grocery store. regardless, the mission of college beverage restricted use some district ordinance requires that a license that has fallen into disuse for longer than 30 days may not be transferred over. this was precisely what the commission found in their letter of determination, responding to a grocery outlet on the exact same property. moreover, the license that has been transferred over from delano is a license type 21. this is not for wine and beer only. this is a general off sale license. this has also been ignored. as a result, the community is concerned about the sale of up to hold yourself checkout. they are, as you will hear today, self checkouts. essentially, not only does it

not allow for jobs for individuals who would be working in the store, acting as a cashier, but it also essentially creates a system where alcohol is being sold through vending machines, which is precisely the intent to restrict the subdistrict. the law has been ignored with regard to the provisions i have cited. thank you. president fong: thank you. roger? >> my name is roger marenko. i live literally around the corner from fresh and easy. at one of the meetings a few months ago, they said they would comply with the abc law. at the beginning of this year, they turned around to sue the state of california. that tells me they are not a

good neighbor, nor do they want to be a good neighbor. i am not in favor of a store coming in that does not allow my mother to go in and use her wic coupons, but allows her to buy alcohol. the mission district is bigger than that. i call it the heart of san francisco because of the diversity, the artwork, the stores, the people. we do not want a fresh and easy to be the ultimate result. we do not want our lowest common denominator possible there. as a mission resident for the past 20 years, i think we are better than that and we can do better than that. the mission district demands jobs. the mission district demands jobs where you can organize, where you can unionize. it demands san francisco living wage. we can do better than that. in regards to that huge video we

saw a few minutes ago, i myself went to a fresh and easy sight, and was very easily able to walk away with a call in my hands. being the good neighbor i am, i walked back in and paid for it. one of the times i did that at one of the stores, it took seven or eight minutes. i cannot remember exactly. seven or eight minutes for somebody to come down and check my id. at that point in time, anybody else could have simply walked off, walked away. in conclusion, i am not one to take up more of your time. i want to reiterate that the mission district is better than that. women, infants, and children deserve it. my mother's deserve -- my mother deserves it. with that in mind, thank you. president fong: daniel, gordon,

oscar. >> my name is daniel moosney. i lived adjacent to the proposed property. i and the neighbor. there are actually three different lots there. i was not fully aware that fresh and easy -- the process. i came into knowledge of it through my neighbors. i have an easement through the front, which has been referred to earlier. it is a legal easement. but the family is not honoring it. they think it off. for about a year, i had to go through a neighbor's hallway and climbed through a window into my house. to settle that dispute, the

family decided to report me for living in an illegal unit. i am currently removing my kitchen and my bathroom. i can no longer be living in that unit. as i said, the unit -- the easement is obviously not recorded. i went to city hall and discovered that the whole property -- their property, my property, and others in the neighborhood were at 1.1 property. it used to be allowed for the property owner to not record the easement, but put easements in to save a recording fee. i have had a lot of problems for the last year and a half tried to get into my home. when i started hearing about the fresh and easy people, and started wondering. i do not get along with these neighbors. what kind of tenants are they going to bring in? i live in a multi judge unit building with my family.

-- a multi-unit building with my family. the more i looked into it, the worse it seemed. i found out they made promises at the community meeting that they will abide by alcohol laws, and that are currently in violation. every day, as we sit here and speak, there are people able to buy alcohol in violation of california state law. they are in violation of the wic program. there is a moratorium, but that are not exempt. if fresh and easy said we are planning to go into san francisco, they would have met the exception. but they did not. they are violating that as well. the last portion i have to say is in terms of the mural. i have muralists presently repairing minerals -- the murals that are there.

the owners tried to run them off. there was sexual harassment as well. at a later date, if this were to be continued, i could share that information. >> my name is gordon mar. i worked at an office 2 b will blocks away from the site. i happen to work at a labor union, which is not a coincidence. that reflects some of the progressive values of the mission district. for those reasons as well as many others, i am speaking in opposition to the project, and would like to explain my point about why i feel it is not needed and not appropriate for that site for the mission district. it is mainly because of who tesco, their parent company, really is. they are a global walmart.

this is not a target for the mission district. the idea that has been put forward by the planning department that this site would be continuing as a formula retail use does not have the straight test. and 11-outlet local grocery does technically meet the definition of a formula business, just barely. that is a far cry from an outlet operated by the third largest retailer in the world, tesco. that operate nearly 3000 stores across 14 countries and three continents. it and delano are not remotely the same. the three nearby grocery stores -- foodco, rainbow grocery, and safeway -- are easily within the market area of proposed use.

also, the smaller markets would be negatively affected. economic research indicates the 20 employment opportunities created by fresh and easy would likely be offset by 20 or more losses of existing jobs as competing retailers downsize in response to lost sales. these lost jobs, at least in some cases, the better than the jobs created. they certainly could not pay less. also, money earned by independent businesses is more likely to circulate within the local neighborhood in city economy than money earned by formula retail businesses, which often have corporate offices and vendors located outside of san francisco. studies by civic economics showed that only about 16 cents of every dollar spent by a major retailer like tesco stays in the local economy. i would urge you to deny this permit.

it is not appropriate or needed for the mission district. >> my name is oscar grande. i organize for economic rights. we have a long history in this part of the mission district. we are one of the organizations that created secret garden, around the corner from this site. we are part of different processes that ever happened in the community. we got affordable housing built a block away. we are founding members of mission anti-displacement coalition. i am telling you our credentials and what we have been able to create in this neighborhood with

local residents. aside from the spin that we have heard from representatives, there is a startup down the street, casa sanchez. high-tech companies are starting in basements. this is fresh and easy. parent company is tesco, third largest company in the world. over 200 stores on the west coast alone. your job as commissioner and our job as community is to hold them accountable, and all the things they do and say they do. they need to provide that proof, because they do have a long track record. in terms of coming to an underserved neighborhoods -- it is not underserved. we are rich in terms of food, in terms of businesses. we are not under served at all. it is not a food desert. there are other communities that

are suffering as food deserts' -- deserts. in past communities, they have not kept their promises. they are opposing the new state law around alcohol. that are blocking employees from advocating for gumma which we have been hearing horror stories in l.a.. then they are refusing wic. they have had the opportunity to submit exemptions to the band. the state told them. they knew last year that they were coming into the mission and bayview. they knew. i think we need to base our decisions on their track record. not their promises or their do good handshakes. a lot of us are going to come here and say there should be a community benefits agreement, 100% local hire. they get rid of the automated

machines can bring in actual workers to curb underage drinking. the local sourcing, etc. i really think their track record speaks counter to that. also, how do you comply? how you hold them accountable? you need to make a decision. maybe we will come back a year from now to see how they are doing. president fong: thank you. >> good afternoon. i have lived in the mission since 1941. and i have seen a big change. it seems to be improving. i am telling you if kids want liquor that are going to get liquor. i have seen them with their friends who are sober and older to buy liquor for them. i have reported it to the police department. that is not new.

they are going to get liquor if they really want it. when they see the store to buy golden gate park -- it is a beautiful store. it would be nice to have in the mission a store as nice as that. also, i go shopping. i cannot carry bags, so i use a grocery cart. i put all my groceries there. i go up to safeway. it is embarrassing to catch the bus. someone has to help me put the groceries in the bus and then take them out. i think the senior citizens and people with families needing nice grocery store like that. -- need a nice grocery store like that. i hope you think about the seniors and families that would appreciate it if you vote yes. thank you.

president fong: joanne wong lam. >> good afternoon, commissioners. my family owns 1245 south van ness. we have owned this property for over 40 years. during this time, the property has always operated as a formula retail chain. before the bankruptcy of our subtenant, the delano market, our subtenant, k -- our tenant, kroger, tried to find another subtenant, but was unable to find another crush a company to take over, largely due to the feasibility of bringing in another union grocer. since last january, fresh easy -- fresh and easy was only one of three interested parties in our property.

as we completed due diligence and visited other fresh and easy sites, the partners considered it the strongest tenant to fit the neighborhood. the offer fresh, good quality products. that was one of the critiques of delano market. it was not offering fresh, quality products at a price the neighborhood could afford. we want to keep a green, sustainable, neighborhood- oriented manner. we want to have additional murals. we felt that would help with the overall revitalization of the neighborhood. not only were the other interested parties not union grocers, but given the financial resources that would only be able to undertake minor interior renovations and an exterior coat of paint. in addition, one of the interested parties would

adversely affect all of the latin markets selling goods on 24th street in in our immediate neighborhood. during this vacancy, we have made a commitment to the neighborhood to keep the property clean, graffiti and crime free. we have security patrols, security cameras, and have worked with sfpd code enforcement to ensure a clean and safe site during this vacancy. we want to prevent any potential blight or crime, and so the neighborhood community will be well served by a grocery store offering fresh and affordable products. to that end, we respectfully request a conditional use authorization. thank you so much for your time.

>> thank you very much, commissioners. i am rev. carroll beane. i have worked throughout the state -- the street with clergy -- i work throughout the state with clergy united for economic justice. i have been in communication with clergy in bayview and the mission area. also throughout the state, especially around this and alcohol law. the biggest concern we have is that we have spoken with fresh and easy and we have spoken with workers at their locations, and we have talked to community folks. the stories do not match. it is a big concern when that happens. i have a letter that was signed on to buy a number of evangelical churches in the mission area, as well as in bayview. the naacp, the national latino evangelical coalition -- there are a number of names here.

not people who generally step up on activist issues. they are concerned because they see the human tragedy that results when alcohol gets into the wrong hands, especially underage youth. everybody pays. the community pace with increased medical care and a rise in street violence, of lost wages and traffic accidents. there is proper to crime. the list goes on and on. that is why i worked with a group of bishops throughout the state from fresno to northern california, talking to the governor about passing this ab 183. it passed in january. before it passed, we asked whether they would abide by the law. absolutely. the law passes. i go to the one in portola and ask the general manager, "are

used in the alcohol to the machine -- are you scanning alcohol through the machine?" yes, but "we believe we are in compliance with this law." this is the doublespeak you get when you speak with fresh and easy. after community meetings, including the concern about wic, the fresh and easy representatives said the have applied but are waiting to be inspected. that was a lie. the quickly tried to correct that a week later. this letter says that these promises have been made. we are still waiting for them. they do not abide by the law that they say they are in compliance with. they do not do that. we need to have a safe sale of a call in our community.

i would submit this letter. i know that supervisor olague is proposing an ordinance that is stricter. this group of people asked that you delay the department until you go deeper into that proposal. president fong: thank you. ramon, amanda, and sam ruiz. >> good afternoon. my name is rom -- ramon. i am part of a collaboration of six community-based organizations. we have representatives in the audience of the six organizations. we are here to request the commission to reconsider the conditional use permit. our program's basic goal is to reduce the abuse of alcohol among young people in san francisco. it has been proven at the state

and local level that checkout has been -- young people have been able to access of a hold yourself checkouts. we know for a fact that young people can access alcohol if they want to come using the self checkouts. i think the gentleman said that fresh and easy is a startup company. this is the fourth in san francisco. a startup usually is a small store that basically will grow. for someone to open up four stores in the past four years --

i think that the ability of san francisco to look at these type of stores in minimize the amount of employment opportunities for californians -- i think that self checkout has been minimizing the employment opportunity for folks. i think fresh and easy should comply with state and local laws, as well as community standards. folks at stores are being required -- in particular, the corporate stores have been moving into san francisco.

>> i am here to talk specifically about the jobs. i did attend a community forum in early january in which residents, artists, and other organizations talk about community issues such as the labor unions and bicycle parking. i definitely think it is an organization that represents the community and focuses on employment. i think it is a great thing that fresh and easy is working with us. we can work with the community and meet those needs by making sure 100% local hires is the goal that is achieved. i have met with fresh and easy. we have talked about 25 to 35

positions and holding recruiting events. i wanted to confirm the working with us to try to make sure 100% local hires -- that that goal is met. president fong: sam ruiz, john, bruce livingstone. >> good afternoon, mr. commission president and members at large. i am the executive director for mission neighborhood centers, the multi-generational community-based social service agency in the mission community, providing uninterrupted services since 1959. i am here this afternoon to share with you the relationship that our organization has been able to establish with fresh and easy senior management staff over the last 3.5, 4 months. with support from the mayor's

office of housing and mercy housing development corporation as the developer, and it architectural firm providing technical assistance to our agency, we are currently in the pre-development process. we on two lots on the corner of 24th and harrison, and we are proposing to develop senior housing units within those two lots. affordable, and assisted living -- unassisted living housing, 36 to 38. we anticipate this project could break ground in probably the next year and a half. the one issue, and not necessarily an obstacle, but definitely a primary step we need to address within the pre-

development stage -- which currently house 68 head start children at the facility at 24th and harrison that requires to be relocated so we can afford to enjoy the maximum space to build those 36 to 38 senior housing units. the space we identified as we were looking around for potentially licencable -- license a ball -- licenced space is the fresh and easy opened beverage restore. they do have approximately 5200 square feet that could be sublet to mission neighborhood centers to relocate on a permanent basis our headstart program. we are in the process of negotiating a letter of intent that was initiated by fresh and easy. it can provide experience -- it

usually does not happen that way. we praise them for the fact that they were able to act as their own legal counsel and real- estate department to generate that letter of intent. we are now in the counterproposal negotiation stage. in my opinion, it will be a positive result. we have made it very clear. headstart is a federally funded program. one of the requirements we have is whatever site wheatley's for program space must be at below market rate. fresh and easy has agreed that they will consider below market rate rates for the leaseholder. i also understand there are a number of community issues that are currently being addressed by fresh and easy. it is my hope that as these discussions continue with the community that all of the issues that have surfaced will be addressed and there will be successful in opening their gross restore.

thank you -- their grocery store. thank you. >> my name is jon frankel. i represent a small school in the mission. i am all for affordable food and affordable was restored. i am concerned -- and affordable grocery stores. but i am concerned with the extreme reliance on automated checkout. there have been other grocery stores there. i do not have a problem with the grocery store being there. but when there is this model, it can have a definite threat of really undercutting mom and pop businesses in the neighborhood that other stores did not. i am concerned about