he deserves as much credit as anybody else for this project. [applause] >> thank you. i know it is cold. i will try to run through this fast with my frozen brain. good morning and thank you for being here today as we celebrate the groundbreaking of the second major contract in a world class presidio park for a project. when completed it will achieve seismic safety for this important corridor. phase two of it will make sure that this meets the seismic standards. it will also assure that the national park can have access to the presidio, which is sorely needed. the battery is to our left. that is one of two short tunnels that would connect the highway with the presidio.

the top of the tunnel will connect the historic battery to lincoln boulevard and the national cemetery and give access to bicycles that go to the trails behind us. a temporary bypass would be built to allow traffic unimpeded during construction. the contract is funded entirely by the american recovery and reinvestment act of 2009. it started sooner than expected thanks to governor schwarzenegger's efforts in expediting this and getting it funded. this is getting construction workers back to where they belong, improving our aging transportation infrastructure. from this location, you can see the construction activity this project has created. the structure was built in 1936. the new one will accommodate future transportation needs and improve safety with wider lanes a continued shoulder and a wide

landscaped area, and it will separate the traffic for northbound and southbound. this is an exciting time with the department and also the construction industry. the presidio parkway is the result of the great partnership between the department, the transportation administration, the federal highway administration, the presidio trust, and many other agencies that had to come together with different agendas to be sure this project is built while enhancing the environment. our california highway patrol is well represented. thank you for being here and for keeping our highways safe. thanks for all coming here for this event. the last thing is stay safe while you are driving. thank you very much.

[applause] >> i know there is a tremendous risk in these events as the temperature dips. good will can turn into hatred. [laughter] i am going to try to wrap this up very quickly, but we could not wrap up this event -- that is my cute -- without hearing very briefly -- emphasis on briefly -- from one of the businesses working on the project. by way of introduction i am going to say that the president of that company is the most appropriately dressed person for the occasion. she actually dressed warmup. let us invite her to the podium. [applause] >> good morning, everyone.

thanks for that graceful introduction. as you have heard, my name is julie berry. we do concrete pumping. i am a certified local business enterprise. i am also a certified firm located in the bayview district here in this warm city of san francisco. we are grateful for the opportunity to work on the presidio parkway doyle drive replacement project. we are doubly grateful. not only did we have the opportunity to win a contract, but additionally we are going to be working on contract for. the total value of those contracts is approximately $3 million. you're probably wondering -- how did you do that? what i did was i attended -- just done the street, i attended and out -- event for small business enterprises

conducted by paul prendergast and his team. that afforded me the opportunity. all of the general contractors were there, and i had the opportunity as a small business to reach out to each of them face to face and talk about my business and how i can team with them and work on this project together. being a woman-owned firm, with my husband out here in the audience and my son running this truck here -- they have been at my side. and i cannot tell you what this means to my business. it has been a struggle sometimes. it has been rewarding. it has had opportunities. overall, it has been wonderful. because of the presidium parkway, i was able to increase my staff by 65%. additionally, i was able to purchase equipment to put on

this project. this equipment is called a boom pump and it comes concrete. it can pump 173 cubic yards of concrete for hours and had a reach of 147 feet. you can imagine the efficiency that is going to bring to the general contractors on this project. this is economic recovery in action, the ability to hire new people and the ability to buy equipment to put on a project. to us, every opportunity counts. every payroll that we make, every business loan payment terms, because it means we are coming back from one of the darkest economic times in our history. it is our responsibility to take this opportunity and take it forward. i would like to share a story of how we were able to pay this forward. we are located in the bayview district. we are a couple of blocks from

bay shore boulevard and a few blocks away from third street. one of the most iconic businesses in the southeast part of san francisco is bodie concrete. they have been a landmark in san francisco forever. this is how we met our new employees. my son was out pumping country when a driver walked up to him and said, "my son has been unemployed for a long time, and he needs a job. he has always loved concrete pumping." nixon was so excited that someone shared the same enthusiasm he does about concrete pumping that we hired that young man. he is now working for us today. he has been there for nine months and is one of our best concrete pumpers. this is what economic recovery books like. i am proud we had the opportunity to hire a new employee. i do not know if you are aware.

on march 18, president obama signed and hiring incentive act. that allows small businesses to hire new employees. you get some tax breaks and incentives to can apply to your peril that will help you as a small business. we are utilizing this program. it is a big investment for us. we are also proud of the fact that we are signatories to operating engineers local chapter 3. their mission is quality jobs and the best possible wages, fringe benefits, and working conditions for their members. they have sponsored everyone of their -- we have sponsored everyone of our employees into the union and we look forward to them being active for years to come. opportunity does not stop at royal drive. because we have an expanded workforce, at new equipment, and do not get to perform brilliantly only for our prime

sponsors, but did to compete. we can now compete where we never could before with the small business enterprise. we have a job on the san francisco general hospital, a small job we won, but there are many other new projects coming up in the city and in the bay area the will allow us an opportunity to compete at a different level. in closing, i would like to say for us the presidio parkway was a game changer. i think this is exactly what president obama and speaker pelosi wanted to have happened with the project. to cici myers, thanks for the opportunity to be a part of your team. to the city of san francisco, to caltrans, thank you from the

bottom of my heart. thank you for understanding how critically important small and disadvantaged businesses are to the fabric of the great city, our state, and our nation. we will do you proud on this project. you have my word on it. thank you. [applause] >> thank you, julie. we have no doubt that you will make a sprout on this project. so will the other contractors on this incredible project. let me promise you from the podium that for the next ground- breaking we will have hot chocolate for you. thank you all very much. [applause]

>> but want to encourage anyone who is on the fence as a grand jury member to do so. as former supervisor and as mayor, it is equally valuable for people to participate as grand jury members -- to feel connected to the community in a meaningful way.

this is a place where you can feel the kind of connection as a member of the grand jury, who is out there working in the interest of all san francisco's and holding in check members of our elected departments that need that kind of direction and advice from real people, not people with an ax to grind. not people with particular self- interest, but people that want to make our city a better place. thank you for your inspiration. i am encouraged by the fact you have taken enough time to pay attention to this. i am hopeful that you participate in this process, which i assure you will have great meaning in your life. >> i am grateful for having had the experience of being on a civil grand jury, for the difference it has made for the city and in my own life, just being able to share the experiences i have had, to feel good about myself and what i have done for the citizens of this city. >> i found the grand jury

rewarding because of the seriousness of the work and the prestige it gave me, the prestige of thing many of our elected officials, department heads, and many government employees work very -- were very kind in extending to us. it was very exciting. >> what i found most gratifying was, first of all, being part of a group of 19 incredibly different san franciscans, with a different backgrounds, different amounts of education, all kinds of professions -- stay at home spouses -- it was a great mix. there were people i never would have met unless i had been part of that. the second thing that was incredibly interesting all year long were the investigations we were conducting with different agencies and departments of the

city government. pulling together all of our different viewpoints in each of our presentations, and all our information and data -- we put that into a report. it was incredibly gratifying stuff. i guess the third gratifying thing was that in our particular year, 2000-2003, we had a number of reports that really made a difference. >> the court is now accepting applications for the civil grand jury. this watchdog body is comprised of 19 citizens selected by my colleagues on the court. the grand jury is charged with conducting independent, confidential investigations of city departments, to insure these agencies are operating effectively and ethically. at the conclusion of its term, the grand jury publishes its reports and submits them to the presiding judge in to the

departments that have been examined. departments have to respond to the findings of the grand jury and present their response at public hearings conducted by the board of supervisors. these hearings great public awareness and media attention for the challenges faced by city departments and provide a forum for civil dialogue to propose solutions to issues confronting our government. reports about disaster preparedness, the department of building management, and the fire department have an influential effect on change in the improvement of city services. >> a new reports and valuable, not only as a mayor but as a member of the board of supervisors. poor me, it is always helpful to get a third set of eyes with someone else's perspective -- an objective perspective. grand jury reports provide that

employee. i am someone that likes being challenged in terms of looking more critically at what we are doing in the city. i think grand jury reports provide the critical eye. i think the grand jury report that was most important from my perspective represented the first day i was in office as mayor. that was the report done years ago about the readiness of our disaster plans in san francisco. one of the recommendations that was made was to update our emergency operations plans. there were a number of specific -- specific recommendations we have completed. the consequences -- we were in better shape from a planning perspective because of the grand jury and the work that was done in that report. >> the grand jury axe as a city watchdog to work that city agencies cannot be focusing on. over the years, and asking the

tough questions that otherwise are not being asked. the civil grand jurors have the ability to ask questions of anything that they want within the city government. they get to ask the tough probing questions that we need our citizens to be asking. >> to me, the best thing was the impact that was made on the knowledge of the city. >> one of the things that is mandated is to visit your jails. that was absolutely fascinated.

all of the jurors went out into the community and we observed a lot of precincts. it was a terrific observation. you get to meet most major officials including the mayor, members of the board of supervisors and their offices and department heads as well as having interviews with a variety of public and private sectors and many other agencies i don't know about.

>> the followthrough was set for a particular concern to our grand jury. the toss grand jury reports have been given a great deal of initial support and attention and it will not always follow through. this will allow future grand juries to track the project of support for key issue is. the mayor's office was very supportive of helping to develop this database and spreadsheet. >> we will begin to put things on line next year.

we are improving our accountability. >> we have a very substantial debate about the reform. there is a crisis in our pension system. in the jury, they take issues that for whatever reason, they're complicated. they do the analysis. at the board of supervisors, we hold hearings on the outcome of the findings of the reports. we can educate ourselves on the the good that we have done. >> i would say that the current board of supervisors seems to have an interest in implementing

many of the issues that we raised. the future of the grand jury is very good. >> if you love the incredible community that we live then and we want to have a role in making it better and help serve the public. i cannot think it better way to do this than to serve the grand jury. >> we all do what we have come to do continuity. continuity is making sure that any recommendations have been considered publicly. >> you think it is over there

are ramifications for all of the hard work you have done. >> hello. the court is now recruiting specific grand jurors. we're looking to have a pool of candidates. >> we want to provide a broad range of points on the civil grand jury. >> if you would like to work with others and it is yes dick citizens, i encourage you to consider applying for service on the civil grand jury.

i'm robert chief and i'm the park's supervisor in the parks in the sunset district. i've been working here for 3 years. we are 60-70 street below street

level. the 64 acre park. the park is divided into 2 sections we are in the stern area. when you get over to pine lake meadow and pine lake, pine lake is considered a natural area. in 1847, the green family came out here, back then this was kind of an empty canyon and sand dun area. they claimed this property. in 1892. george green who's a second generation built the truckdaro club house. there was a hotel then. it was said this was the place to go if you were weary of the dirty city and the police. there were a couple of gun fights the front door has bullet

holes. i don't ever repair them. 1931 stig mond bought the property from the green family. she donated it to the city of san francisco and had a specification, i'm giving it to the city that will be used forever for the enjoyment forever of the people of the city of san francisco. it has ever since. every summer the stern grove association in san francisco rec and parks put on 10 free concerts. usually people come out at 10 in the morning it's a family affair. everybody is on the lawn with picnics and it's free. anybody can come out. it's a great way to spend a sunday. >> goes to 1-2 in the afternoon and runs until 5. [music].

thanks to the stern grove association they renovated the concert meadow. it used to be a rolling grafsy area. put in a new stage and stage building. they put in terraces. we get from 8,000 to 12,000 people. and the meadow next to the concert meadow is full of people even though they can't see the music they hear it. i walked into the meadow several times and they don't even care. we do have literally events going on day and night. the concert association has kids days during the week. the performers come out for hundred 200 kids. now, the truckadero truck house gets rented out for weddings and retirement. the croquet clubs and horse

shoes. 2 play grounds, tennis courts. we have from 25 to a hundred dogs here. it's like bisons going across the mid west. there are so many dogs they are covering the ground cht it's a get together. all the dog walkers know each other. if you go to pine lake day camp now, you will see 50 kids there. the r directors are wonder. >> the pine lake is natural. they take of the area around the lake. they plant natives that are drought tolerant. one that stands the dry summers

here. the whole park is under going quite a bit of reconstruction. they will renovate the trails around the lake. and the big project is the capital project for pine lake meadow. they are going to returf the dog run and the meadow by the day camp. we are looking for a very busy fall. by the spring of next year should have major renovations to the mark thal make it an outstanding park. i don't ever refer to it as my park. all the parks belong to all the people. this park belongs just as much to the families in the bay view sdrishth as it does to the gentlemen that lives across the street. i'm happy and proud to be the caretaker for them. i wake up every day and thank that i have