we moved to cap street and have been there for the last 10 years. in 2006 the friendship house moved out of 80 julian into their new facility, 56 julian avenue. last year we acquired -- reacquired that property and planned to build a new clinic there in the mission district adjacent to the friendship house. we're truly proud of being a native american clinic but we're also proud of being a community clinic. over 50% of our patient population are naun native. they are board certified licensed doctors, physicians. we are truly a community clinic and we're very proud to be a part of san francisco. san francisco has one of the largest urban indian populations throughout this country. this is the only urban indian program in the nation that has

the 80-bed facility and is building a new clinic. san francisco is looked at by other urban programs throughout this country. you know, it's more than just a building. and a structure. it's changing our community from a mentality of a renter's mentality to an owner's mentality. when you have that change in community then you can do remarkable things to improve their health and their lives. that's the challenge that we've given to ourselves. many generations. and it comes from blackouts -- spiritual men when they said, what you do today, this evening, will have an impact seven generations down the road. so we're here today, all of us, because of what happened seven generations behind us. and i feel that firmly and

believe that my great-grandchildren will benefit with the improved health care. you know, i can't tell you how proud we are that we've overcome so many obstacles and road blocks in the last two decades. we've made remarkable progress and we're proud to be citizens of san francisco. i just want to in closing invite you all, we have an american indian market and pow-wow where we block off julian street and we showcase our dancers and we have a pow wow. small business people who do bead work and arts and crafts set up their venders' booths and we're a change for our

community. it can be done. we can have a healthy community. we pray for your support and understanding as we take on this journey to return to 56th and 80 julian. i should mention one thing. my wife is the executive director of the friendship house association of american indians who built the 80-bed facility. and i remember that discussion in the 1990's when she was evicted -- evicting us. i knew it was important that we move to a different site temporarily until they finished their building. last friday night we had an american indian comedian at the great hall there at the friendship house. we had -- must have had 125 people who came up from los angeles and our community was having a lot of laughter, medicine that was good for our

community. tomorrow night we're going to have services, memorial services at that great hall, for a brother that passed on. there are indian dancers and singers and talented people. we don't have a place to showcase them but we're going to have indian village. we're determined to have that indian village there and we welcome you to come down and walk around. if you want to see what a community can do, i encourage you to come down and visit friendship house. and i want to share this with you. thank you. president miguel: thank you. i have a number of speaker cards, wane, brian, arita.

>> i just wanted to announce that for the variance hearing there is a sign-in sheet there. if anybody has public comment or would like to receive a variance decision let rts right there on the table on the left-hand side. thank you. >> good evening. i'm marcus. i'm the executive director of native american health center on cap street. following up on the comments, i'd like to give you a background on what we do for the community and city of san francisco. approximately 27% of our parents -- patients are native which means a majority of our parents are not native -- patients are not native. we have a safety net clinic. we serve over 85% of our clients are below the federal poverty level and most of them are uninsured. they do not have dental insurance, medical insurance. we have one of the only few native american h.i.v. departments in the country.

we also do testing it daily on a drop-in basis. we're one of the few organizations in the city that does that. we also have a pediatric dental program in our clinic where. we're a training site as well as the other dental school here in town. we are the only pediatric dentist in hunters point. we actually go out there once a week to provide dental care for the children out there. there is no pediatric dental carat hunters point. -- care at hunters point. we also have a mental health clinic for family and children to make them healthy mentally because when we treat someone we treat the whole person. not just their tooth, not just their finger, their diabetes. it's the whole family that we focus on. one of the things that's important for us at this new clinic is it's going to expand our capacity to treat more patients. as you know in 2014 health care reform will become a reality in

the nation. we need to gear up for that because a lot more people are going to be eligible for medical services and we want to be able to serve those people in san francisco, make sure they have a nice place to come to. cap street, not a desirable place for a clinic. if you know that street it's got a bad reputation. i feel sorry for the clients who come in as kids because they have to walk down that street with their sometimes elder parents who are taking care of them just to get a dental appointment. i've seen a lot of people who are afraid of cap street. we'd like to move to our new location near the friendship house because we believe that it would create an atmosphere in that neighborhood and on that block of healing for the entire city of san francisco. last year, 2009, we provided 8,019 dental visits as well as 4,638 medical visitless. if we build this new clinic which we're determined to do

those numbers will dramatically increase and benefit the city and the county of san francisco. and we can for your support on this project -- and we ask for your support on this project. thank you. president miguel: thank you. ivan, brian, anita. i have more cards. martin, lisa, allen. >> good evening, commissioners. my name is allen and i'm the vice president of programs for the san francisco community clinic consortium and i have a letter here for you signed by

the executive director of my agency who unfortunately is out of town and couldn't be here this evening. the letter reflects the unanimous support of the consortium's board of directors for this relocation of the clinic. the native american health center is a charter member of the clinic consortium which is a partnership of 10 of the nonprofit community clinics in san francisco that collectively serve more than 75,000 parents -- patients annually. as you've heard, the native american health center is basically moving back home to the same block where it started and i will also note that that 56 julian address where the friendship house was built was the original home of the consortium. so we're very honored to be a part of the native american health center movement and they're certainly a valued partner in our consortium.

as you've heard, the health center provides affordable and quality health care services both to native and the naun native populations -- non-native populations. that includes their involvement in the city's health care access initiative, healthy san francisco. they've been an active participant in that since its beginning. the proposed facility will increase their capacity to respond to the impending health care reform and the anticipated demand in increase for services. so, we appreciate your consideration of their request. president miguel: thank you. >> good evening, commissioners. my name is tracy. and i'm honored to represent

the friendship house in the capacity of the house manager. i wish to speak favorably to the item 15-a and 15-b. the objectives i see this project providing are one, the unification of the client and the staff of the residential treatment facility and also the linkage of services between the friendship house and the nahc. and then also the inclusion of the women with children in the native american youth and family services healing center. and also it will create increased cultural education -- educational and spiritual presence in support of this mission. if you've ever been on this street and if you've ever walked past this place and know what it does and provides to the community, it's a priceless place to be a part of.

president miguel: thank you. is there additional public comment on this item? if not, public comment is closed. commissioner olague. vice president olague: i think it's an excellent project. i went by there to visit the project a couple of weeks ago and, i mean, i just think that it's critical that this type of agency exists in san francisco and should be more run throughout the country, really. there's one in san francisco that identifies the needs of native american population and then also provides education to people who want to re-embrace their heritage maybe or continue on with certain things, educate themselves about spirituality and things that are related to their culture i think is important that people find a place where that is provided and the health

care and the other services are critical. i think there's even a mental health component. it goes beyond just the physical needs that -- the mental health needs are important as well. the only thing i thought was unfortunate is that you're going to lose the basketball court because when i was there there were a couple of guys out there, youngsters, you know, playing basketball and stuff. but, you know, you have to lose something, i guess, to gain something. i'm satisfied with the design of the building. i think the design -- i think the encroachment is reasonable. i believe the height is also acceptable. so, i know that some neighbors had concerns about some things. i'm sure that you all will continue to work with neighborhood concerns and there was some mention, i think, of the construction trucks along theallyway and so i'm sure all those types of things will be

worked through. but it's an excellent project and i think that it mitigates whatever some of the impacts this has. i think that the benefit to the city is far exceeds the -- what i consider less significant impacts. so that means that i'm going to move to to approve. commissioner borden: second. commissioner sugaya: if ms. olague is worried about basketball, there seems to be a plan to relocate it. vice president olague: it seemed to be a community gathering. they can go to school, i suppose. commissioner sugaya: i'm going to support the motion. i think it's an extremely project, well done and i'm sorry i just got the notification that you handsed out for your pow wow on saturday. i'd really like to go but i'm going to be at my own pow wow in utah with former internees

from my internment camp in world war ii. so, we'll say a good word for you there. commissioner antonini: sounds like a great project. i'm really happy that you've partner with the two dental schools in town and i can tell you that i know there is an interest on behalf of u.c.s. -- ucsf in becoming more of a presence in the mission district and this is a great place for them to be. so that's terrific. >> the motion on the floor for approval. commissioner antonini: aye. commissioner borden: aye. commissioner lee: aye. commissioner moore: aye. commissioner sugaya: aye. vice president olague: aye. president miguel: aye. >> thank you, commissioners. that's an unanimous vote for approval. you are now on item -- oh, on the variance. >> i'll be acting zone administration for the purpose of variance and i will grant the variances subject to the normal conditions and just a reminder for those interested

in the decision to sign up on the sign-up sheet. thank you. >> thank you. you are now on item 16. case number for nine west portal avenue. >> good evening, president miguel, and members of the commission. planning department staff. the case before you is a request for conditional use authorization pursuant to planning code section 303 to modify two conditions of approval imposed in june, 2009. it is located at nine west porltle avenue. in june, 2009, they sought the ability to serve wine by the glass as a compliment retail wine business. in order to do so, they're required to seek conditional use authorization for a bar. in order to ensure that their entitlements would not be a full scale bar, specifically

condition 11 requires that the business closed by 8:00 p.m. daily, condition 12 prohibited outside seating. conditional 13 limited the business to wine and beer only. no more than 1/3 of the occupied floor area be dedicated to onsite wine consumption. condition 15 limited the number of seats to eight. condition 16 required that at least 2/3 of the floor area remain dedicated to retail displays. the scope of today's conditional use hear something to modify conditions 11 and 15 only which deal with the business' hours of operation and the number of permitted seats. all other conditions of approval will remain in tact and are referenced in your draft motion. it wishes to operate until 11 p.m. and until midnight on friday and saturday. they also wish to have 19 seats available to customers rather than eight. since the pact it's went out the department has received three additional letters in opposition and have petitioned with 40 additional signatures

and support. today the department has received a total of two letters of support including one from the west portal avenue association and a petition with over 250 signatures in support. the department has also received five letters in opposition, including one from the owners of the wine bar located at 230 west portal avenue. the department finds the proposed approval to be sufficient mitigation to prevent it from becoming a full scale bar and to ensure the continued family-oriented commercial district. the hours of operation proposed remain more restrictive than those permitted by right in the portal and the number of seats and floor area dedicated to wine consumption ensure that the business remains dedicated to the retail sales of wine. the department does not find competition to be a sufficient reason to prevent them from being able to sell wine by the glass, seeing as the general plan encourages competition. the department starts -- supporting the request to modify conditions of approval and that allows for a more equitable business plan

compared to other businesses in the neighborhood and the increased activity will be a beneficial addition to the neighborhood. they have operated for approximately one year with no complaints and has become an integral part of the community. based on findings from the plan, the department recommends approval with condition. this conclude mice presentation and i'm happy to answer any questions. president miguel: thank you. project sponsor. >> i'm here representing the owners. as you know from my past that i have fought against chains very . very successfully fought against starbucks and that gives me great pleasure to say we're eliminating a franchise

from the commercial mack mack -- makeup of san francisco. when they started their business, they -- well, since then they've learned a lot. they've found that their customers come up from the financial district, take the street car out to west portal avenue and then they have to stop selling -- serving wine at 8:00. and it's just not working for them. so they're redefining their business model which is why they're asking for these modifications to the conditional use permits that were issued a year or so ago. i'm urging your support and i'll ask if you have anything to add. >> good evening, commissioners. we have learned a lot over the past year especially. >> state your name for the record. >> james robinson. what we've learned is once the franchise -- it was a good thing for us to leave the

franchise and become fully independent. it's been pleasing to our customers and it's pleasing to us as owners as well. and as marcia put it, it better serves our customers, we're seeking approval to go beyond 8:00 and add more chairs. it's what they want and we certainly want to deliver what they want. >> one thing i forgot to say, there are another 41 signatures that came in. i think that brings the petition total to around 300, if i'm not mistaken. >> hello, i'm gale farris. we've been around for over three years, almost four years now and i can't tell what you an education it's been. we went in very bright-eyed with the idea of the franchise and realized very quickly that by going independent it gave us more flexibility and we could really listen to our customers and given them what they wanted which was a great selection of

wine and offering a beer now and adding to our wine by the glass. so it's been a great time. thank you. president miguel: thank you. is there any public comment on this item? >> thank you, commissioners. it's certainly been a long day. i would like to add for the record a petition with about 90 signatures stating that another bar is not needed in west portal. my name's keith. my wife owns. i do what i'm told. we collect those signatures in a week and a half. not the two months that they had to do to plan this. i'd also like to add that the president of the west portal merchant association is ellie wagner.

so i would request the have a lessity of the endorsement from the -- question the validity of the endorsement. that's something to take into consideration. personally i'm surprised we're here. last year they came before you when they were illegally acting as a wine bar and they said they never wanted to be a bar, they didn't want to expand. they stated that they only wanted to do limited tastings and there was no mention of the franchise. that's the only difference here is that supposedly they're not part of the franchise any longer. all other considerations are still in play. and still enforced. talk take a walk down memory lane and how we got here. 3 1/2 years ago when they first were going to open up, they were opposed to a wine bar going in. there are statements here on those public meetings that we had that they stated they would never become a wine bar, it

wasn't their intention. that's how they got support. a year after that they legally opened a wine bar one block away from my business. i mean, how would you take that? that's a direct attack from the fastest growing chain in the industry. they stated that they did not know that they needed conditional use permit. when i asked james personally, i went in and asked him, he lied to my face and said they did have a permit. they came before you last year to mitigate that situation to make it legal for them to pour wines by the glass and they misled this commission. they said they never were going to come do what they're doing tonight. my wife's business, our business, is the only business open past 9/11 on the second block -- 9:00 object the second block of west portal. we're the only business still alive on the second block. we're not talk about the marina district. if i were in the marina district i wouldn't be here. there's high density housing. we're talking about a 2 1/2

block commercial district with no high density housing. there's already an established wine bar in the neighborhood. you made a great decision last year. you allowed them to do what they wanted to do. i'm asking you to verify and agree with your decision last year and not approve this conditional use permit. we're the last business standing on that second block. we drive business to that second block. thank you. president miguel: thank you. >> good evening. i've been a resident of west portal for over 35 years. i'm very familiar with west portal area. i'm also past president, the greater west portal neighborhood association, although i'm not here representing them. i have to tell you that i

resent people putting words in our association's mouth. mr. mccartle from what i understand runs a great business. they have good wines there, he's good to his customers and everything. and he's done well the whole time he's been in his position. i don't know why he is objecting to competition and that's the only thing i'm hearing from him is he objects to the competition and he felt that it was unfair because wine styles was part of a franchise operation. they're no longer a part of franchise operation and even when they were, they were an excellent business. they served wonderful wines and i don't see how they can be even considered to be in competition with them. they sell different kinds of wines, they have a totally

different atmosphere. so i'm going to urge you to please approve this conditional use permit. thank you. president miguel: is there additional public comment? >> i'm going to try this again. i'm in support of the debut and their application. just a little background. i was working for james and gale for about almost three years and have known, i lived in the area as well. i'm very familiar with their business model and who they are and who they are as a person and familiar with the community that -- they have a huge amount of support within the community. they have definitely strivinged to run a very respectable business. they have never done anything as far as i've known to

disloyal their license or what they do or to start a business or serve wine that they were illegally supposedly doing. they had no knowledge of that and they weren't. so when it comes down to credibility, james and gale are amazing business owners. they have done a huge amount for the neighborhood. they keep up with their building, clean it, it's impeccable when it comes in and when you walk around, it's a beautiful wine shop. and i have to say as well for myself, they mentored me into opening my own business in the inner sunset area. so this is one reason that i got into it. i started a small wine bar at the 7th and irving. i'm very familiar with the business model and it pushed me into knowing that they are exceptional people and it showed me to be a good business person and good for the community and especially when when it comes down to hours. people -- a wine bar is different than a regular type bar.

people aren't going there to -- they're not 20 somethings to do shooters, they're not going there to get drunk, whatever you're trying to come up with. people are going there to really enjoy themselves, have a glass of wine, be with family, be with friends and have that particulate of the community. that's a part of wine. giving them the opportunity to change and expand their business to 11:00 during the week and midnight on friday and saturday, it's part of the economy, it's part of the times, it's part of what they do and what the communities asked for. time and time again we get people coming in there prior to when i was working there asking if they could get a glass of wine and we had to turn them down because we couldn't do it after 8:00. and so we're -- and the customers don't understand that. so, this is an opportunity for them to actually succeed at their business and they're doing very well but this will give them an opportunity and this is a society for all of us to strive. we want to do that. thank you very much. i appreciate your time.