Since SF State’s The Pub closed in March, students have been wondering where to get a beer after class and if the closure will affect business at the neighboring depot.

As the new school year begins, The Depot kicked off its first karaoke night on Tuesday, Sept. 9, though not without nerves. Karaoke attendance fell to 20 people, compared to the 50 prior to The Pub’s closure last semester. Last semester, at The Depot’s DJ Competition in May, attendees had already wondered how the closure would affect campus nightlife.The Depot and The Pub once shared a symbiotic business relationship, drawing foot traffic to one another. Without The Pub, The Depot staff remain hopeful, despite the uncertain future.

“Since The Pub closed, Depot events have not been, I feel like, at its full potential,” said Depot manager, Michelle Yang, who has been managing the venue since 2023.

Brandon Foley, the president of Associated Students, said The Pub’s vendor decided not to renew their lease due to low traffic. 

“[Vendors] are seeing decreases in traffic and people going there, which means less money for them and it makes it tougher to stay open,” Foley said. With the combination of declining enrollment rates and many students living off campus, maintaining events after class has become harder for current students.

The Pub was a central part of campus culture, and its absence is felt. Students, like Drew Varela, can no longer turn to its doors as a place to relax after class. Varela stopped by the DJ Competition last semester in May but, without a pub next door, grabbing a drink was no longer an option. After a short time on the dance floor, he and his friends decided to go off campus to a bar instead. 

Libee Sargis, who is pursuing a bachelor’s in music, has been attending Depot events consistently over the past few years before and after The Pub’s closure. She expressed disappointment with the Depot’s closing as she recently turned 21. To Sargis, The Pub’s closure affects more than just The Depot, it also affects the music department. The Depot used to host open jams where musicians had a chance to bring their instruments and partake in performing. Before The Pub’s closure, the jams brought steady foot traffic with a diverse group of people attending, expecting to play or listen in. Now, only a handful of music students show up. 

SF State’s enrollment has been declining even before the COVID-19 pandemic, and continued to fall after. To combat the declining enrollment rates in 2019, President Lynn Mahoney announced the Strategic Enrollment Management Plan. Between fall 2017 and fall 2021, there was a 27% decline in first-time freshman enrollment. More recently, according to the Applications and Enrollment’s Weekly Student Reports, between fall 2024 and fall 2025, there has been a 4.8% decrease in total headcount enrollment.

According to the fall 2022 census, with in-person education returning, student population numbers grew to 16% lived on campus and 84% lived off campus, making them commuter students. The 2018 SFSU Transportation Survey, 41% of students lived in San Francisco County, 20% lived in San Mateo and 19% lived in Alameda County. 

“Campus culture is always going to be something we have to work super hard on being a state school,” Foley said. “We’ve gotta make sure people are staying after class for our events, whether it’s at The Depot, or game nights we host around the [Cesar Chavez] building or AS program events.”

The Depot has been the heart of SF State: it offers students a place to make friends, listen to music, study and grab some food between classes. According to a student handbook from 1976, The Depot first opened that fall — at the time, possibly known as the Union Depot Expresso — where students could meet in the Cesar Chavez basement for coffee, tea, pastries, ice cream and beer, at scheduled times. Live entertainment was also scheduled here during the evenings.

“Since I can remember, there’s always been a pub,” said Horace Montgomery, the AS assistant executive director of programs — when he was a student at SF State in 1997, The Depot was the place to be. 

“It’s the notion of giving students something to do outside the classroom,” said Montgomery, expressing AS’ fundamental intent for The Depot. “Giving them something to be able to explore their creativity and also give a meeting space for students to just kind of meet other students; we don’t have a lot of spots [where] you can do that on campus.” 

After the neighboring pub’s closure, alcohol is no longer allowed and the building has enforced a no-drinks policy Depot staff have confronted students drinking in The Depot but often feel conflicted — some staff believe they should be allowed to drink given it’s been a standard practice until now.

Though The Depot faces many uncertainties regarding its future, the growing support for its events reflect that it is vital to a bustling and ever-changing campus community. At the first karaoke event of the year, the crowd grew from 18 to 38 attendees — exceptional considering this increase was in a short period of time, between 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Additionally, the sign-up list showed 50 people had signed up to sing. 

Malik Mathur, impersonating Elvis, sang a rendition of “Blue Suede Shoes” and two other songs. “For me, not everything’s about alcohol,” said Mathur. “I feel like you should just come anyway”

Yang reflects, “Even without The Pub, I’ve still seen people supporting us and our events … and that reassured me that everything was gonna be fine.” 

The Depot holds events in the lower level of the Cesar Chavez Student Center, Tuesday through Thursdays, 6 to 9 p.m.