take care. please stand by for the san francisco rules committee meeting of february 26, 2024. >> good morning. this is february 26, 2024 rules committee meeting. i'm sfr supervisor ronan and joined by vice chair walton and hope to be joined soon by committee member supervisor

safai. welcome supervisor dean preston who is joining us for item 1. our clerk is victor young and i would like to thank gym smith and james from sfgovtv for staffing this meeting. mr. clerk, do have announcements? >> yes, public comment will be taken on each item. when your item comes up and public comment is called, please line up to speak on your right. you may submit public comment in writing in either oof the following ways e-mail to rules committee clerk at victor.young@sfgov.org. if you submit viae-mail it will be forwarded to the board and included as part of the file. you may send by u.s. mail to city hall, 1 dr. carlton b goodlett place, room 244 san francisco, california 94102. silence cell phones and electronic devices. documents as part of the file

should be submit today the clerk. items are expected to appear on the board of supervisors agenda march 5, 2024 unless otherwise stated. that completes my initial announcements. >> thank you so much. can you please read item 1? >> yes, item 1 is hearing to consider appointx 6 members terms ending december 16, 2024 to the market octavia community advisory committee. >> thank you so much. i just want to make an announcement today for each applicant you have two minutes to present your qualification and interest in the seat. before we call the applicants forward i want to give supervisor preston a opportunity to make opening remarks. >> thank you chair ronan and agendizing this. i'll differ comments until after we hear from the applicants.

we had a large of number applicants and very much appreciate all the interest in folks in the community serving on this committee. >> thank you so much. then we can't wait to hear from you all. i'll call you up in the order listed on the agenda and so we'll hear first from jesus guillen who is applying for seat 1. good morning. >> good morning supervisors. >> my apology before we startd, i like to note, if you possibly all the speakers try to keep comment to 2 minutes it will be appreciated. you will hear a soft chime and louder chime, but it is just a timer, please finish up your comments when you hear the chimes. thank you. >> sure. my name is jesus guillen. thank you for having me here. i have been in san francisco since 1990. one of the most important

things for me representing, i have seen you around in different events and i like to think i represent the latino latinx community, immigrants and people living with disabilities, hiv long-term survivors, lgbtq i think i have a bunch of things that hopefully i can listen to me community and really try to represent the area of housing. i been living in the neighborhood for 20 years or so and i am there thank tuesday rent control and if so many of us right here we will [indiscernible] we will not be in the city, so hopefully you just take into consideration my work that i have been part of. the hiv planning commission et cetera. thank you very much guys. i appreciate it. >> thank you so much. i just want to say, it is such a pleasure working with you

jesus over the years. next calling up leah culver to seat 1. hello, good morning. >> i just like to note that i have in contact with mrs. culver. i believe the seat listed on the agenda is incorrect and should be seat 2 according to her qualifications. >> is that- >> that is true. good morning. i'm leah culver, a home owner in the plan area, rather then a renter so not eligible for seat 1. thank you for noting that. i lived in the area for since 2018 and my background is in technology, which is somewhat relevant now with the hayes valley and midmarket neighborhood and i left technology last year to become a stay at home mom and i have been going out recently walking around the neighborhood, have

really-it reinvigorated my passion for my local community able to go to the different local businesses, restaurants and shops in the area. i also like to note i have been car free 12 years. my primary mode of transportation is mostly walkjug biking though i took the muni this morning, so i know one of the stated goals of the plan is to be a advocate for actsive transportation which is what i primarily look to do, so both look revitalizing local businesses and being advocate for more active form of transportation within the city. so, thank you again for your consideration. very flattered to be here so thank you so much. >> thank you so much. thanks for applying. next we have david robinson applying for seat 2.

>> good morning. thank you for having me. my name is david robinson and own a home [indiscernible] few doors up the hill from octavia boulevard. thank you for reviewing my application to serve on the committee representing the hayes valley neighborhood . i was proposed to the committee by long time robin leveta mioral appointment to the committee. i attended a few meetings as a concerned resident and citizen. also a member of the board of the hayes valley neighborhood association and as of last week annual meeting in fact, dean, you may not know this yet but elected to serve as president for the upcoming term. i'm very active in the community and neighborhood, not only with the association, but assisting friends of urban forest planting trees with the refuge and [indiscernible] cleaning the steets. one of the cocaptains on the

saturday morning cleanups in hayes valley. and evenen pitching in to clean clogged storm drains. most recently as the last tuesday. i also assist with court watch initiative at the hall of justice and spare time i work for guest services at oracle park for the giants. my crire splan over 35 years as general manager [indiscernible] general manager at the san francisco yacht club. now semi-retired. my years of management particularly with volunteer organizations like private clubs, provides me with a skills and experience in volunteer organization and governance. as hvna president and active and concerned resident of our neighborhood, i am looking forward to offering my experience and energy to the committee. the hayes valley neighborhood is represented by three supervisors within our

boundaries, supervisors preston,b dorsey and mandelman and i hope to have all of them support me in this new effort. qu that, i thank you and i look forward to your decision. >> thank you so much. thanks for applying. next we'll hear from michael rooney for seat 2. >> good morning ing supervisors. thank you for having us. michael rooney home owner applying for seat 2. i love my neighborhood. it is a really diverse intersection of different communities coming together in interesting way. as millennium and first time home owner of 6 years, i have a vested long-term interest in the development and continued growth of the plan area. active volunteer with friends of the urban forest, spur and participate in planning and transportation advocacy groups within san francisco and license civil engineer and work

with sfo and bart in the past. i haveprieve yssly consulted for public agencies on the development and implementation of capital plans and very excited about the impact urban planning initiatives can have on the growth of communities and city at large. i not served on boards or commissions within san francisco but believe it is important to represent younger voices in the future growth of the neighborhoods. as a community representatives on the market octavia cac, i believe i would be able to help support the implementation of proposed infrastructure improvement and [indiscernible] and provide citizens oversight of capital planning for the community. keen to work with the planning department on bringing new energy and opportunities to the plan area and thank you guys very much for considering my application to serve my community. thank you. >> thank you so much. next we'll be hearing from

natalie burdick for seats 2 and 6. hello, good morning. >> good morning supervisors. thank you for this opportunity to speak to you. my name is natalie burdick and have been living in the plan area since 2012 and the reason i'm joining or applying for the position is, i have been a long time advocate for safer streets as staff member at walk san francisco and also on the lower haight merchant neighborhood association so i understand the need to make sure the businesses especially small local businesses are thriving and successful and that comes with a good urban plan and design to support all the constituents and like many here, i appreciate the opportunity to be considered. i spent the last since 2016 doing a lot of volunteering and organizing in addition to my actual day job, so i know the

importance of making sure there is consensus and making sure lots of voices are at the table to bring forward the best solutions possible so very excited for the opportunity to serve on seat 2 or 6. the application applied to both, so which ever is best helpful for the cac. thank you for your time this morning. >> thank you so much. next we will hear from madeleine howie who applied for seats 3 and 6. is madeleine here? doesn't look like it. we'll next hear from autumn adamme. she's here? applied for seat 4. not here. is nicolas parker here who applied for seat 4? wonderful. thank you. come on up. >> hello. my name is nicolas parker, and

i appreciate the opportunity to come here and apply for this position on the advisory committee. i am a business owner. i own murk ury cafe at corner of heys and paige street and owned the business the last 15 years mpts the anniversary date is coming up march 16, and i have been a member that community, feel very strongly attached to it. we have hosted various events at our cafe, which includes fundrazors for kpoo, we had meet and greets with local politicians, we had other non profits who come in and have their own fundrazors and feel strongly committed to the neighborhood and part of the

reason i wish to be on this board is to be sure that this commitment extends itself to a more policy generated-pardon me, not very good at this. in any event, i do look forward to the decision of whatever the board has and i also appreciate the opportunity to make this a-to make this opportunity available to me, and i look forward to whatever decision may come and thank you all for your time. >> thank you so much. thank you for applying. next we'll hear from sacha ortega for seat 5. >> hello. thanks for having me. my name is sacha ortega, i lived in hayes valley since 2011. over the time i served on the

board and volunteered for numerous non profits including league of women voter, the bike coalition. over the ten plus years, all most 15, i have been active in hayes valley neighborhood association. i'm a renter in the neighborhood and very passionate about pedestrian rights, bicycle rights and active transportation and keeping our streets safe for everybody to use them. thanks for hearing from me. >> last but certainly not least, andrew seigner for seat 5. that's right, seat 6. >> andrew seigner. i have been is a resident of san francisco about 20 years, hayes valley about 8 years. really two main interests in wanting to work on this committee. one is helping the city with

the transit first vision zero goals, the other is affordable housing. on the transit first, i have been working with hayes valley neighborhood association and supervisor preston's office the last 4 years to establish the hayes street shared space. now vice president of hayes valley neighborhood association. the permit holding on the hayes street shared space and created a website called carfreehayes.org with a petition. working towards a fully pedestrianized 24/7 hayes street, whatever that might look like. on the affordable housing size, work with hayes valley for all, some in the room today to push for development of affordable housing in hayes valley. you can't think about housing in the plan area without thinking in the context of redevelopment in the 50 and 60. i don't pretend the committee can solve the problems but can

push things in the right direction. so, pushing for turning parcel k also known as proxy freeway parcel in affordable housing sitting there 20years since the freeway came down. i live on a former freeway parcel, parcel h. i bought a condo there 8 years ago and the only reason i could is because i worked in xhacktly the right company at the right time. that is too high a bar to be able to buy a home in this area. people that live and work in the area should be able to own a home there. housing is a human right and hope we can move inch that direction. p i really appreciate your time. thank you. >> thank you so much. wow, this is a impressive group of candidates. before-you want to make a comment or hear public comment first? public comment first? okay. mr. clerk, can we please open the item up for public comment? >> yes, members of the public

who wish to speak should line up to speak at this time. each speaker will be allowed two minutes to be aa soft chime with 30 seconds left. if you like to make public comment you can approach the podium at this time. there does not appear to be be any public comment for this matter. >> public comment is now closed. supervisor preston. >> thank you chair ronan and thank you again for agendizing this. there is a lot going on. i just want to say and i think you see this in the incredible array of folks who are seeking to serve in this volunteer capacity, this neighborhood has a lot of folks very committed to the neighborhood and if you have been to hayes valley recently you see one of the most resitiant neighborhoods out of the pandemic and thriving despite ongoing challenges that we are all working on together, but i want to thank everyone who is

applying, took the time to come here and folks who have been serving. i notice madeleine howie isn't here to speak, but has been serving and seeking reappointment and doing really good work on the committee. i wanted to offer some remarks and recommendations to the committee. i want to underscore, this cac has and i think can continue to play a really important role in determining the direction of this neighborhood, especially around development and transportation issues, which a lot of applicants spoke to in their comments. the cac helps provide both oversight on community improvement funding and where those funds should be directed and on the ground insight into what matters to the residents who live within the boundaries

of the area plan. my office spent a considerable amount of time speaking with interested and qualified neighbors for the positions as we did couple years ago as well. appreciate interest from all the candidates who applied and the level of community activism and involvement. what was important among other things to our office and something discused with the candidates that did reach out to our office about their interest in serving, really is they will represent some of the progressive values on the cac and further commitments that were made as the long standing commitments as part of the market octavia area plan. this is a area obiously where the freeway once stood and promises to the community around affordsability in particular and want to see that achieved. a lot has been done and still a lot of work to do.

in particular, it is priority for our office to make good on the decades long promise to bring affordable housing to formal central freeway parcels where it has been promised and to continue to push for open space in the form of our shared streets program on hayes street, mr. seigner and others spoke to and something in the community have come together around and that is especially poncht as the mta is currently studying potentially making that temporary activation permanent on hayes street and that's a active discussion with the community and with the cac. so, whether selected by the committee and the board or not, i just want to urge all candidates to remain engaged in market octavia issues as many of you have been for years and please stay in contact with our office and with the cac members, because i know all the folks serving on the cac

apointded by the board or mayor are receptive to working with community members. so, i want to speak briefly to the candidates my office is urging the committee to support today. again, there are many highly qualified people for a number of these seats, so these decisions were not always easy, they are ultimately up to the board and this committee, but for our part, we want to emphasize the following folks who have engaged proactive with our office in advance of the hearing and who we think are uniquely positioned to serve on this cac. first for seat 1, jesus guillen who you heard from and i will say some folks who spoke are very humble so i'll say a word or few about each because all the folks are accomplished. jesus is long time rentser in hayes valley, hiv survivor,

[indiscernible] undocumented immigrant who bring a powerful lens of diversity inclusion to the cac as he has done with all advocacy efforts from health to housing and immigration in san francisco. natalie burdick, seat 2, a 12 more then 12 year resident board member of the lower haight merchants and neighbor association as mentioned, former walk sf employee and current advocate for green energy can low carbon fuel coalition. mad eleine howie want able teeb r to be here. has been serving a 80 biracial teacher of burlesque and dance and volunteer with shared spaces program and hayes valley artworks. nick parker who spoke who is really a incredible small business leader in hayes valley.

i have marked my calendar mr. parker based on i think you said march 16 so i assume that's a invitation to everyone to that anniversary, but he has run the murkuary cafe 15 years and [indiscernible] doing advocees for small businesses not just in hayes valley but across the city. sacha ortega for seat number 5, a long time neighborhood advocate as she mentioned former board member of the hayes valley neighborhood association active participant in the hv & na transportation and land use committee and champion of bicycle safety and safe is streets and last but definitely not least, andrew seigner who you heard from.

[indiscernible] hayes valley for all and he is really taken the leadership and taken the baton on the hayes valley shared spaces in keeping thatd up and running when mta fsh looking at potentially dismantling it. very much appreciate his leadership on that as well as his leadership on envisioning what a permanent car free space on that block of hayes street in a neighborhood that has lacked open space other then patricia green and he's really been leading the way on what we could do to really transform that street. i think this composition of folks we are recommending really brings a diverse set of backgrounds and perspectives, years of experience as well as some folks with newer perspectives that will benefit the cac and renewed energy to make this body a even stronger voice that both represents and carries forward a bold agenda for market octavia area and the

hayes valley neighborhood and i also would be remiss if i didn't acknowledge and thank the folks the mayoral appointees. this is a body where the supervisor appointees and mayoral appointees worked collaboratively together and that includes ted olsson, robin levet and tony [indiscernible] want to thank them and hope the mayor will some point move forward with their implement. their terms expired but serving on a ongoing basis so thank them for their service. thank you. >> wonderful. thank you so much supervisor preston. supervisor walton. >> thank you chair ronan. i want to reiterate thanks. there are more qualified candidates then available seats but i want to appreciate everyone for wanting to step up and serve. i like to make a motion to move forward the 6 candidates named by supervisor preston with positive recommendation to full board. >> thank you. i also just wanted to reiterate

supervise r walton and i have the position of every single appointment when there is more candidates which is amazing to have more candidates then seats. it just shows how much our residents are engaged in our city. it is so hard to make these choices and we just really want to encourage you all to continue to be engaged and also to look into other options too. i know this is your neighborhood, so the particular interest in your neighborhood makes sense, but we have many many bodies on this city and this was just such a impressive group of applicants and so, i really do hope that you look on the board's website and available seats and bodies to serve and consider applying to other bodies as well. and with that, can we have a roll call vote on supervisor

walton's motion? i can repeat-- >> yes. on the motion there is move by vice chair walton to appoint jesus guillen to seat 1, natalie burdick to seat 2. madeleine howie seat 3, nicolas parking seat 4, sacha ortega seat 5 and andrew seigner to seat 6. on that motion, vice chair walton, aye. supervisor safai, absent. chair ronan, aye. the motion passes without objection with supervisor safai being absent. >> that motion carries. thank you so much. thank you supervisor preston and are thank you again to all the applicants. mr. clerk can you please read item 2? >> yes, hearing to consider appointing 8 members term ending march 17, 2027 to the

veteran affairs commission. i like to note, we have two withdraws from the list of applicants. douglas bullard and william barnikel have withdrawn their applications. >> thank you so much. very similar we will call up each applicant in the order that they are listed and if you can keep your comments to two minutes that would be much appreciated. we'll start with jenny perez for seat 1. hello. yes, good morning. >> good morning. supervirezers and attendees, my name is jenny perez, today i prebt my candidacy for seat 1. motivated by extensive involvement in veteran affairs and connection to my community, as a spouse and caregiver of purple heart resip cnt i are experienced first hand the unique challenges and contribution of our veteran families inspiring my dedication to their support.

my professional background spans significant roles in risk management governance and compliance. with organizations such as union bank, fesa, wells farga and kaiser. as a northern california regional leader for serve, i spearheaded nishtivals to ichbt great veterans into the work place in san francisco. in the last two years i helped organize coursemanship events at the presidio riding club and honored to be named execter for non profit offering sailing activities in the bay. while our commissioners excel in their roles, if appointed i propose to further enhance our board's visibility within our districts. my aim is also elevate the voices of spouses, children, family and friends who support their veterans, introducing a fresh perspective to acpauj a veteran need and contribution.

i look for ward to the opportunity to make a meaningful impact within our commission and our city. thank you. >> thank you so much and thank you for your service. next we have darya kutovaya. hello, good morning. >> hello. my name is darya kutovaya applying for seats 1 and 2. as a first [indiscernible] challenges and opportunities many new residents of san francisco may face. my experience commentplexity of immigration system and living undocumented for 8 years allows me-too-ismicize and advocate for immigrants communities in the city. experiencing homelessness i'm aware of struggles many in san francisco face finding stable affordable housing. my husband serving connecting disabled veteran and formally

homeless shares my experience. as a woman in tech [indiscernible] proven by ability to excel in rolls including as a software engineer, [indiscernible] in spare time i work with veteran owned non profits and businesses to help them find veterans to serve my [indiscernible] demonstrate commitment to promoting veteran success. thank you for your consideration. >> thank you so much and thank you for your service. next we have deborah dacumos for seats 2, 4-8. come on forward. thank you so much. we have a representative from the veteran affairs commission to present on a couple people who are absent today. >> i'm here to represent deborah dacumos, served on the veteran affairs commission

since 2011. she's retired army nurse after serving 30 years as a army nurse. she just brings a great energy to the commission. she represents the commission very well. she's very dedicated to helping veterans, especially with in mental health struggles and just healthcare in general. she has been a great connection for the commission to fleet week activities throughout the city, and just overall deborah like i said, she is a great influence and just really a very committed and helpful presence. >> thank you. can you state your name? >> mary murphy, the commission secretary. >> thank you so much mrs. murphy. next we have jason reissenweber

for seats 3, 4-8. hello, good morning. >> good morning esteemed supervisors and mr. young. my name is john reissenweber. i am a combat vietnam vet purple heart and hundred percent disabled. if i succeed to be appointed on the veterans commission, i bring a wealth of experience as i was for 25 plus years on executive at ford motor company worldwide in parts service. i also bring the experience of being a veteran in crisis. six years ago my ptsd and other lead me a point where i was about to pull the plug, and it was the intervention of a county employee, john gallagher

at 2 gough street who got me plugged into the services that are available, which brings me to the reason i want to be on the veterans committee. i would like to make sure that the awareness of services available gets out to the veteran community. that would be my main purpose. now, for the last three years i have been working as a volunteer ambassador project, pga hope prm where we serve with vso. i work with the san mateo veterans commission and we ended up winning the outstanding association of the year last year. i also would like to make sure

that we bring the needs and requirements of the veteran community to the associated government local state and federal. i hear the bell, thank you for your time. i appreciate the opportunity. >> really appreciate you so much. thank you. i'm sorry, i called-i called you by the wrong name. it is john and i switched names. let me go back one to jason chittavong who i believe mrs. murphy is going to represent as well. so sorry about that. >> thank you supervisors. jason chittavong is currently serving as the veteran affair commission president. he was just elected by fellow members in january. jason has served on the

commission since 2021 so hasn't completed one term yet, and he is again just a very excellent leadership skills, dedication, he's committed to veteran justice, does work at the veteran justice court. he is just very dedicated, very hard-working and just again, represents the commission very well and as i said, he is two months serving as president and doing a great job. that is what i can say about jason. thank you. >> thank you so much mrs. murphy. next we will hear from tom matchin. hi. good morning. >> good morning. thank you supervisors. i bring over two decades dedicated service within the u.s. army when iheld roles from strategic advisor to operational command r, my

journey is [indiscernible] it is my hope to continue this commitment within the veteran affairs commission. i advokited for veterans and military affairs with the highest levels including advising members of congress, therefore gain insight into the legislative framework that supports our veterans. whether through direct leadership over 500 army [indiscernible] on foster environment where leadership integrity and team work flourish. i aim to leverage extensive military and legislative experience to advocate for and support our veterans in san francisco. together we can build on the commission achievements, identify new opportunities for improvement and make san francisco a model city for veteran support and integration. as a lgbtq plus veteran who served 10 years under don't ask don't tell, committed to actively advocating for the lgbtq plus community insuring they receive the representation and resources they so

critically need. collaboration with the city, veteran service organizations, the va and non profits will be instrumental in providing our veterans the opportunity they deserve. some of the areas i seek collaboration, community integration, foster sense of community and belonging among our veterans, inclusive support services, advocating for development of services tailored to needs of lgbtq veterans, employment and education, promoting programs that facilitate veteran transition into civilian employment with emphasis on career development opportunities that respect the diversity of our veteran community. thank you for considering my request to be a commissioner on the veten affairs committee. eager to bring leadership, experience and passion for vetdren welfare to the commission. thank you. >> thank you so much. you are all so inspiring. i'm very moved so far. thank you. next we'll hear from hanley

chan. >> good morning supervisors. my name is hanley chan. born and raised in san francisco. went to all the schools in san francisco got aa in city college of san francisco got ba in new college of california. that is located in san francisco. rest in peace to my mentor the harry brit. [indiscernible] my initial appointment collective efforts have significantly impacted the veteran community. over a 5 year span when i was in the commission we championed 5 pivotal laws underscoring dedication to empower of voterens. commitment to enhance veteran

mental health lead to advocate for initiative as granting veterans free access to our parks. like [indiscernible] conserve tore of flowers. one of my new thing i'm working in collaboration with supervisor melgar, we are striving to create more inclusive opportunities for minorities and veteran owned small businesses by prioritizing them to city contract bids. last year despite a setback we couldn't secure enough support for the commission to urge the board of supervisors for a resolution backing sb58, a bipartisan bill championed by our senator scott wiener [indiscernible] psychedelics to aid veterans and struggles of ptsd [indiscernible] hope this year we'll do it again. aligning with commissioners who share and promote san francisco

is paramount to the mission. we made strides implementing changes directly benefits veterans and why i support prince jordan, [indiscernible] chris scott and mitch weller and we need a lawyer in this commission. mitch weller is a lawyer. thank you. >> thank you so much. next we'll hear from james boatman. no, he can speak. either one. >> hello supervisors. my name is james, here to apply for a seat on the commission here in the city of san francisco. i'm prior military, 6 years active in the coast guard, three years here in the bay. i was honorbly discharged in 2017 i attended city college and work at the [indiscernible] after two years i transferred to usf to complete my bachelors.

i worked at swords to plow shares to help veterans with housing stability issues develop independent living skills to navigate every-day life. from that position, i was promoted to program manager where i developed a community center for veterans here in san francisco from the ground up. june last year assisted veterans with service over 7 thousand times. i direct experience in issues of veteran space from academic issues of student veterans to the realty our homeless veterans face every day on the streets of the city. i hope for is this appointment for afford me the opportunity to take my experience and perspective to the macro level. the perspective and knowledge built interacting with veterans from all social levels. the purpose of the commission is advice the mayor on things that may impact the veteran population. my previous and current role

allow to me it understand the [indiscernible] that can impact the very systems of care that designed to support them. what i hope to accomplish i'm completing. i help individuals every day. what this appointment will allow me to do is continue what i have been doing at a larger level. thank you for your time. >> thank you so much. next we will be hearing from megan joy marie o'leary. >> good morning and thank you for giving me the opportunity to be here today. my name is megan o'leary a attorney at swords to plow shares. i started at swords in 2019 after graduating from irks c law sf formally uc hastings. began as a legal fellow to focus on justice involved

veterans worked with the [indiscernible] vetdren justice court. during that time i developed expertise in the unique problems faced by justice involved veterans such as stigmatization, substance abuse and reintegration in society. in my role i continue to focus on the population and have gone outside the city limits and met with incarceratesed veterans at san quintan. i assisted hundred san francisco let veterans over the last 4 years with multitude of legal issues including applying for benefits with department of veteran affairs, obtaining military discharge and navigate bureaucratic agencies. i obstained $2 million payments from the va. without the assistance of legal counsel deserving veterans are left without access for the benefits they earned.

while i'm not a veteran, i'm the daughter of a vietnam marine corp veteran and [indiscernible] therefore i believe my experience as advocate, daughter and partner unique and i have seen first hand how the wounds of war impact veterans and families. by work wg veteran affairs commission it is my hope to use my knowledge and experience to assist veterans in my home city. thank you. >> thank you so much. next we'll hear from mitchell ryan weller. >> thank you for having me. i think one of the strongest signs of a good leader is a person who takes a position under protest. many of us that applied today did not want to be here. we are here because we see things that are broken and we know how to fix them and we

know we can't do that from outside of the system. several people that you have heard from or will hear from today are people i worked with personally who did not want to have to be involved in government because it gets in the way of getting progress done. me myself, i have been a tech entrepreneur, built companies with over a quarter billion dollars in valuation, i have 4 jobs now. i'm a attorney and manage operations marketing. i work with any veteran that comes across my desk to help with pretty much any issue and will spend time looking up the laws and figure how to fix the issues. i fought directly against department of defense where they threatened to deport my wife for requesting a certification of her service to get citizenship.

threats threatened with deportation because they ddant want to know the las and do what they are required to do. i don't really want to be here, however, the thing that has given me a lot of hope is that many people that i have spoken with and worked with darya my wife, christopher scott, also had a chance to work with john regarding pga hope, all of us have taken up the mantle john gallagher set at county veteran service and can say conclusively all most every one of us was inspired by the man and sought to immolate that man. that is the reason i'm here today. if i don't get selected i will still help these people but i wanted you to meet me if i could. >> thank you very much. next we'll hear from prince kelly jordan.

>> good morning. my name is prince jordan, proud navy veteran and born and raised in san francisco. i am proud to be considered as a candidate for this commission. i believe my qualifications uniquely position me as the ideal candidate for seats 4-8 oen the commission. having served our nation with unwavering honor and dedication i possess a profound understanding of the challenges faished by our veterans here. as a resident of san franciscoime aware of the specific needs of the local veteran community. in addition to military services i have been appointed as a local board member for state of california for the united states elective serveest system by president biden and governor newsom that reflects the trust in my leadership ability and public service. my involvement in veteran

service organizations non profit and advocate groups in the bay area allowed me to assist thousands of veterans of all walks of life and accessing va benefit jz helthd care. this experience provided we invaluable insight into challenges faced by our veterans and the existing gaps within our current system. if appointed, my goals are clear, i'm committed to addressing homelessness among veterans, insuring secure housing for those who served our country, additionally, i recognize the urgent need for expanded mental health and substance abuse treatment services. by forging strong part smr hps with the city, non profit [indiscernible] i aim to tackle the pressing issues of food insecurity within our veteran population. thank you guys. >> thank you so much. thank you. appreciate you. and last but not least, stephen

martin-pinto. who is not here. okay. great. before we make comments, can we open the item up for public comment? yes? i'm sorry, did i skip you? i'm so so sorry. please come up. christopher marc scott. so sorry. it is my first thing on monday. please- >> no worries. good morning supervisors and attendees. i was born in aand makea to a jamaican father and chinese mother. i grew up in the u.s. [indiscernible] i witnessed many friends get arrested

robbed our killed to survive i was dealing drug jz learning how to fight. my mother saw as deisappointment not knowing desperate for a better way of life. at 18 i joined the united states navy as a logistic specialist serving 5 years. i became well traveled and learned how to oprot effectively in challenging environment with diverse personalties to accomplish any mission. honorable discharged i went to san francisco state and earned bachelor in communications. this made it possible to build repore with veterans from san daigy to san francisco. i have been able to guide and lead many in the post-military transition process. helping them obtain disability benefits enrollment in school with gi bill and disability. discharge of student debts and buying homes. i'm hundred percent service connected disabled veteran living in the tenderloin working as a real estate agent

and pursuing joining the san francisco fire department as a reservist. i look forward helping the many veterans that are my neighbors and reinvent themselves like i did. thank you. >> thank you so much and my apologies again. thank you. i now open up the item for public comment, please. >> memberoffs the public who wish to speak should line up to speak at this time. each speaker will be allowed two minutes. there is a soft chime with 30 seconds left and louder chime when your time expired. can we have our first speaker? >> good morning supervisors. my name is bill barnikel, commissioner for veteran affairs city county of san francisco and retired military 30 years. i met jenny perez and her husband nick current vise

president of the vets it commission about 5 years goy and came to commission asking for help trying to go through the process of qualifying for a bmr housing, but not once but twice. the second time around jenny was very distraught about the process. i promised them i would help them. they got their bmr. what they went through was a complete travesty. nick was a cam bat veteran in iraq and they were treated poorly. [indiscernible] we are really indebted to him he took the initiative to help us work on the bmr program. [indiscernible] said bill, [indiscernible] out of his box working in district 4 and vetdrens because wie don't have too many individuals that work with us. [indiscernible] jenny organized the documents we needed and

packets:gordon took the challenge. we had approximately 40 plus meetings with the moh and jenny had a determination the motivation and commitment to get this done. she kept the group together because i was gets frustrated. without her we would not have completed the commission. he is exceptional individual. we need individuals like jenny on the board. [indiscernible] i thank you my good friend jenny back there. thanks jenny. give jenny a hand. we passed legislation the first time in 40 years in the commission that nothing has been done in our commission in 40 years. we passed thanks to gordon mar last 3 years passed legislation for bmr. passed thanks to him, [indiscernible] legislation for veterans to get park and rec free and we passed another legislation to get reserveest full pay. thank you and i support jason

chittavong-- >> speaker time elapsed. my apology. >> darya, mitch and [indiscernible] i like our group to get together because 40 years nothing done since the last 3 years. thank you. >> thank you so much. next speaker. >> morning esteemed supervisors. you have a very difficult task. a lot of passionate veterans are here ready to help and support the community. great to meet you. my name is nicolas. here to speak today on behalf of jason chittavong who is unable to be here because of a medical issue. what i want to say about jason is, i met this man in 2016. he was influential leader in the veterans at san francisco state university.

he lead the organization to develop a vet lounge. he also then committed himself to working in the veteran community. after school he volunteered constantly at the veteran justice court as a peer mentor and support liaison. once his time for progression had come--he then dedicated his career working at the veteran affair commission as a raider. this man has dedicated his time and his life to helping veterans from the time he came home from war where he served in the first marine division that took bagdad in 2001 to time today where he's working in the veterans affair commissioner as the president leading a solid team dedicated to improving veterans in san francisco to a personal career where he is helping veterans

attain their benefits by making sure that they are rated appropriately. i hope you keep in mind that keeping him in this position is important for the cohesion of the veteran affair commission and i testify to his leadership and to all the other candidates here today are doing a excellent job and thank you for your time. >> thank you so much. next. >> my name is gary joba a san francisco citizen and really only here to provide a character reference for jenny perez. i have known her for over a decade and i would have to say she is a organizational force to be reckoned with. i want to point out you want her on your side. i know this from experience. thank you very much. >> thank you. good morning. >> good morning.

my name is raymond gaty here to support james boatman. i have known him about two years. i was homeless before and i'm disabled and i could barely speak when i first met him and he took the time to allow me to talk and then he was able to get my needs met and now i got a home i have been in all most a year and i'm doing way better, because of him entering my life and exceez excuse me for being emotional, but i have some issues, but he's a outstanding man and he really reaches out to help veterans. thank you for your time.

>> thank you so much. >> my name is jenna, here to support jenny perez for the veteran commission. i am a social worker in san francisco. been work wg veterans justice involved since 2011 and met jenny about 4 years ago. she was volunteering with veteran justice court to have meals around the holidays for veteran justice court participants. many of whom are homeless. don't have a lot of support and community and so jenny helped to organize those events and support those veterans and then for the past two years have i have been working with jenny on the horsemanship events. they are monthly events. the presidio riding club in sauce leteo where we get veterans out of the city and engage with ekwon city and delicious bbq jenny organize said and are cooks. jenny is kind and dedicated and extremely organized and i

support her for veteran affair commission. thank you. >> thank you so much. >> good morning. >> good morning. >> my name is tess. a veteran and i have known jenny perez 10 years, and i'm a member of sofi veteran group, san francisco based company. jenny helped set up the same thing in the previous employer, union bank. to see how many that touched and brought out of the wood work and showed support that the organization was providing was immensely beneficial. jenny and her husband nick have touched me bring me out of my shell, deal with my ptsd issues

and i say this about jenny, she has given resources and i work with homeless people. my wife and i did a lot of work with homeless people and she taught us how to recognize the veterans and get them assistance. fully confident she would be a tenacious member of this board in fighting for the rights of veterans and getting the support and love they need. she touched me personally. i love her and appreciate her for it and i know what she's able to do. she does-she doesn't talk, she does. i love that quality about her. i love her as a friend and i love what she will be able to do for the city of san francisco and veterans. thank you very much. >> good morning. my name is isaiah, a multi-site property manager in the city of san francisco. i am a real estate agent in the

bay area and involved with the hunter black men of the bay area and naacp. i'm writing for express my whole hearted support for the follow candidates that is seat 1, jenny, seat 2, darya, seat 3, john, seat 4, prince jordan, seat 5, christopher marc scott, seat 6, doug, seat 7, william, and seat 8, hanley. over the past 4 years i have witnessed the unwavering dedication and expertise of prince jordan and hanley within the veteran community. they have displayed unparalleled compassion and commitment while working with non profit organizations, veteran service groups and tirelessly securing housing for [indiscernible] just background

about 2 to 3 summers ago i received a call from prince jordan and he let me know that there was thousands of veterans that were in need of housing support in san francisco so with that initiative, i connected with prince, hanley, his team and with the work that i do within the housing industry and providing housing, i connected with those members, these candidates now to help provide our veterans with housing in san francisco. so, the unwavering dedication to represent caring for fellow veteran jz military families is truly commendable and why i stand here and representation of those following candidates. thank you. >> thank you so much. >> good morning supervisors. i love and work in san francisco. i'm a voter and honored to

speak on behalf of jenny perez. she's a dear frund of mine for over a decade and has been a exceptional advocate for veterans. in our friendship, i witnessed jenny's unwavering commitment to supporting veterans. she's not a spokesperson but lives and breathes the cause. what sets her apart is her ability to bridge the gap between veterans and civilians through advocacy creates understanding and strong community. as jenny takes on the role of commissioner, her passion integrity and ability to connect will undoubtedly make a lasting impact so please join me supporting jenny. let's insure our veterans have a dedicated and impthetic voice. thank you commissioners. >> good morning ladies and gentlemen . i'm here to show support for

jenny perez. i known her little less then a year, but in that timeframe she has shown commitment, passion for helping others, especially veterans. i can say personal experience, she helped me tremendously with information and pretty much everything my girlfriend and i needed. if there is someone i love to see with you guys and there commission it would be jenny perez. thank you very much. >> thank you. >> good morning supervisors. my name is brian kwon, a outer richmond resident. live relatively close to the va hospital and that is why i wanted to come out here today and support some of the people i have gotten to know thin veterans community and some of the community work they've done. i want to support prince darya

jenny, john, chris scott, mitch, and hanley who is a good friend of mine. i have seen a lot of good community work they have done, not only the veterans but the lion community and few other cultural community spaces as they try to bridge the gap between normal civilian life and what it means to serve this country and now recognized as veterans and they are the ones i have seen put in the time and energy and work to really help the community in terms of housing, resources, mental health and i believe they will do a great job on this commission. thank you. >> thank you so much. >> hello. my name is trevor duncan. navy veteran. disen abled formally homeless.

was homeless come i started city college and where i met james boatman. wasn't the first person i met, but he was the first person to make a point to connect me with healthcare, housing, education, all the things i didn't know i was entitled to as a vet. i saw him personally do that for hundreds of other student veterans in one way or oorths. i saw him expand the role as he grew into swords to plow shares. he's got a commitment and compassion to vets and the veteran community that he doesn't put on the shelf at the end of the day. he lives and breathes it. he gets things done and works for the people by working with the people and i think this would be exactly the right fit. >> thank you so much. >> now you are probably sick of seeing me but i wanted the

chance to mention-i worked with prince jordan and hanley chan on the wreaths across america where we shaw record breaking attendance. many across all different walks of government through state government, the potential future lieutenant governor of california was there showing support trying to connect with veterans and connect veterans rotc people to get these military members back into the real life cycle opposed to just a part of just the veteran community. it is a huge problem getting people integrated and you hear people talk how i lost my voice and all most lost my life and ready to throw it away because i lacked mune community and benefits and couldn't get back on track once i walked away from life. very few come back and better for it. many times we carry the scars for the rest of our lives so i want to call out especially those people and also the

support of bill barnikel, on the commission right now but stepped back in order to create more space for new people because again, it is about building the life cycle and getting people that never considered doing government or governance, not involved in communities, and beinginsular and that is how we ends up dead so i want to voice support for all the people and whether the new people coming out for the first time. i'm fine stepping back as we put in the hands of people that need these things and will build community. thank you. >> thank you. if there is no more public comment-- >> if you like to make public comment you can approach the podium at this time. there does not appear to be additional public comment. >> seeing none, public comment is closed. supervisor walton.

>> thank you chair ronan and first of all, i want to thank all of who have served. we really appreciate your service. as we stated earlier, it is very difficult when you have a pool of qualified candidates and you only have so many seats for appointment, and so we definitely have a difficult task in front of us, but want to thank all of you for stepping up and being willing to serve and just know that there are other ways to be a part of working here in san francisco and supporting your communities, so we encourage you if you are someone not selected today to continue to reach out to be willing to serve, because most certainly there are more opportunities to serve your city and of course to serve your constituency. i want to thank all you again as we go through the process trying to figure how we will choose from a pool of entirely

all qualified candidates. thank you. >> thank you so much. i have been-it is like a puzzle of just trying to figure out how to appoint among just this incredible group of people and before i make a motion--i just want to tell you how much gratitude i have towards each and every one of you. not only did you risk your lives in service of this country, but you came back and often were not treated the way that you should have been by the same country you risked your life for, and what i see in all of you is that you stand up for each other and when the government fails to provide basic needs like housing, like

mental healthcare or physical healthcare, any type of support because of the extreme trauma that you faced when serving abroad, because of the sacrifices you made, it really just completely overwhelms me, because you are all just absolute and utter heroes and what often happens is when the government fails to provide for the basic needs of our residents it is the same community that often has very little that steps up and provides for one another, so i have to say how moved i am by you all and by your

presentationsed to. i would appoint each and every one of you if i could, and i am really struggling with this one quite profoundly. if i do not recommend you for appointment today, please do not take it as anything other then just trying to fit amazing people in a few seats and like i said earlier, please please look at other opportunities, because even though i know this is your area of expertise, you stand up for each other and for this country already in every way, so there is no question that you would be incredible assets to other bodies in the city as well. with that, i'm going to do the impossible and make a motion to recommend jenny perez for seat 1. deborah dacumos for seat 2. john reissenweber for seat 3.

jason chittavong for seat 4. hanley chan for seat 5. prince kelly jordan for seat 6. james boatman for seat 7. and darya kutovaya for seat 8. >> my apologies i missed some of them. >> should i start from the beginning? >> i have jenny perez, seat 1. deborah dacumos seat 2. john reissenweber seat 3 and who for seat 4? >> jason chittavong. hanley chan-- >> one moment. we have jason chit tavong for seat 4. hanley chan seat 5.

>> prince kelly jordan for seat 6. >> prince kelly jordan, seat 6. >> james boatman, seat 7. >> james boatman, seat 7. >> and darya kutovaya for seat 8. >> i'm looking for the name on my list. could you repeat that name again, please? >> yes, darya kutovaya. >> yes, i see it now. back to the top of the list. just double checking quickly, make sure i have everything listed. okay. i have that. i have jenny perez, seat 1. deborah dacumos seat 2. john reissenweber for seat 3. jason chittavong, seat 4. hanley chan, seat 5.

prince kelly jordan, seat 6. james boatman, seat 7 and darya kutovaya for seat 8. my apologies if i mispronounce any names. on that motion, vice chair walton, aye. supervisor safai absent. ronan aye. the motion passes without objection for supervisor safai absent. >> motion passes. thanks again so much to everyone. thank you. mr. clerk, can you please read item 3? ordinance amending the

administrative code to clarify the controller's audit and monitoring responsibilities with respect to nonprofit organizations contracting with the city; directing the controller to establish measurable performance goals for contracts with nonprofit organizations; directing the controller to periodically review and, as necessary, revise policies regarding contractors' compliance with city requirements; and requiring the controller to perform an annual review of departments' compliance with policies for auditing and monitoring nonprofit organizations. >> thank you so much. i believe-thank you so much. sorry. thank you. i believe a--hello! good morning. >> good morning chair ronan and vice chair walton. [indiscernible] chief of staff for supervisor catherine stefani. a conflict arose and regrets she isn't here to present on the item. as you may remember supervisor stefani introduced last fall and before you again as it was sent back to committee december last year by supervisor stefani after receiving a letter from smaller non profits including asian pacific islander council, black wall street, [indiscernible] latino task force, salt, and san francisco latino parody equity coalition

requesting additional time for discussion and input. specifically, to discus concerns related to mutual accountability between the city and contractors. the proposed auditing requirements and warranted assurances that collaborative engagement would be prioritized through this work. since then, we have been working with the group to insure equity concerns were addressed and unintended consequence be accounted for. supervisor stefani has been incredibly appreciate itive of their time and partnership and amendments before you today are reflection of the meaningful dialogue we had over the past 2 months. briefly i'll run through the amendments. supervisor stefani and non profits we worked with wanted to insure that the improvements--to the city business practices would be informed by community involvement and racial equity lens. on page 2, line 22, we reference the definition of

racial equity first codified by supervisor brown which she craelted the office of racial equity. this is assure we have a mutual understanding what racial equity means as the controller's office engage with the community. we also clarify in the findings page 3, 2-5. consistent with the city government operation recovery program, this ordinance will promote transparency efficiency and equity in the city contracting processes foster collaborative environment that uplifts all communities and insure responsible use of public resources. through this supervisor stefani wants to emphasis non profits are partners in the work and are seat at the table as the new roles around performance standsards are dwepd. page 3, 24-25 the development of performance stands rbd the chromeer issue guidance how it

apartments engage contractors. we also clarify page 4, lines 13 and 14 updated policy guidelines controller engage with city departments and the controller issue guidance with respect to engaging with city departments and contractors. on page 5, line 6, we make clear that the controller will on a annual basis conduct review of department compliance with contract monitoring standards. with respect to new auditing requirement you see page 5, lines 17 and 18 that this will now not go into effect until march 31, 2026 to allow more time to prepare and adjust expectations on the part of non profits. most importantly, we added a new subsection f, which begins page 5, line 23. this new subsection requires that the controller engage in a public rule making process for this ordinance. they will be required to

publish new policies and standards and need to provide the public with a opportunity for review and comment. this will be incredibly important as the non profits we worked with had concerns around how the waver language for audits would be developed. additionally, on page 6 line 3-8 the controller office will be required to engage with organizations regardless of size with focus on fostering the growth of new smaller institutions reflecting the experiences of historically under served communities including not limited to african american communities, disabled communities [indiscernible] lgbtq plus communities, native american communities [indiscernible] through the ordinance, we also pushed out the compliance date november this year to allow more time for outreach. also assured by deputy city

attorney ann pearson, these amendments are not substantive. supervisor stefani believes this strengthens the measure and grateful for everyone who came together to work oen the amendments and looking forward continuing in this work. she asked i make sure we asked to meet with our new controller and the non profits. we worked with on the amendments and next month to discuss implementation and next steps in the event this passes. laura marshal with the controller office is here for any questions as well. thank you very much for your consideration. >> thank you so much. the amendments haven't been passed yet? we need to pass them? >> we are asking- >> perfect. just make clear. thank you so much. supervisor safai. >> did we get a copy of the amendments? >> i e-mailed them out to everybody yesterday. >> okay.

i didn't see them in the file. okay. i know you went over them and read them into the record. i just wanted a copy myself. >> would you like to see the copy? i have it. >> okay. i just want to say, i appreciate supervisor sor stefani taking the time. i'm cosponsor of the legislation and think it is extremely important. we did something similar with proposition c with oversight accountsability and audit within department of homelessness supportive housing. received a letter from [indiscernible] on behalf of it 6 coalitions, api council, black wall street [indiscernible] sf latino equity parody coalition saying they appreciated the work with supervisor stefani and look forward working on trailing legislation. happy to be a part that process and happy to see we did this the right way and i think just want to underscore that there is a lot of people in the city

trying to score political points and move things faster then they should be done and i really appreciate supervisor stefani slowing down and listening to those that would be most impacted by many of these measures and taking into consideration some of their thoughts and concerns, so happy to be a cosponsor and appreciate the work being done and again, at the end of the day, when we work with non profits in the city, we are providing all most 90 plus percent of the time providing tremendous services the city cannot do on its own, so we need the help of really strong good non profit partners and those that really know the community and reflective of the community and the diversity of the community so i think that is really important to highlight and uplift that we have a lot of really wonderful organizations so don't want to get lost in the conversation that there is a lot of good work being done that would not otherwise be done without the hard work of those

organizations, so having a little bit of light shown on finances and accountsability i think it is good thing for everyone, we just want to make sure we have the right infrastructure in place to support the organizations that don't necessarily have the resources at all times to do all the filing and so on. anyway, appreciate it. thank you very much and happy to be cosponsor. >> thank you supervisor walton. >> thank you ronan. just again want to reiterate as stated when we went through the process the first time. we always had monitoring for non profits in place through the controller office. the controller worked very hard to put a joint monitoring program in place so that all our city departments who had organizations that they were funded and they were receiving resources from different departments that would all go into a joint monitoring process and check on the fiscal health, the administrative health, the

problematic health stow the monitoring always exist and thank supervisor stefani and safai working to make sure we improve on that, but at the same time making sure we do this from a equitable lens and not penalizing organizations doing great work in our community because like supervisor safai stated, our non profits are a big part of our service system here in san francisco and they do great work and so just want to make sure that everything we do to hold our organizations accountable and city accountable is done in a equitable manner and appreciate supervisor stefani taking the time to meet with the coalitions and working with our organization and just excited to hear the work will continue and excited to also know that conver sakezs with the new controller are beginning to happen because we have a lot of work to do and making sure that the work being done is done in

a manner that improves outcomes for the communities we serve is important so thank you. >> thank you so much. i also wanted to thank supervisor stefani's office for working with non profits to improve the legislation. i would like to add myself as a cosponsor to it. i'm i think it is a at a place where it is going to help us identify non profits having trouble and in the past this board of supervisors is notified at the last minute when things have gotten to such degree that we have to bail out the non profit or it will close down and that doesn't make sense. we need to know sooner then later and partner to help because as my colleagues said we rely heavily on non profits

organizations to meet the needs of san franciscans and this is a partnership and we need to know what is going on a lot earlier in the process, so thank you so much for bringing this forward and with that, i wanted to open up this item for public comment. >> members of the public who wish to speak should line up at this time. each speaker is allowed 2 minutes. >> good morning supervisors. debbie lurman, san francisco human services network. i want to say again that we support this legislation. we appreciate the amendments, especially provisions that increase outreach in non profit engagement in rule making and provisions to make it easier for small and diverse cbo to comply and we thank supervisor stefani and non profits that raised those concerns working together to address them. we believe the vast majority of our non profit s hold themselves to high standards and ethical values and we

support accountability measures that are meaningful, consistent, efficient and sensible. by adopting these meaningful and cost effective accountability tools along with corrective action plans that include training and technical assistance, we can work together to achieve balanced reforms that insure effective and efficient service delivery. we do want to keep in mind that accountability measures must include adequate funding for overhead and salaries and the elimination of any unnecessary burdens no non profits devote maximum lesources to mission and service and hope this legislation is only the beginning of a conversation that also looks at how to make it easier for non profits to do business with the city as we have looked at with other types of business. we thank you for your support today. thank you for your praise for the non profit sectors work

today that means a lot to us. >> thank you so much. should we- >> there are no additional public commenters. >> public comment is now closed. i like to make a motion to accept the amendments and send the item to full board with positive recommendsation. >> on the motion to amend and recommend as amended, vice chair walton, aye. supervisor safai, aye. chair ronan, aye. the motion passes without objection. i want to confirm that chair ronan has been added as cosponsor to this matter. >> thank you. that item passesue unanimously. thanks so much. mr. clerk, do we have other items on the agenda? >> that completes the agenda for today. >> the meeting is adjourned.

[meeting adjourned]

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>> my name is michael i'm running to retain my seat as the bureaucrat judge an honor and privilege to serve as judge for the past 13 years. my mother is japanese and any father and veteran and i grew up near the military base and attended and earned money by working in construction and working in a hardware store and selling children's shoes my commitment is by my family history named after my