A Letter from our Executive Director:
Dear CMC Community,
I am writing today to share that Community Music Center will move its Richmond District Branch to a new home at 6221 Geary Boulevard this fall.
This is a significant moment in CMC’s history. We have offered music education at the Richmond Neighborhood Center since 1983, and generations of students, families, faculty members, and neighbors have made music there.
As the Richmond Neighborhood Center expands its food security programming, it needs additional space to meet the community’s growing needs. That expansion means CMC must relocate, but it has also given us an opportunity to imagine the next chapter of our Richmond District Branch.
After a nearly year-long search, we have found a nearby space where CMC can continue its Richmond District programs while creating greater capacity for students, faculty, and community programs. Located just a few blocks from our current branch, the approximately 5,000-square-foot space will give CMC considerably more room for lessons, group classes, performances, gatherings, and future growth.
The new location will help our students and families remain connected to the teachers, programs, and community they know. It is well-suited to music education and is being designed with individual rooms for private lessons and group classes, administrative space, and a larger area for performances and community gatherings.
The additional space will allow us to reduce scheduling constraints, create a comfortable, accessible environment for students and families, and explore new classes, ensembles, and community programs over time. Our lease provides CMC with a stable Richmond District home for the coming years while giving us the flexibility to continue planning for the branch’s long-term future.
We know that change—especially after more than four decades in one location—can bring questions and uncertainty. Our priorities throughout this process have been clear: remain in the Richmond District, avoid a break in lessons and programs, provide a welcoming and functional environment, and preserve the strong community relationships that have made the branch so special.
We believe 6221 Geary provides a strong foundation for the branch’s next chapter, and we are committed to making the transition as smooth as possible for our students, families, and faculty.
We are planning for fall lessons and programs to begin on schedule, and we are working closely with our faculty and staff on the transition and will share detailed information about schedules, arrival procedures, accessibility, transportation, parking, and other logistics well before the start of the Fall Quarter.
We are also excited to join a building with other organizations devoted to serving the Richmond District. Richmond Senior Services, a longtime CMC community partner, is located in the building, along with Kai Ming Head Start. We see meaningful possibilities for collaboration among organizations serving children, adults, and older adults under one roof.
This move has been made possible by the extraordinary flexibility, creativity, and commitment of CMC’s faculty and staff. I am also grateful to the many students, families, Board members, community partners, and neighborhood leaders who have offered advice, encouragement, and connections throughout our search.
We are deeply thankful to the Richmond Neighborhood Center for more than 40 years of partnership and shared service to the community. Although our physical location is changing, the relationships, memories, and history created there will remain an important part of CMC.
CMC has long prided itself on responding to the needs of the people and communities we serve. This move reflects that same spirit: honoring our history while creating new possibilities for the future.
We look forward to welcoming you to 6221 Geary Boulevard and sharing photographs, transition updates, and opportunities to tour the space in the weeks ahead. Please join us for a community open house on Saturday, August 29, 2026, from 2:00 to 4:00 pm.
Most of all, we look forward to filling our new Richmond District home with music, together.
With gratitude and excitement,
Julie Rulyak Steinberg
Executive Director