to clear the last few options on the presidio parkway. i also wanted to let you know this afternoon you will be receiving a memo detailing a little bit in latest news. the news is quite promising. in addition to having the legal issue is essentially removed from any potential future for the project, the state panel that developed with the proposals on the presidio parkway had concluded its deliberations on friday and selected a top bidder. we have now not just technical proposals but financial proposals. what gives me pleasure is the abatement level identified by the transportation commission as an inevitable condition to move this forward.

that has been improved by the proposal. in other words, we received a winning proposal that is 20% below the limit set. i am delighted to be able to announce that. it is a first for california, led by san francisco on a project that i know has been of tremendous interest to the board. i wanted to make the announcement and thank you all for this support. this will mark a new way to do business. of course, this announcement is very preliminary in the sense that the negotiations now start with a new bidder. i am fairly confident that we will have a commercial close on this by the end of the year, by the end of december. >> thank you. item number eight? >> introduction of new items.

this is an inaccurate information item. >> i do not see any new information. >> this is an information item. is there anyone from the public that would like to speak? seeing none, public comment is closed. thank you, everyone for being here. meeting adjourned.

>> this work which is sitting on the intersection of two major neighborhoods -- chinatown and north beach -- really wasn't into it is -- inspirational source for you, was it? >> what i were to come up with -- when i work with an idea -- when i work to come up with an idiot, i look to a site inspired by a tradition known as land

art, where we look to the environment where we are going to create a piece and find elements in that environment to create something that grows from that, so it feels routed to the site and get may bring out new beautiful flourishes. >> the language is in essence 22 books that are suspended in air in the middle of this intersection. you actually drew upon about 90 different operas, right? >> -- 90 different authors, right? >> we look through the history of this area, which is a primary cultural icon. after we had a chance to meet with a lot of people in the neighborhood, we were able to get suggestions, and we came up with 90. we took stands from all of these books. >> we will see the words

embedded in concrete. >> in addition to some recent additions by some local policy. -- local poets. one of the interesting things is the fact that it is sort of car rental, right? >> it was is that -- carbon neutral, right? >> it was designed with some engineers that allows solar energy to be generated during the day and night, the same equivalent of energy is used by the peace. >> we have a solar array on city lights bookstore, which collects more energy than we actually use for the peace. >> what we walked across the street and take a look at this work. >> the inspiration for getting the books to be suspended and lit at night. how did that come about? >> after about two weeks of trying to put together a lot of the ideas of the signs, the poetry, the music, the history,

the art, movement and the architecture and the materials of the signs that already were on around here, they all kind of came together in this vision of a form of books eliminated. taking on the role of the flickering light. -- books illuminated. also, the metaphor of ideas taking flights and flying through the air. like ideas of consciousness drifting from one person to another through language. >> the origins of this work really are quite pedestrian. the idea was that the department of traffic wanted to eliminate a right turn from columbus on to broadway, right? i know that project started several years ago, so you have

to work collaborative we for that time. what was that collaboration like? >> we were in the studio every day making the books. we came up with a piece with many different elements. there are hundreds of words, and there are 23 books. then, there are about 48 cables. so how do you bring all that together into one cohesive whole? a lot of that was enabled through this collaboration and challenging us. sometimes, we were inspiring each other. sometimes, we were very critical of the other person's ideas, but what it did was it really honed the work. >> one of the interesting thing about the language that makes it unique i think in the collection of san francisco public arts is that this is the one public arts work that is the most closely related to performance art. i will never forget the

dedication performance. >> we wanted to have a surprise not only for you guys but also for ourselves. what we ended up doing was we so little vails onto each of the book's form sas so that they had a pattern that resembled the fortune cookie, and members of the margin and were climbing up these ladders with bamboo poles and pulling on these leases so that the bales were removed -- the veils were removed. >> it has been up for a couple of months now. what has been your experience? has it met your expectations? >> it has. people who are watching in the area will be focused on the ground and often not see what is going on up above them, and there will come across some of the texts on the plaza, and as they are observing the text, they will start to peace things together, their zero little

miracle poems that are commingling the kind of finger prints from the literary past into their own unique, poetic experience. and then, looking. i was hoping that there would be a kind of heightened level of consciousness invited in with this piece. so i think that by creating a work that is very different from many angles, it kind of encourages the investigation of the area. so through investigating the area, you are locating yourself in space. you are not only seeing the work, but you are seeing in the context of the work. >> san francisco really prides itself in its collection of public art. you have really contributed a very unique work that is really multi-layered and very rich. we really thank you for doing this giveft to see generations.

>> i have really enjoyed working on this as well. thank you very much. it has been a real honor. >> we're here right on the embarqadero where there's an iconic view of san francisco bay. and louis have lent us "crouching spider." in a couple of weeks at the end of april, this wonderful sculpture will be going away. and to of commemorate this art

is jill manson. so jill, we're getting ready to say good buy. >> i know. it breaks my heart. it's the highlight of my career with the city. what has been the impact of the crouching spider in san francisco? >> i think it's been an incredible coup for the city. a lot of her work came from her mother. her family repaired tapestry. she thought of mer mother as the spider, someone who protects her young who prepares the nest. and she was very, very de voted to her mother. i think it's gotten the public excited about public art. people pay attention to their

environment. they wonder what's going to pop up next. so it's been incredibly positive. >> the public's art program, it's reputation has been spread nationally and internationally. so what do you think has been the affect or the utility of having a temporary arts program for you? >> i think with the temporary art work, everyone is sort of willing to take a chance. it allows us to be a little more risky. look at risks that are a little more experimental, a little more edgy. and often it represent less of an investment to public funds because we're not acquiring a work. we're often paying for just the transportation and installation of the work. >> so what do you think it has contributed to san francisco, this 40-year-old program? >> well, we've contributed more than 1,000 art works to the city. you can find art work in practically every public facility. i jokingly say from a to z. but from the airport to the zoo

you will find the mark of the aren'ts commission. the% aplace to every -- the 2% applies to every city department. it allows us to make art work, a part of the daily fabric of life in the city. >> it's libraries. it's parks. it's chouses. >> that's right. it's 2% of the construction cost. it doesn't come out of any other initial program. it's not competing with the health department for money if we didn't spend the 2% for art, it would just be part of the architecture budgets. >> of course we're here. but this program touches every neighborhood in the city. so what are other examples? >> right before thanksgiving we made head lines on "chronicles. we have an exciting project at the intersection of columbus and north beach.

in conjunction with the reconstruction of the m-line and the beautification of ocean avenue, we had a budget to commission art work. we hired an artist to create three large sun spheres made from beautiful golden-colored ceramic tile. and they bring this beautiful, radiant sunlight to ocean avenue. it's sort of a bright moment in the fog. >> one of the things that helps to make san francisco a destination is its reputation as an arts center. and how has this department contributed to that? it contributed to the vibrancy of our city. it reflects our culture diversity. it tells the story of our history of the city. it enables us to create a cultural legacy for generations to come. the public art component is a vital part of the city's art scene. and in addition, it really

conveys an important message that providing public art, free accessible public art 24/7 is an essential city service.