i'm joan wood and i've lived in north beach since 1962. i emailed you yesterday my main objections to the master plan, and i typed out -- it's a little easier to read. of the e.i.r.'s really very bad. but i wanted to point out to you that the comments -- our comments were sent in months ago about the last e.i.r., the one that you're being asked to vote on, and responses came to us on april 7, that's 14 days ago. we've never had a chance to make a public comment on that. and i think there's something wrong with the process because of that. i want to read you -- many of us particularly object to the legal aspects of using 701 lombard street, the lot that the city desires to put a new library on at a cost of approximately $9 million.

people like me want to renovate the old library. we like it a lot. it would cost about $4.5 million. although everybody is very cagey about what costs where. many of our letters are in the responses and comments. i just want to read something to you, so you get an idea of what the responses are like. just see what you make of this, please. as stated on deir page 32, ceqa guidelines section state that an e.i.r. must include the environmental conditions in the vicinity of the project as they exist at the time of the notice of preparation, n.o.p., is published. from both the local and regional perspective, this environmental setting will normally constitute baseline physical conditions by which a lead agency determines whether an impact is significant, emphasis added. recent case law confirms that the actual physical conditions on the ground at the time of the issuance of the notice of preparation are used for

baseline conditions. then there's a reference to a note 2. therefore, regardless of the intent of the acquisition of the lombard street partel, it must be analyzed as a surface parking lot under baseline conditions." are you getting the point of what the responses are like? this is not an exceptional paragraph. this is typical of this whole thing. we haven't had a chance to publicly respond to it. that isn't right. this is supposed to be an answer to the eminent domain taking of this lot for open space. i've already cited you emails, which i know you probably have so many of them, which you probalt don't read. so i printed it for you. there's several legal documents that make it abundantly clear that this lot is only to be used for open space. and many of us in north beach hopefully live long enough to get the park that was promised to us. president olague: i do have

teresa, merle and julie christianson. commissioner moore: you have carrie first. >> my name was called earlier. president olague: that's fine. just come up if your name was called at any time. >> good afternoon, president, commissioners. my name is terri byles and i live and work here in the city of f.c.c. i am an architect with 25 years of experience, although i want to point out i have no connection to this project and will not benefit from any ongoing business. i have reviewed the e.i.r. and i have found it to be complete, that i am generally here to just support the project. the proposed new design for the north beach library, i think, will take much better use of this precious piece of real estate by creating much greater community gathering spaces both on the inside and on the exterior of the property. and as our city grows, we need

to be very careful about how we develop the city and optimize every last piece of land. i also think the sustainability aspects of the project are very important if san francisco is going to achieve their long-term goals for reduction in carbon footprint. as an architect i have to say i think the design is quite elegant. i think the scale is appropriate. i think there has been a lot of work done to preserve views and open space, and, of course, it's always a balance. but i want to applaud the previous speaker that brought the poster with pictures of families and that i think oftentimes it's the families here in san francisco that are left out of this process, because they can't come to these hearings. i think the city at this point has maybe 17% of our population that is families, and i aplaud the fact that this project is going to be a much greater community asset for people of all ages, and particularly i'm pleased to see that the

playground was relocated to have a better adjacency with the child care center. and there's been so much thought given to the safety and the functionality of this development. so i hope you consider all the community members that would benefit from this project and approve it. so thank you. president olague: thank you. >> my name was not called, although i just turned in a speaker card. >> i'm not sure. those are the only cards i have. >> my name is lisa. i'm a resident of north beach, a park and library patron, a teacher, and i speak on behalf of the parent-teacher organization at my school. i urge you to certify the final e.i.r. it is complete and thorough and objective. i urge you to approve the closing of the strip of mason street and the rezoning of the parking triangle. we in the community who want this project to go forward represent the diversity of the neighborhood. we are people with children and without children, people with

disabilities and without disabilities, renters and owners. we have young people, older people and people in the middle. we are people from many different backgrounds and who speak many different languages. but in one strong voice we say, please, allow this project to move forward. the e.i.r. is exhaustive. it studies everything we loved but the temporary closure and we're sad to see it stop. the master plan is ready and we are excited that our long-held dream for a new library and a better and bigger park might finally come true. thank you. president olague: thank you. and please limit your comments to the certification of the final e.i.r. that's the item that we're currently hearing. >> good afternoon. my name is teresa del santos. i would request that the commission please certify the north beach library and joe dimaggio playgrounds. please approve closure of mason

street and the rezoning of the parking lot as a public lands to allow the master plan to be implemented and the project to proceed. i have lived in the neighborhood for almost 25 years. i'm an active community advocate for children in the community through my service to various p.t.o. boards. the e.i.r. is thorough, complete and accurate and is documentation of the key issues in moving forward with this plan. it shows that by building a new library on a parking lot, tearing down the old library and closing a half-block section of mace than street, over 12,000 square feet of access will be gained. more open space is critical in north beach because it is the densest neighborhood in the city. finally, the plan documents how much better a new library would be for the community, rather than renovating the existing one. finally, the plan finds that there is no significant impacts to traffic, public transportation or emergency vehicle access in north beach

if we remove the parking lot and close a portion of mason street for a new library. the plan for the new library and bigger park, as recommended in the e.i.r., will provide numerous benefits to our neighborhood that far outway any other considerations. thank you. president olague: thank you. >> well, commissioners, my name is merle easton. i'm also an architect. and i am asking you not to certify the e.i.r. today, and the reasons why is because i believe that the new library doesn't fit on the triangular lot. it hangs over at least 19 feet into the right-of-way. it was also obstructing views in all directions, and it requires three magnificent ficus trees to be removed that would be perfect for an open-space park. when you get done with awful the legal issues that have to

be, i believe it will cost more and the timeline will be much longer, and that the historic appleton and library that's on the site now is a beautiful building. it was -- it has been not maintained, and so it doesn't look as well as it could be, but it definitely can be expanded and would be able to be used during the time, because i know the librarians prefer to have it closed and be able to open. but you could build a new part, move into that and renovate the other part. and the e.i.r. indicates that this is an existing resource, but it just says that it's not able to do anything about it. i don't think that you do need to close mason street, but i really would appreciate your considering all of the other items that have been discussed today. thank you.

president olague: thank you. >> hi, my name is jim and i was sort of surprised when the telegraph hill association made a presentation to us about the library and alternative plans. it really changed my mind. i was really before in favor of rip it down, it's just a 1950's building, who cares? and, you know, in its current condition it's very easy to see it as a resource that doesn't need protection. i heard the presentation that they made and while closing mason street and incorporating the trike l is important to any -- triangle is important to any eventual use, i think the building has a lot of merit. after hearing about the expandability of the building that was put into it initially, i revisited it and i looked at

it again much more seriously, and i really do now understand why this building has so much merit. just as an aside, about a week ago for the grand opening of terminal two at s.f.o., my wife and i helped put together a presentation on all the ecology that was built into rehabbing an old building and how magnificent it can be. one of the learning points was the best ecology really is using resources and having them grow and adapt. i think this is one example where this building has a great deal of merit. it is cited in such a way that the park can expands around it and incorporate the triangle successfully and we'll have something that really is an historic building adapted for a completely new life. so i really do ask you to move

forward with the closing of mason street, the rezoning of the triangle, but really have consideration. this building really shouldn't be lost. thank you very much. >> good afternoon, my name is dawn and i live two blocks from the proposed site. i'm also researching an independent artistic project about the history of the american public library. so i spend a lot of time in libraries around the country and in san francisco. and the most important thing that i've learned, i think, is that these are buildings that are designed to serve their communities, and that the one at north beach is woefully inadequate for that purpose. it's always overcrowded. i personally cannot see any way that that current building could serve our community as well as a new building. i consider myself a lifelong

preservationist, but i support a new building at that location. i know that it has a very murky history and an imperfect history, but i'm urging you all to look to the future and consider what an asset a new building would be and what an improved playground would exist if mason street were closed off. i want to just point out a couple what i feel are corrections to some previous statements. there is no plan to do away with the joe dimaggio playground, from what i can see in the plans. it's going to be altered and reconfigured. i think it's a better configuration to serve the children in the neighborhood. i also walk past that site at least three times every day, because i don't drive a car, and i never saw a traffic problem during the two month-long test when they closed off mason street. so i would urge you to certify. e.i.r. president olague: thank you. any additional comment on the e.i.r.?

>> i submitted a card, but my name -- president olague: not sure where the cards went. >> my name is andrew sullivan. i'm a landscape architect. i live and work in the city. i've been involved in various components of this project dating back years, and i just wanted to urge the commission to support and approve the e.i.r. from a professional point of view i wanted to say that i've been continually impressed by the architects that the team has assembled and the impressive depth of knowledge that they've brought, and i think they've really shown that they've looked at every aspect and component of this over the years. and i also applaud the public agencies that have been involved in the process and the project and the cooperation that i've been -- i've participated in with the libraries, the parks department and their commitment to what i think is really serving the

public's best interest. and then just from a personal point of view, having lived in the neighborhood, the neighborhood desperately needs more open space, preferably some green open space, and the library needs some -- is in desperate need of more space and renovation. so i urge you to approve the e.i.r. thank you. president olague: thank you. >> hi, my name is robert. i'd like to speak against the library going up on the triangle. not against libraries per se. i think it would be great if we built a new library. i feel pretty strongly the library should be built on the existing footprint, extended down to the bocce ball court, which is never used. i say this because i've lived across the street for 24 years, and the way this is laid out, you're going to have tennis courts right where people live, playing from early in the morning till late at night. also, there's a tremendous

problem with homeless people in that playground. and the playground, as created, creates a nice dark space in the middle of the night, when it's not patrolled now and it's a constant problem for over 20 years. and i've got a long record with the police department, with our supervisors. so when you create this space for children to play in the middle, you also take away space for teenagers, kids from 6 to 8, kids that don't need nannies. that hardscape there is very important as far as open space goes, and that's being closed down. and it's also closed off from the street, where we have a lot of tourists going by with children. they won't know that's there. and that building on the -- at least on the street side -- has no win dolls. so it's like creating a wall -- windows, and so it's like creating a wall there. we don't use the bocce ball court. nobody's ever there. we have other bocce ball courts that haven't been used. it's a triangle, a rectangle is a much more efficient use of space. i'm not an architect.

it's a lovely plan. but as a kid that grew up in the city on playgrounds, i can tell you that hardscapes are more important. my kid grew up there. a lost other kids have grown up there. so i'm not anti-library. the old library don't work. this new one i understand from librarians isn't going to be any better. 50 years from now we're going to be back with the same argument. it's just not -- it's not as good a plan as we can do with the money we're spending. thank you. president olague: thank you. so we're still on public comment on agenda items with the public hearing has been closed, and that includes the e.i.r. only. we're still taking comments on the e.i.r. >> i'll try to be very brief. my name is karen. i was at one time president of north beach neighbors and chairman of the universal forum. i love the plan for -- the master plan for the library. it is expansive, it is artistic.

i just can't believe all of the objections i hear. it will protect children to have them in there. as far as mason street is concerned, i've been working hard to get the buses off of mason street, because this is a residential area and it is becoming more and more residential. we are -- i would say our whole area is becoming more and more juvenile. we are having more and more children. we need desperately a wonderful community center and everything this library would represent. we've had over 1,000 signatures approving this library, begging that it get done. the open space issue, we will have so much more open space than if we were to do a little bear park there, as has been suggested on that little triangle. i just am totally in favor. i hope that e.i.r. will be certified and approved and let's have a library. thank you. president olague: thank you. any additional public comment on this item? >> commissioners, my name is

julie christensen and i'm asking you to certify the e.i.r. and to rule positively on the street vacation and the rezoning of the triangle. i'm taking up your time only to underscore the importance of your decision today, to my neighbors and friends in the neighborhood, to chinatown, north beach, telegraph and russian hill also. we started this project in 1999. we were all word about the y2k bug. there was no 9/11 yet, there was no 2008 crash. those are a lot of years when you're measuring them in the lives of children. the kids whose parents started this project in the last sentry are in high school now, and we hope that library will be built before they get out of college. the needs that we had 10 years ago that made us work so hard for this have only gotten worse. the library is more crowded, more decrepit , less safe, less sound than it was a decade ago. the playground is more cracked, more rusted, more in trouble than it was a decade ago. and we have waited for this day, to stand in front of you

and ask for your approval, so that this project can move forward. we have waited for this day for 10 years. so we're hoping that today you will let the project move forward. it would be an enormous gift to these neighborhoods and to the future of north beach. north beach is at a crossroads and right now honestly, i cannot tell you where it's going to be 10 years from now, for better or worse. but your decision today would be a big step in sending it to the positive direction, and we hope you'll help us do that. and i have -- if i can beg your indulgence, i know there are supporters in the audience who will not take their time to speak. but if you could please raise your hand, if you're supporting and not talking, that's multiplied by hundreds in the neighborhood, and we hope you'll let us have our park and our library. thank you. >> after that remark, i'm going to keep it really quick.

now i feel selfish taking your time. my name is tina moyland, the current president of russian hill neighbors and i speak for 800 of our members. and north beach is our library. russian hill is kind of sandwiched between the pope corridor and the north beach corridor. but make no mistake -- it is our library, the north beach. and i feel with a passion so strongly about this e.i.r. going through. i mean, as i was crossing the street i thought, gosh, i had turkey the past two years. i was thinking of it in terms of holidays, how many holidays. and i hope you approve this going forward, in springtime at a barbecue and eating turkey and i'm not up here taking your time again. it's just -- i officially

believe and our board of directors came up with reading is the key to knowledge. knowledge is the key to success. and success makes a lifetime. and a good environment is so important for everyone. so thank you for -- and i probably took too much time, so -- >> good afternoon. howard wong, friends of apple ton woeford -- wouldford library. i ask that the e.i.r. not be certified because it's incomplete, inaccurate and misrepresents many of the facts. the city's e.i.r. consultant, who i met him of the planning staff, who i met, attorneys and city staff have devoted six months to respond to many public comments.

with two weeks to respond to their responses, we've attempted to provide some information. but one must understand that that ability to respond in two weeks to a six-month effort is very short. one of the issues that i would like to bring up is that many of the citizens of the city and north beach have had a history with the joe dimaggio playground and north beach library for many decades. and what pertains to this particular e.i.r., since 1988, from 1988 to august of 2008, there have been other public processes which led to certain perceptions and expectations about the ufse the library and the use of the playground. we had an interest primarily initially with the library itself. it is a recognize the historic resource eligible for the state

and national registers. as you know, the e.i.r. expects that if there is a design that does not adversely impact that historic resource, that would be considered the best environmental solution. and having talked to many architects, myself being an architect and a native of san francisco and north beach, who grew up with the library and the playground, we've looked at that project and offered some very good design solutions. unfortunately, in the six-month response period, there was much considerable effort to diminish alternatives that were offered. in fact, the lower level expansion of the library and the addition which was recommended by several historic preservation organizations and other architects, several actual drawing designs were offered, was dismissed with

great energy by the response because it was deemed impossible or difficult, when in reality, that contradicts our own professional perception and what we see for -- throughout san francisco, which is a hilly city, where many buildings routinely are developed with lower level expansions. and that, of course, is true not only here in san francisco, but nationally and internationally. consider the louver. so please consider not certifying. thank you. president olague: thank you. >> good afternoon, commissioners, i appreciate the opportunity to speak briefly to you. my name is bob. i live about a block and a half away. i am neutral on this project, and i think it's very

interesting to hear the community. both sides make very, very good points. i mean, i think all we can ask as a community is you make your best call that you can. the issue -- the one issue, i think, is worthy of focus on again. it's on the e.i.r. and i don't take the position one way or another on it but to say as the comments were made about the traffic and dealing with parking and things like that. so regardless of what you decide, we're going to get an improvement out of this, and i think that's really appreciated. and i think if we think of north beach as a community and then that area right around there as you go up russian hill and a little bit up telegraph hill, you have sort of another community within there. and the reason i thought to speak about one issue, which was the traffic and the e.i.r., was just as going forward if we could consider the importance of, you know, of looking at

that and studying. again, not taking the position one way or another. but as you look at additional projects for expansion, for example, i think it would be worth over a certain size, and i'm sure you've considered that already. but people who are expanding over a certain amount and adding particularly groups or individual members of a significant number to the process in the community, that you look at it in terms of, gee, maybe it is worth studying traffic additionally or studying the impacts on the community. so that's all i wanted to say. and i really do appreciate you giving us a fair shake. again, a lot of great comments back here, and i'm sure we'll hear more from you on it that will also be helpful. i think i speak for everyone when i say thanks for looking at this for us. president olague: thank you. any additional public comment? >> phil ginsberg, the general manager of the parks department and will you herrera wanted to

address on the project. he'll be here in a minute. president olague: i wanted to make sure with the city attorney that when it's appropriate for them to speak more than three minutes on -- >> i don't think they need to speak more than three minutes. president olague: i don't think the city attorney can give us an opinion on that. i thought they were going to speak during the e.i.r. hearing, not during the public comment hearing. >> if that's possible, they would just like to briefly address the commission. >> john from the city attorney's office. i think the intent is to just have a short presentation and there would be fine at this point to be subject to the same limitation as members of the public, even though they are city representatives. president olague: in that case, then, yeah. and there will be other opportunities for them to speak as well. but i guess during this item it would be the three minutes. i just wants to make sure that it's ok. so, yeah, that's fine.

sorry about that. it got confusing up here. >> we have three minutes. >> hi, commissioners. phil ginsberg. i'm with the park and recreation department. it's a pleasure to be here. i want to thank you for allowing luis and i to speak on behalf of the north beach library master plan and the joe dimaggio playgrounds. we appreciate the hard work of the planning department and the staff in preparing the draft e.i.r., ensuring a complete and public process. and we're very satisfied with the completeness. we're overall here today to support the actions before you that will enable rec and park and the library to move forward on this important project. the project will bring 12,000 square feet of new open space to a commune thee -- community that is one of the densest in the country. i want to thank the many groups that were part of this project,