>> hi, any -- my name is john and i'm a resident of sunset and p proud daved these two terrific soccer sons. nick i could say to you in favor of the renovation, you've heard it before, many, many times from many people over the last couple years. it's safe to saipe the quiet majority in this debate are in favor of the renovation project but here we are two years out and it's stalled because a very well organized, very vocal minority of people insist at looking at dedication -- dedicated soccer fields in a man-made park and calling them sylvan meadows. well, they're not. tip point we really need to move forward with the conversation. we've spent the last two years great effort and over $1 million.

i think it's time to say let's move forward and -- with the renovation and i very respectfully implore you to do so. thank you so much. >> thank you. next group? >> hello, my name is andrea negativelson. i'm a long-term resident of san francisco, long-term involved parent in youth sports and i'm give up my speaking time for america scores and all these wonderful children. i want to introduce marty, the program director and colin, who is involved with this program. thank you very much. >> thank you. does this work? just put it right there and it will turn on. >> thanks. not all of us are going to

speak, so we'll respect that. we'll just try to sum up our organization's concerns quickly with just a couple adult comments. but this is a group of children from america scores, from redding elementary school just down the street on the edge of the tenderloin. they're in after school program right now. they've walked over here and have to walk back by five or chris is going to get a call and get in trouble. which wanted them to be represented. all the scorers families, 600 families -- does this pick up? yeah. this will be a little bit inadequate. but what i, the point that i really wanted to make was that scores works with 600 families at 15 low-income public school communities. moachtd of us are on the east side of the city -- most of us or -- are on the east side of the city, and for five days a week the kids at redding, at

all these schools play on pave mint. [bell] >> so the issue for our league is not grass, turf, it's playing on something 0 other -- other than pavement. we are big fans of city field and all the work they've done on that side of the city with the other projects but it's not enough. we have the whole city competing for space there. so these kids when they do get to go to crocker or, from redding to crocker one day a week they don't get to go on the turf. it's not for ids under 8. not enough capacity. they get to play on the grease over there, which is fine but in a six-week season in the spring two of the games are rained out. so it's unfortunate to say the least. we think the beach chalet will take pressure off the rest of the city and provide more access to children from low-income public school communities all over san francisco poem -- san francisco

. shannon? we have two additional speakers. >> good afternoon. thank you for letting me have this opportunity to speak. my name is shannon burns and i've been a soccer and poetry coach for america scores for over five years ue -- now. i began coaching in oakland where i worked with four teams at different elementary schools all having a field at their school site or within walking distance. when i transitioned here to san francisco recently and started working with elementary schools including redding i was surprised to see every practice and game was played on blacktop that was painted green. the s.f. chronicle just announced that san francisco's public parks are the best in the nation. i'd like to encourage us to maintain that status and to do even better at providing equal access, whether it's grass or turf fields for san francisco neighborhoods, schools, and

children like those at redding. if oakland can do it, we can, too. can we do a power clap on three? ready? one, two, three. >> thank you. >> hi, my name is marty manion and i'm the education director with the america scores bay area. thank you for letting us present. i'm here to introduce one of my players, a third grader who i coached in first and second grained -- grade. unfortunately when they -- she was in first and second grade her league was denied the chance to play on the turf field. they played on the grass and bay thirved their season was rained out and cancelled. that's a shame because that's a chance you don't get back in your first season as a child.

one of those weekends her mom got a call from the land lord wanting to evict their family because of noise complaints. the noise was the sound of a soccer ball bouncing against the ball because her only other place to play was if she could break onto the school blacktop in her neighborhood. the ones a few blocks away were pretty much overrun by the pay to play leagues. she loves the field. she had her birthday party there a couple days ago and would like to share a poem she would -- wrote in our poetry and soccer program about playing. >> i'm not a scared girl, a cry-baby girl, a mean or angry girl, i'm a pretty hot girl, lightning fast down the field girl, reading books, smarty pants loves to dance girl.

ponytails and painted nails. soccer cleats and san francisco streets. that's what a cleveland girl is made of. >> i really home moving forward she will be able to play in her neighborhood park and so will all the students in the program. thank you. >> i just want to close briefly and thank you for letting all the children from my program step up. i'm the associate director for america scores bay area and for the past five years or so i've seen the changes that have happened at silver ter -- terrace, at western addition, at campbell and at crocker, and i think we all know there is an imbalance of this and by moving forward with this project we'll find a balance where it's not lopside add cross the city. so please really consider to move forward with this project so far -- for all the kids and families here we can have a better quality of life in this

great city. thank you very much. >> thank you. hi, name -- my name is george stabile. i'm a guardian and personally good friend of the person who just was here, leticia, and i want to say one thing about crocker am adon. i would like to invite every wunsch you on this panel to go out there some saturday and see the results. thank you. >> good afternoon, commissioners. my name is brendan done igan. i'm -- dunnigan. i'm here today with my children, dylan and devin. dylan plays on the vikings soccer league. you've heard from the vikings. he has a unique perspective because this season he's played on the artificial turf, of course and also on the natural turf. he can share with you his images and the things that he's

experienced and the fact that that he feels it's much safer to be on an artificial turf surface and why he supports it. so i'll let him speak. >> i agree with my dad because i don't want my leg broken and artificial turf is safer than turf because you just don't want your legs broken. and when i have played before, the ball goes straighter on artificial turf than nonartificial. and on nonartificial the geoffer holes have to make you weave out so you don't go as fast for the ball. it's different on the

artificial. so i agree, let's make artificial turf. [belinelli] commissioner fong: next speaker, please? hi, my name is john manning and i'm a richmond district native and avid soccer fan and coach and i'd just like to reiterate what a few others have said. too many families have moved out of san francisco and there's lots of reasons for that, schools and such, but lack of playing fields is part of that reason. when i grew up playing the beach chalet it was the a -- it was a dump back then and it's a dump today. you guys have the opportunity to change that and appreciate all the work that all of you have done in terms of getting crocker-am adon and sunset and the other fields renovated. there's hundreds of kids out there and out across the street at civic center playing soccer

right now that support this. so thank you for your effort and please do this. >> thank you. hi, my name is edward. i'm here with my son who is 3 years old and he's going to start playing soccer this summer. i'm not opposed to soccer but to artificial turf. it has a lot of harmful chemicals in it. we got rid of toys that have these chemicals, carpets that have these chemicals, we shouldn't have structures that have these chemicals in this, he period. as far as someone aid -- said, upgrading the facility to be a.d.a. compliant, if you talk to the manufacturers you can't have wheelchairs on the turf because it tears. you can't have walkers, strollers. people in wheelchairs should be allowed to play sports. i'm an architect and i advocate

for everyone to have equal access. 9 ada as it stands does not cover the actual playing surface but i believe people in wheelchairs should have equal access. as far as the task force in 2008 that was supposedly exhaustive, the artificial task force in 2008, they were not allowed to compare artificial turf to grass so i'm not really sure how you can evaluate it if you don't compare the two. as far as saving water, it doesn't saves much as they say it does. artificial turf has to be cleaned. you you have to use soap, disinfectant and water. i live in silver terrace. it gets really hot there and sometimes you have to use water to cool it down. if you go to silver terrace, look at the maintenance. people talk as if you're not getting any, not going to have to maintain these fields. there's a lot that goes into maintenance. overall it's a lot of

privatization. i consider it privatization. thurgood marshall hoom near my house was promised a lot -- certain number of hours at the field and didn't get it. it was given up to leagues that pay for it. >> thank you very much. two minutes. thank you. next speaker, please? >> hello, my name is dave and thanks for having me. >> did you have a special accommodation, sir? we had called up folks who had -- >> i was at the end of the line. so -- >> i'm going to ask you to take a seat and thank you very much and we're going to try to get these kids through. thank you. >> hi, thank you. my name is jana klein. only a not a soccer coach but

i'm a parent and we're trying hard to raise our kids in the city and we've seen many, many of our friends leave in the 20 years that we have lived here after they have children of school age, and we're stake -- sticking with it and these are two of mine and other children who go to their school. we care about the environment. we walk to school and take muni to school. i drive a prius. so it's not that we don't care about the environment. we do. but it's really hard to be a parent in the city and we're trying really hard. i think it was fumped children left the school district last year. a large, large number of the we have the lowest child to adult ratio of any major city in the country, so i would really implore the supervisors and anybody who has any kind of say to try to make a difference and try to make it a little easier on owe -- us parents trying to raise kids in the city.

>> hi. hi name is collette. i'm on a team and our team name is called the -- our team name is called the ravens. here are two of course my team members. and we really want our fields -- turf fields because by -- my experience of playing on nonturf fields we have actually injured ourselves a lot from holes and falling over from slipping because of the rain and we just, um, we just agree that we should aturf fields because it's safer and yeah. >> thank you very much. did you have something to you -- that you wanted to share? [laughter]

all right then. >> good evening. my name is christina vaccaro. i'm i parent of two kids. they both play soccer. my daughter's first year playing soccer this year. most of her games were rained oit because of, you know, the rain, we weren't able to play on the fields. we happen to live across the street from the polo fields, which we would love to go and practice at except for it's locked up most of the time many and this is exactly the reason why i think it needs to be converted into a natural turf field so we can access it on the weekends and any time we want to go out with our kids to play. there's plenty of nature in golden gate park to enjoy even with the astroturf. so he -- i encourage you to vote yes. thank you. thank you.

>> thank you for having us. i am the mother of three boys. i am a native san franciscan. all of my sons play soccer and lacrosse all year round. we would love to see beach chalet become a friend to look -- a family friendly place. i echo the other gentleman that beach chalet it's pretty much the same as it was 30 years ago. it needs to be upgraded. >> i think the turf fields is a great idea because there are lots of advantages. a lot of people can get a lot

more playing time. i encourage you to please upgrade the field. it will help everybody in the neighborhood. >> next group. >> i would like to introduce another group. they are students -- i am sorry, forgive me. >> thank you for letting me speak. i have been playing soccer for more than 10 years. i have been playing with this team for the majority of this time. having a turf field is a great idea because it enables people to play a lot longer than they currently can. the field is closed for a third of the year.

because of renovations and rain and stuff like that. having lights and having a turf field would make it if you want to play a lot longer and a lot later because we used to have practiced at beach chalet. also, i have had a lot of injuries from beach chalet. that is one of the reasons why turf is better. i have twisted my ankle, like, 10 times. the ball does not roll straight at all. i was playing goalie once and i missed the ball because the bulk rolled -- ball rolled one direction and bounced in a different direction and a

second. i completely support the turf fields, and the lights. thank you. >> my name is gabriel and i play on the same team. i have been playing since the first grade. i am now in eighth grade. in sixth grade, i did a science fair presentation. i studied how much lead there was in the grass field as opposed to the turf fields. i felt that there is 200% more lead in grass field than in turf fields. i sent my samples to a lab, and they were willing to help. they thought turf was a great idea, too. i find that turf is much better because the ball rolled straight. it does not bounce up in the air.

it is more like playing a real soccer. thank you. >> i also play on the same team. on grass, it is a bumpy and it is not easy to play soccer. it does not help us at all. on turf, bill ball rolled straight, we can play extra hours, -- the ball rolls straight, and we complete extra hours. turf is safer and easier to play soccer on. thank you. >> i have all the same things to say. if we get turf fields, we can triple our hours of playing soccer. we can play at night and played in the rain. it is closed for a third of the year to keep the maintenance up.

it is hardly ever kept up, so it is difficult to play on it. it would be a lot more easy to play if there were no pot holes and everything. turf is the way to go, thank you. >> while we are waiting for the next speaker, all of you standing in front of the door, can you find a seat? there really is all of view, not just the two gentlemen standing there. it would be very helpful. >> my name is angela and i am representing one of our teams. i am here to say that we would

really like to support the turf fields because we need more space is a more time for our kids to be saved and have fun. it is really that simple. >> i am here to support the turf field. regardless of the community, we just want to have fun and be active and plays soccer. >> to the woman who is bringing the teams in, how many teams are we talking about? ok. teams that are in support of turf? ok, next group of red shirts.

>> i am 12 years old. >> i am 11. >> i am 11. >> one reason i think we should change the beach chalet fields is because many of my games have gotten canceled. >> another reason is because the ground is really dangerous with a lot of holes. there has been a lot of injuries. >> the turf will only cover one% of golden gate park, and the rest is grass. >> thank you. >> my name is lillian and i am 9 years old. >> my name is sidney and i and 10. >> there is one reason why i think that beach chalet should

be turned into a turf, a lot of our practices have been rained out. i feel we do not do as well and we are playing the game. >> when you have games, it is annoying when they get canceled. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> before the next speaker, i need this area cleared out. you have created a fire hazard. you need to find a seat or come to the other side or wait outside. >> can we get a share of the up here? -- sharonerriff up here? >> next group.

>> i am 9 years old. >> i am 9 years old. >> one reason we should change the fields to turf is because it costs less money and the turf is made from recycled tires. >> i also think because a lot of people that want to play on the soccer fields, but there is not enough space for all the teams. some of them have to end up playing in parking lots and those things. thank you. >> i am 10. >> i am 10. >> we should change to a turf because it is dangerous because

of all the gopher holes. when it rained out, it is disappointing. >> i think soccer is really fun because, like, you can work as 18 and be with your friends. -- you can work as a team and be with your friends. >> but if there are a lot of holes, it is impossible to have fun. >> ok, we are going to call the sheriff's department back up because you guys are not paying attention. we cannot have the standing against this wall. if they have spoken, they need to go outside. >> next group, please. >> i coached a lot of these kids. i coached for the viking club. i am also a player myself.

i am in favor of having these fields artificially turfed. i have seen so many injuries, career-ending injuries from flying out at the beach chalet fields. if no other reason, safety issues. thank you very much for your time. >> thank you. >> thank you to all the commissioners. i am a native of san franciscan. all the team members represent many different zip codes around the city. we're talking about less than 1% of golden gate park.

we had an amazingly city and i think there is enough space for everybody. this is not a nature preserve, it is a soccer field. we're just asking for the field to be upgraded. it will save gallons of water every year. the lawn mowers will not be spewing stuffed into the air. for many reasons, i think it is a great plan. thank you for your time. >> thank you. >> thank you, commissioners. i live in russian hill and have been a resident for 15 years. my husband and i own a business in the city. we raised