children and families around. and we, too, are very concerned with pedestrians traffic and things like that, and i think this is acng to be a net help for us in that sense. that's my statement. thank you. president miguel: thank you. mr. woodson, jason henderson, jerry street. >> good morning, or good afternoon, i guess, commissioners. how are you all doing? i hope well. i'm a member of the youth division for sfjazz. i'm a member of the all-stars. i would like to thank the sfjazz for allowing me to speak

on behalf of them and talk about their contribution to the community through its programming and outreach. furthermore, i'd like to say thank you guys for hearing us. i'm sure you guys are busy, so i love the fact that people are taking out the time to listen to something so pressing in the community. san francisco jazz offers to the community music education at a time when so much has been stripped from the public school system. it is a continual outreach for the system. without this organization, i would be another musician with no avenue to be properly educated. like many art forms, jazz has a rich and important history in our lives. one can associate the development of jazz with the major life-shaping events that have occurred over time. it is therefor the life of jazz to be promoted in the young minds of upcoming musicians, such as myself. so that this art form can continue to flourish in future generations. the programming at sfjazz reflects the needs of the community spiritually,

economically and politically, politically meaning musically gifted children have not been given a chance at music education. this has been reserved for the elite. socially only certainly communities are allowed to participate in the music education process. music inspires the soul of the individual, the family and the community. the new sfjazz center is a necessity to keep the spirit and awareness of jazz alive for the people. a lot of us out there are still [inaudible] as a member of the all-stars, i fully appreciate the opportunity that is given to me from them. i see myself as someone who is willing to carry the torch of jazz to higher levels. i'm not sure if you're jazz enthusiasts, but there was a wonderful musician by the name of bobby hutchinson.

like him, sfjazz is pumping life into today's generation of young musicians, so we can still be around to keep this art form alive. i appreciate your time. thank you. president miguel: thank you. >> good afternoon, commissioners. my name is jason henderson and i represent the hayes valley neighborhood association. we enthusiastically endorse this project. we've met -- our transportation and planning committee has met at least 10 times with the project sponsor and our general membership has met four times. and over the past two years it's been a very cordial, collaborative working experience. and they've come a long way in their design and responded to many of the community's concerns. i would say that the sfjazz team is a model for how to do community outreach and to work towards a better project that benefits everyone.

you know that this is a transit-rich neighborhood, so this works really well. i like to call this transit-first jazz. so maybe that will resonate. i do want to point out that there's a couple of issues that i'd like to point out on a map here of the intersection -- what do i do here? oh, there it is. so as you know, throughout this part of the city many of the crosswalks were removed in order to facilitate the flow of cars. we're basically going to have 800 more pedestrians on this corner. and i just want to urge the commission and the planning department to work expeditiously with m.t.a. to re-introduce the crosswalk on the east side of the fell and franklin intersection. basically the traffic flow is coming from ok street, and most of that traffic is now turning on to octavia. that's what it was designed to

do. so this is really overcapacity for automobiles. this is not the same as the hayes street crosswalk, because it doesn't really interfere with the movement of transportation. there is no transit here. so this is pretty much very easy to do, and just requires some initiative. so in our letter we did point it out as it would be nice if it was a mitigation, but we understand that we're working with m.t.a. and it may take some time. so we just encourage the commission to direct staff to expedite that. i think that mr. haas' comments in regard to the streets are in dire need of a neighborhood-type treatment. the plan area doesn't include all of grove street around the bart station, and i know this is quite a few blocks away, but that is a very critical part of what makes this transit work,

work. so i hope there's some work there. lastly, i'll just points out that linden street here, which we call linden alley, one block over is the blue bottle. we're getting a livable street, whatever you want to call it, and i just urge that as this moves forwards and as the particulars are worked out right here, that that be in consideration. so thanks, and, again, we enthusiastically endorse this project. president miguel: thank you. >> good afternoon, commissioners. my name is jerry street. i live in the south beach neighborhood the san francisco. my wife and i are both have been longtime members of the jazz organization, and the music truly brings joy to our lives, and the outreach programs, the discover jazz series programs, are enriching and have been enriching our lives for sometime. the young man who spoke to you was the drummer one evening in another venue, in another part

of the city, and it was absolutely amazing to listen to that man play with the other profit musicians who were there in the room that night for the outreach program. the new home of the sfjazz program is going to permit many more people in the city to enjoy this same -- these same programs and enrich many more lives. because of what sfjazz has offered for so many years and the potential for so many more years of this wonderful music and contribution to our community, i urge you to approve, without condition, the sfjazz new home. thank you. president miguel: thank you. marcus shelby and john holloway. >> good afternoon, my name is

marcus shelby. i am a local musician. i'm also a teacher here. i teach at rooftop elementary school, alternative school in spin peaks, and i'm also a parent of two young children. i have more personal testimony. i have been associated with sfjazz for about 12 years now, and i can say that they've had an amazing impact on my life in all three areas, as an educator, as a parent, and as a musician. one of the things that has inspired me in music education and history and in social justice has been in their commitment to education as well, as a larger organization that supports these efforts that happen with musicians and other artists, not just in jazz, but with all the creative music that happens in this city. as a parent, there are programs that they have provided for young people that have been

important in exposing the music not only in a historical context, but also in current context, artists that are alive and breathing today that are creating, either from right here in san francisco or from other places in the world. and then in the third context as a musician and a composer, many of the ideas that i have created have been supported by the san francisco jazz festival, either in presentation or in education or in outreach to the music community in general. all these three things have been really important in bringing space or having the dedicated space to do this. i strongly support, because it would only further the effort as we move into further years. and their support for the local scene has been important, because a lot of the ideas that come out of these musicians that live right here are reflective to the rich nature of what happens here in san francisco, whether it's politically or socially or

artisticcally, and those are revealed in the music and the compositions and the dialogue and the workshops and the lecture series and the small get-togethers that san francisco jazz festival has supported, and i would hope that you all would support them in their effort to continue this, because it's very important for the city as a whole. thank you very much. president miguel: thank you. >> good afternoon, commissioners. my name is john calloway, i'm a native san franciscoian, jazz musician, public schoolteacher. i am a professor of music for ethic studies at san francisco state and i sit on the arts commission, a commission like you. thank you for your time. i am here in support of sfjazz and the new building. this building provides a unique opportunity for a large-scale,

full-time jazz organization and what it can do for the city. but more importantly, my passion outside of music, being a performer, is creating equity and access in arts education for children of san francisco, especially those of lower economic social status. i have met with members of the sfjazz and we have talked about creating ways of creating equity and assets for children who don't necessarily have the opportunity to afford lessons or to be around jazz. sfjazz has provided a service to the city -- to the public schools, jazz in the middle, and the potential from the educational aspect of such a building providing educational space for programs for students of san francisco, particularly those of lower socioeconomic status, is immense. i've spoke with them several times on this and it comes up every year and it's my biggest

passion. i do believe such a new building will increase capacity to provide services to those students in san francisco who should be playing more music and who should be playing jazz. but due to the limitations of the current economic situation, the school district is not able to provide it at this time. thank you. president miguel: thank you, john. is there additional public comment on this item? if not, public comment is closed. commissioner olague. commissioner olague: ok. well, i think i'm pretty satisfied with it. i'm ok with the building. i don't know, staff, are you going to continue to work with the architect on it? yeah, because there were some comments -- i mean, maybe it looks more like an office building than it could. maybe a little bit more of an art face would be nice, but i think it's moving in the right direction. so i think you're moving in the right direction. so that being said, i think at

first i had a little bit of concern because of all the resources that were going into the creation of the fill more jazz district, and i was wondering why a location wasn't -- i understand due to real estate and other issues, but i'm wondering why hayes valley and why not the fill moore? although ultimately this is probably a prime location because it is so close to other music venues, like opera and davies is down the street and that sort of thing. but i was just wondering, was there a reason why you didn't pursue the site in that area? >> so one of the most dramatic things you want to accomplish with a building is expanding our education. so having access for students, both young and old, to get there easily is really important to us. being a block and a half a muni

and a couple of blocks from bart was a driving force for us in this location. commissioner olague: ok. and i'm encouraged to hear that you do have a comminlt to equity -- commitment to yeakt and access to students -- yeakt and sex sess to students who fment. . . . . . . it's encourage -- encouraging that you will be providing access. and i'm wondering if i can add some language around, you know, finding maybe -- regarding -- just encouraging the project sponsor to continue to work with communities who represent youth and students and others who have issues around yeakt and access to music education to continue to work with those

communities tone sure that that continues to happen through this project. so that would be my motion. >> second. commissioner olague: finally, i'm sorry i missed the discover jazz series, because i grew up listening to jazz, actually, which is kinds of weird. i think my musical taste has devolved, if that's even a word, because i listen to rock mostly. but i grew up listening to jerry mulligan, coaltrain and all those other greats. so i'm glad there seems to be some kind of attention being given once again to that art form, so i'm grateful for that. and for marcus shelby, you're an amazing musician. i've heard of law at some benefits years ago, so i'm glad that there's also a emphasis on local talent. president miguel: commissioner moore. commissioner moore: i felt i

heard the commission statement of the organization quite clear as being socially inclusive and keaktable, so i didn't feel it necessary to add it to the motion. i think it's a delightful building. for me it's 100% in the right spot, partially because, following up on what mr. haas said, there is such a hole coming indeed from market octavia over to the civic center and coming to city hall. so that spot is a stroke of genius, and i personally like the architectural art. it does not reminds me of an office building, but it looks like a school. and i think it has a friendliness to it which very much speaks to the kind of more modern building and the more consistent use of modern vernacular at market and octavia. i appreciate the comments on traffic and circulation. i do think it needs some work. i frequently scoot over to linden actually on a thursday

to get a good coffee, talking about blue bottle, and i always find the first two or three blocks very difficult to maneuver because it's during the day very vacant, empty, and not a very lifestyle zone. i think adding this building in this location is terrific. and i hope that we all together find the means to make it a more pedestrian-friendly and strolling district with much in the spirit of market octavia. so i'm in full support of it and couldn't be happier, and i hope it's going to happen. is there an answer to that? when is it going to happen? i'm curious, because i would like to see it happen soon. >> certainly. the current plans have us breaking ground next summer and hoping to open in 2012, in the fall. commissioner moore: ok, that would be great. thank you. president miguel: commissioner

ant teeny. commissioner antonini: thank you. i think it's a great project. i actually like the design. i do agree that, as was mentioned, to continue to work with staff, but particularly the first floor where there is an open glass enclosed space, i fosht the height of the first floor -- forget the height of the first floor. but i was recently at a new restaurant that opened last week. it had a similar thing. what it does is activates both inside and outside. so when you're inside you see the foot traffic outside, and, of course, the outside looks in. and i thought that was a very effective element, and i think it will work very well on this. the only thing i'd say is continue to work with staff. perhaps a stronger cornice element, which i didn't see. otherwise i think it's a nice design, particularly the interior spaces. and, yes, i agree with the

comment in regards to widening the sidewalks wherever possible or to make the sidewalks -- the last couple of weeks i've been to the opera and the symphony down in that area, and particularly places like grove and franklin and all those blocks when the crowd's coming out and busy traffic on franklin street. a lot of room for error there. so if we can have a little more space, that would certainly be helpful wherever possible. and i did notice they have an and i did notice they have an element about radiant floor heating. i assume that has been tested and it works ok as far as a heating feature in this building. i know many years ago there was a problem with some radiant floor heating in the beginning, but it was an outside structure that didn't work. but i think this has been many years and certainly been worked out as far as that's concerned. also, the crosswalk at fell and franklin, and i think jason

henderson mentioned, that's something to look at, work with parking and traffic and see if it makes sense that people would be able to be a crosswalk there and not a -- you know, i'd have to see an analysis on that to see if it makes sense. and, yeah, the programming that you provided for us looks really, really good. spotted the sinatra revisited, that the unfortunately i didn't see on sunday, may 30, but i'm sure it will be repeated in the future, because that sounded good, as well as all the programs did. thank you. president miguel: commissioner lee. commissioner lee: yes, first, i want to thank jim haas. i know he's been working on the civic center for 30 years, whether it's the opera, ballet or even civic center plaza. he stuck with it and he got involved with actually renovating city hall here after the earthquake. regarding san francisco jazz, i had a chance to get back to

you, but a good friend of mine is president and started the monterey blues festival, and they actually named a scholarship after him. you might want to contact him at k.g.o. sabse. he's sort of semi-retired, but he's been running the monterey blues festival for over 25 years. i had the opportunity to go down there about two years ago. actually supervisor sophie maxwell joined us. and he has jazz musicians from the united states that goes down there. at first he mentioned seven years, they were almost broke and people put their house up. actually they're making money now. they've named a scholarship after him. and maybe some of those scholarship monies could be applicable to some of the students here in san francisco, since ray tyler farrell actually lives in san francisco. the other person that -- i don't know if you've ever had a joint relationship with

business and blues right downtown. the chinese ownership, which always surprised me in how the chinese got involved in jazz, which is not typical in the united states. but apparently he spent time in new orleans and he found an opportunity that -- a niche market here for the tourists to come in. he might be helpful to you in having some of the younger people play there at night in these open -- on the weekends for sure. sometimes there's private parties during the weekdays. and then all of you know about yoshi's there. mrs. yoshi -- i was at a party with her saturday on east bayh. i said how did you get involved in jazz about 50 years ago? she has a compelling story. she's a japanese-american. her husband sort of liked it and sort of grew night, and she has -- i don't know how she's doing over in alameda or oakland and here now, but she has some really good ideas about maybe she could teach or be a guest speaker at san francisco jazz, just telling

people, well, how do you get started, how do you put the venue together, how do you mix it up? she also has c.d.'s that she sells also. maybe this is something that, as a group, you can work with these other organizations to make sure that you're discussful in the future. i know -- successful in the future. i know over 10 years you've gotten money from grants for the arts and you're well respected from ker reschulman downstairs. and i think you're doing the right thing. you have the influence, not just the opera and the ballet, but all of the other venues along market street. so thank you for coming to us and sending us -- i guess you sent us something from san francisco jazz, but i really like your magazine here. thank you again. president miguel: commissioner sugaya. commissioner sugaya: thank you. first of all, i like the project and i'm going to vote for it. so you don't have to worry about that part, despite what i'm about to say.

it's extremely disappointing to me that this project isn't five blocks further to the west. and that's to follow up on what commissioner olague started with. enough said. staff, to follow up on hayes valley and mr. haas' comment on traffic, pedestrian traffic especially, i didn't find in the mitigation monitoring report and the evaluations that went into it -- or that led up to it -- anything dealing with pedestrian traffic and potential traffic hazards. and i'm wondering why, with a capacity of 800, why there isn't something in here with respect to sidewalks. i know the architect very generously has set back the first floor a bit so that there is actually more pedestrian and sidewalk room, but on the other hand, there isn't, i don't think, any mitigation

addressing ball mounts or those types of things. can we add that, or how can we address that issue? >> thank you, commissioner. you are correct that there is no specific allow yanses for see quafment they did not find any impact in regards to transportation. so it wouldn't be strictly a mitigation, per se. but if you so desire, you can add as a condition of approval a request that staff and project sponsor work with m.t.a. to look at the additional crosswalk mentioned and other means of sort of addressing pedestrian capacity on the sidewalks. commissioner sugaya: i'd like to amend the motion, if that's all right with -- >> that's good with me. president miguel: what was the amendment? commissioner sugaya: to have the planning staff work with m.t.a. to investigate the enhancing the pedestrian experience through such things as, but not necessarily -- >> it's not like a definitive

thing. commissioner sugaya: i think there's a prohibition against crossing fell, i believe, at that point. so that would be part of the investigation also. president miguel: my understanding is this is an investigation, but not necessarily property ject is contingent on any specific action. >> no, that's the question. president miguel: commissioner moore. commissioner moore: mr. sugaya, con congratulations for doing a two-sided set of architectural drawings, we mostly see one-sided. i want to make a comment that this is 11 by 17 double-sided. i would like to use it as a standard for others coming in front of the planning commission. president miguel: i'd like to congratulate san francisco jazz in the way nerve's done their outreach and the way they've put everything together. i appreciated mr. calloway's testimony because i know of his

work with youth as to latin jazz and that area, and i'm sure that there will be some synergy there without question. i recently met with people from the new orleans jazz preservation society, who will be attempting to place the first outlet, you might say, or the first permanent address, all to they tour outside of new orleans here in san francisco. and i have given information to san francisco jazz about them and vice versa, because there should be synergy between those two also, even though they will be presumably they're taking a look at the old -- actually new college site in the mission. and to an extent, with that in

mind, and being someone who has frequented joshi's in san francisco, i see no problem with different areas of san francisco having music venues even of the same type whatsoever. i think it can work and i think it should work. jazz in san francisco has come a long, long way alat least the 1960's -- until at least the 1960's, and i don't know the exact date when it stopped. there were two musician unions in san francisco raich yeal divided, -- racially divided, and that was a mess. when i first got involved, jazz musicians of national reputation would come into san francisco, and there were roughly three hotels in the fillmore district where they had to stay because they were

not appreciated at the regular hotels in san francisco. and san francisco was one of the major venues in the united states where nixed organizations of jazz could play, when you go back directly after world war ii. europe was much more open than we were in those days. so i'm very, very pleased to see you come in. i think the design to open the street is great. i know you'll work with the department on any refinements on the traffic flow and that sort of stuff, but i really congratulate you on your outreach. president miguel: commissioners, there -- >> commissioners, there is a motion and a second. the motion includes adding a finding regarding social keakt as red -- eakt as red by commissioner olague, as well as approval to work withm