PPC, SF Press Club in talks

The Peninsula Press Club Board of Directors met with members of the San Francisco Press Club on July 2 to discuss options for SF club, whose history dates back to 1888.

Dick Alexander and Larry Matthews of the SF Press Club said that about 80 percent of their members are non-journalists who joined to enjoy the privileges of the private club. For instance, SF Press Club members can stay free or at reduced rates in luxury rooms at other press clubs around the world.

In 1997, the SF Press Club, facing large debts, declining membership and building code compliance issues, sold its building at 555 Post St. and moved into its current quarters at 155 Sansome St.

Now the SF club is considering a proposal to merge with another club in San Francisco, but it wants to find a good home for the newspaper memorabilia it has collected for more than 100 years, Alexander said. Another idea was to, perhaps, have the PPC take on the SF Press Club’s annual contest.

PPC board members urged the members of the SF club to return with a proposal the board could consider.