honda. you cannot have a hospital running without a license administrator in charge. i chose someone i have tremendous faith and, and also somebody that john had tremendous faith in. and i know that it was always intended. john had intended that succession. but it was not obviously going to be in the way it happened. it was going to be in a number of years. she would have had a chance to mentor into that role. people would have gotten used to her. when he felt we were taking care of he would have moved on. that was his way. instead, she was suddenly catapulted into this job in a much more difficult circumstance than anyone imagined, at a time when everybody was morning. the building was not yet finished. there were a number of

challenges. but she rose to all of them. and what she has in common with john is that she wakes up and sees what is in the best interest of the residence. that is what we do this for. it is on that that every decision should be changed. she keeps that foremost in her mind. she has done a fantastic job. i am sure that in that laguna honda corner of heaven, and john is looking down very proudly at her. [applause] >> good afternoon, everyone. thank you for spending your saturday afternoon at laguna honda. at the new laguna honda. san francisco has much to be

proud of. laguna honda has been providing compassionate care for san francisco hit safety net for over 150 years. we will continue this tradition for the next 150 years to come. second, the new laguna honda, as the most modern rehab and skilled nursing facility in the first certified leed hospital in california, we will deliver on being a model for other facilities around the country and the world in long-term care and rehabilitation care. and most importantly, laguna honda is a community for healing and wellness. you will see this for yourselves as you speak to our staff. thank you, mayor knew some, -- may newsom, mayor brown, jackie

speare, the former president of the health commission when prop. 8 past, the health commission, turner construction, derek miller, the arts commission, the staff of laguna honda, our labor partners, and the entire san francisco community for your support in ensuring laguna honda has a bright future. [applause] i will end with a "from a resident of laguna honda. thank you to the citizens of san francisco for backing this wonderful dream you had, and thank you to the many residents who actively supported the dream. thank you. [applause]

>> appropriately, the person who will have the final word on today's ceremony is our president of our resident counsel, elizabeth cutler. we are so proud you are here and we are looking forward to your comments. >> i have to unfold my papers. please be patient with me. all of the patients know what i mean. thank you. i want to say is an honor to share this platform with so many accomplished people. i feel thrilled to be among you

and to speak to this assembly today. more than that, it is a joy to represent the residents. i am thrilled that you have allowed me to be a voice for some of their feelings and concerns. and i want to tell you a bit about us as residents. we came from all different walks of life in the city. we have had jobs having to do with construction and bus driving, and we have had white collar jobs, and we have been independent artists and writers. the full spectrum have come to laguna honda. and in our day we were great participants in all of the city life. difficult circumstances, sometimes crushingly difficult, have brought many of us here at

last to laguna honda. not at last for some of us. despite all differences, we need the healing that laguna honda is famous for. some people who come will be rehabilitated and will leave sunday. others will need 24-hour care for the rest of their lives, and so they will look forward to spending time in the spending -- in this building for years to come. it is exciting to have a new building. it is even more exciting to receive a new model of care, care that is resident centered, care that honors each person as an individual instead of a body in a bed. care that involves talking to us, and more important, listening to us, hearing our voices. so many have worked so hard, has

you have been told -- as you have been told, to bring the state to pass. and now we have a dazzling new setting to present to you. when you leave today, you will be going home. but laguna honda residents will not be leaving. this is our home. and it is very important to us. we are already here. but please come back and visit us frequently. this wonderful new laguna honda would not exist without you. i just want to add a personal note. my younger sister, emily, was a resident here for many more years than i have been. she was greatly loved. we lost her recently. i would like to dedicate this speech to her and remembered her, as many of the residents do, with great fondness and affection. thank you all. [applause]

>> i would like to invite you all nowi that good enough? this is a participatory ribbon cutting. it requires nothing more complicated than this. i will ask you to count down, not up. upon conclusion, we will applaud the great works of turner construction, the dedicated men and women who are still toiling inside to get this project

completed, which begs the question when will the residents be moving in that? there is an easy answer -- soon. [laughter] [crowd chants a countdown] [applause] go ahead in an orderly manner.

>> we thought we wouldd< take ts weekly video out on the road. we are here at recology at the recycling center. if you ever wondered where your recyclables go, and this new mandate for composting, the new challenges and mandates around recycling, what we are trying to achieve -- it all starts right here. we just marked an important milestone in our city. i would argue important this nationn francisco has now achieved a 77% diversion rate, the highest in america. no big city can lay claim to diverting that much of their

waste, and that is why that composting requirement was so important. this is why our efforts to consumption and distribution and the like of plastic water bottles is so important. it is because we want to reduce that waste going into the landfill. we want to reduce the burden on our environment. we want to create jobs. the folks on the line behind me and above me, those are folks that have employment because of these programs. we have added over 118 people in the last couple of years to the roles of the employed in these green collar jobs because of the recycling and composting programs. we actually created economic stimulus by building facilities like this and putting people to work to do that job. ball the folks out here in the hard hats are also supported by people in the office is doing the processing, doing accounting, doing the bookkeeping, so there is a multiple in terms of jobs that

are created because of programs like we have established. it was error, we were less than 50%. when i first w6urw@8yyixorwakñwe were roughly 35% effective, which was pretty impressive. it was higher than almost any other big city in this country, but we had an= reaching 50%, and they said it could not be done. we said we would reach 70%, and i was so proud when we broke 72%, and here we are with a goal of 75% by 2010, and not only did we achieve that. as i just region, we are at 77%. on our way -- ahead of schedule in fact, to be at 0 waste by 2020. there is no city that i know of anywhere in the world that could ever even imagine within the next number of years to be at

zero ways. this is achievable because think about this -- even though we are at 77%, the remaining trash that comes here that ends up in a landfill -- already, we have identified 2/3 of it that could easily be diverted if folks would do more composting at home and do more recycling at home and use these bins you see behind me. i do not want this to become a psa for our recycling efforts, although that is always good, and remember, it is the kids teaching the adults, which is always good. but this is good for the environment, good for the economy, and a san francisco can do this, cities across california and cities across america can do this. i will remind you of the great line by michelangelo, who said that the biggest risk is not that we aim to hawaii and miss but that we aim to low and --. it would have been easy for us to have a goal of 50% recycling rate by 2020. a lot of states, a lot of cities

across the state, that will be tow%8x4ç:vw1qs8mna ++%uq when you do that, you get people to organize that quality of imagination, where people in the private sector and public sector, using the entrepreneurial and innovative spirit coming up with new ideas and attitudes that may seem untoward or a little controversial or extreme at first, but suddenly, when you peel it back and look back two or three years, you go, "my gosh, that makes so much since." if you make a few mistakes in the process, but ultimately, you create a goal that is accomplished that becomes an example for other people and other cities to achieve with similar goals and accomplish

similar efforts. we are really proud of our collective effort in san francisco and the people in a city that have stepped up. they mocked us a bit. i even was a little concerned about the composting requirement at first, but now i'm doing it. other folks are doing it, and it is really exciting to achieve these extraordinary goals. green collar jobs. the new economy. this is our future. this is real. it is happening now, and it could be happening everywhere else, not just in the great city and county of san francisco. >> the most important thing

abuot this decision was the decision itself, and the words that would matter most are in the 138-page document that are processed in thea ppellate court. they did not just set out to win a lower court decision. they set out to withstand scrutiny at the appellate level, successfully and unsuccessfully, understanding what the court is up against. judge walker set forth rules that became the foundation to which this will, i believe and hope, be appealed and

adjudicated at the supreme court. i'm not a lawyer. i'm not going to profess to make the legal argument that has bee n made. the most important thing is to get a solid decision out. not a win, but to get a decision where the arguments made are validated, and my understanding was that the points they made that they emphasized were advanced in this decision, and that is a significant thing. so i will leave that to legal

scholars, but the next phase of analysis would be the argument, not just the win at walker's court. >> in terms of going ahead with preventive measures, have decisions been made? >> we have always abided the rule of law. when courts said start and stop, we said we started and we st opped. no one was married today. no one was able to get a certificate or license. there were couples that were quite disappointed. some had come with the impression they would be able to get married this afternoon, and obviously that was another blow. those hopes, nonetheless, are

not dashed, and we will see what happens in subsequent decisions as processes of the courts. [unintelligible] >> it's an important point. we had adjudication in california and elsewhere on state grounds. this is the first court on federal principle, and it is the principle of our founding fathers here. it has been used to expand people's rights, not deny them. to the extent this is a constitutional challenge, this is very much a narrative we have lived with in this country. it is a narrative that is

familiar to those in virginia, and the last major constitutional challenge. when we look at the issue of interracial marriage. this is a fast-tracked narrative, so i am hopeful. i would not have imagined it. we have had good days and bad days, we have seen success advanced around the world, and i don't think anyone could have imagined a more optimistic setting. we have had setbacks in other states that have given us

pause and caution. this is who i am, my last breath. this has never been about politics. you look back in your life and you are staying in principle. you are given a moment in time to do the right thing. i said this to my father about

the issue. good people i love disagree. but whether you agree with me or not, you know it. i have a big propblem voting for people i don't trust, because they are telling me what they think i want to hear, not what i believe. this is what i believe, and my cards are on the table. i saw that as a student of history. in 1967, 70% of americans opposed interracial marriage. there is a fundamental principle here that has been used over and

over and over again, for women's rights, racial and ethnic rights. it makes sense. you have a minority of people being oppressed, you need the courts to do that. that's why there are distinguished and separate branches of government. it's not surprising this has taken the course that it's on.

>> the meaningful decision, it was crystal clear that they did not want to just win the decision. they want to win it in the right way. what i believe is they won it in the right way, which is why this is a more significant victory. but the arguments are compelling that it is positive and successful. justice kennedy, for better or for worse, seems to be the one

based on his colorado decision that would be put in the spotlight. he was wright in lawrence v. texas. it will be interesting to see him argue this, because in so many ways he was prescient. look. personally, this is an extraordinary moment, because real people's lives have once again been affirmed. at the same time, you temper your appreciation because you recognize the work that's been ahead. this is another step in a very

long process, but perhaps the most historic and compelling, because this is a federal decision based on the u.s. constitution, and i should remind people, bush wanted to change the constitution for a reason, because he thought there was something wrong. we think there is something right, that there is nothing in this constitution denying equal protection in due process.

>> [inaudible] >> if i lose fighting for something i believe in, i am proud. i would reather lose an election than capitulate my true beliefs. there are politicians better tat that than me, and many are better politicians. but i believe in this.

i am not an idealogue about this. i have family members that disagree with me vehemently about this. i remember when i was a kid, i thought, don't hold hands in public. it's not what i believe in. it's not what my contemporaries believe in. and i will say this, time is on our side. i have friends and young folks whoa re not caught up in this. they don't get it. there is an expectation that time will play itself out and we'll see how that occurs, but thisá>f is going to help with tt process.

>> being a pedestrian in san francisco is not easy for anybody. >> [inaudible] people push tables and chairs outside the sidewalk. >> i have to be careful not to walk the sidewalk. it is very hard. >> sometimes people get half way across the intersection. >> you