contact form and we will update your page. Closed businesses stay online, marked as permanently closed, so existing links keep working.
Yes. Every business on the street is in the directory. Members get featured placement, promotion and a voice in the association.
Events, permits and the street
Merchant meetings are held every two months, sometimes with guest speakers such as community leaders and business experts, and there is a merchant happy hour each quarter. Dates are sent to members and posted on the events calendar.
Member businesses are invited to take part each year. Details and dates are on the festival page.
It is a City program that allows organized street events with live entertainment and outdoor drinks from licensed businesses. The FMA leads the Upper Fillmore zone. Read how it works, then contact us before planning an event, since the City requires advance notice.
Usually yes. Permits for outdoor entertainment and amplified sound come from the City’s Entertainment Commission. See the City’s event permit guide, or ask us how it fits with zone events.
Report problems to the City through 311 so they are on record, then tell us. We track recurring issues and raise them directly with City departments and the police.