i am president of the united cemetery in mission, and i support svetlana kaff. first of all, she is a member of my organization, and second, i read in the newspaper many times, the problem with clubs and for other entertainment organization -- supervisor campos: can i ask a question? are you speaking about the san francisco relocation appeals board? >> no. supervisor campos: ok, we are on item six. thank you. is there any other member of the public who would like to speak on this item? seeing none, public comment is closed. a quick question -- i know that harry kemp and all -- harry kim and allen okamoto are not here

right now. did we hear from them prior to the meeting? >> mr. kim indicated that he would be here, but i did not hear from the other commissioner. supervisor campos: is there a deadline by which the board has to act upon these items? >> no, there is not. supervisor campos: my suggestion would be in make a motion that we amend the current motion to strike out harry kim and allen okamoto not because there is anything against them, but to give them an opportunity to come back to the committee and address the committee. i think it is important for them to come before this body. if we could make that motion, with that, make a motion which would mean that we would be confirming -- recommend the confirmation of the appointment of steven lee and natividad

ramirez. thank you both for your service, and congratulations. please call item 7. >> item 7, hearing to consider appointing one member, a term ending july 20, 2014, to the entertainment commission. there are 16 applicants. supervisor campos: we have one opening and 16 applicants. for the record, unless i'm corrected, three applicants have withdrawn their application. that is anderson pugash, and also miles christian daniels, and shahriar amighassemkhany. svetlana kaff we heard from already. we could next call brit hahn.

again, thank you all for your patience. >> good afternoon. i would like to say it is an honor to be considered for this position with all these qualified applicants. many of them are my peers in the entertainment industry, and i'm sure you will get a good commission member from this pool. i am a native san franciscan, born and raised. a product of the public school system here. i opened my first night clubs in south of market district in 1985. it was a very sleepy, back water place. things have changed tremendously over the years, and i have been lucky enough to be very successful, and i am now running

for nightclub share -- chair in san francisco. city nights was my first one, capacity of 715 patients. sound factory, capacity of 1151 patients, and club nv, capacity of 400 patients. i have extensive experience in running nightclubs over the years, and i think it is a very exciting time for entertainment in san francisco, and it is also a very critical time that we continue the progress that has been made. originally, when i applied for my first term it is with the police department, so i have had experience in seeing the process the ball from an application process -- i have experience in seeing the process evolve. i think there has been quite a bit of progress made in terms of the overview

i was on the panel for both the maersk summit on might come to safety, the most recent ones. i am working with the development of best practices for nightclubs in san francisco. i am also a board member for the southern district, and i have been working with them specifically on nightclub issues. i think i bring a unique understanding and comprehensive experience overall with nightclubs. i have operated the club is many years in challenging environments. i have seen the industry change from one that has had a ones that cater to one demographic, bring in a tremendous amount of people into the districts that have been historic fleet less populated by residents and are now very mixed use.

we have been able to reach out to our residents in the area and we have had very good working relationships with those residents who are most affected by the nightclubs, and i would be very interested in the opportunity to continue to work to develop this. plus, i have been interested in being on this commission quite a while, but until recently have not had time to do it. i am done with my work with school with my older kids and i am ready to commit to this important post. thank you. supervisor campos: thank you, mr. hahn. supervisor mar? supervisor mar: could you talk a little about the facilitation that you did at san quentin in vacaville. how were you asked, and what is your special ability in

facilitation? >> i have for many years brought recovery groups into prison facilities in california. san quentin, the county jail in san francisco, as well as ccm in vacaville. supervisor campos: thank you. shell thomas? good afternoon. >> rules committee, chaired campos, my name is shell thomas. my qualifications include 25- year veteran of the industry with a wide range of experience. i have managed, operated bars, lounges, cafes, jazz clubs, and it's also clubs, and nightclubs. the past seven years i have

operated a project management complex development and also many locations. i was also the bar consultant for the small development administration and taught quarterly bar course is the last three years and also produced events for san francisco's small business week. i also worked as a business entertainment quarter master on polk street and i am extensively involved with the police department and individual venues, working with those agencies. of the past several years, my focus is has shifted to a more collective approach. i currently served on the north beach merchants association board. we work with neighborhood issues and entertainment. my current products include a bar security collective, working on lower polk street, including

the security costs and having an attending officer present on polk street, looking at and shame and issues such as entertainment permit waivers, looking at problem promoters, and looking into legislation supported by supervisor alioto- pier. with my diverse background, i think i mean equally qualified -- i think i am uniquely qualified. my 20 years of industry experience will speak for itself. i have seven goals to accomplish in the future. the first is fostering a closer relationship with the board of supervisors, the san francisco police department, and abc, to work and communicate with each other. they have spent far too much time on conflict of interest issues and this has proved to be a distraction.

it out also like to work with the task force study -- i would also like to work with the task force study to recognize and quantify exactly the money spent in revenue in the nightclubs and nighttime entertainment. we also need to recognize the cultural and quality of life benefits. three, i would like to support the development position at city hall. this position with support and promote the industry and also develop a nighttime entertainment strategy city- wide. i would also like to look at the current oewd interagency task force and at other entertainment uses to that task force. we would give the entertainment businesses a lot more support opening avenues. 5, look at the environmental sustainability of of entertainment venues. and also it increase enforcement

with the police. at sixth, look to cities with successful policies for lessons learned to see what they have done in certain areas of conflict. eighth and most important is all but timid thing is working together and areas of concern. i think last, we as a city and as an industry are able to look at the six different areas and make progress, with an all stand back and say that is entertainment. thank you. supervisor avalos: thank you very much. if we could now hear from john eric sanchez? is mr. sanchez here? ok. peter glikhstern? thanks for waiting. welcome to the rules committee. >> thank you so much. good morning, afternoon at this

point. it is nice to see it again. my name is peter, and i'm here to ask you to appoint me to the entertainment commission. i hope you have had an opportunity to review my resume and application. i have made san francisco my home the past 30 years. i have opened six different bars and clubs over the past 15 years and have also been active in organizing the entertainment community for over a decade now. i was one of the founding members of the san francisco night coalition, which brought about the formation of the entertainment commission. i am also active in the small business committee and currently serving my third term as president of the merchants association. i have a great deal of experience and my background that will help me be an

effective commissioner. i have worked and continue to work with at least half the city's different police different precincts. one of the things that i would like to do as a commissioner it is politics and permitting. i think we heard a lot of lofty goals, and a lot of these things that the previous candidate mentioned would be long-term projects. in the immediate term, we need to i feel very strongly to take politics out of permitting. when i open my first bar back in 1996, the permit officer in the mission was an old-time guy who had been there decades. he knew the neighborhood.

he knew all the bars, he knew the owners. he worked with all of them, all of us on a daily basis. he worked tirelessly to encourage new owners like myself back in 1986. he also worked to set problem venues on the right path. he knew the mission like the back of his hand. he loved our neighborhood. the guy who took over was re halston, who had also been at the police station well over a decade and he served valiantly as our permit officer until his retirement. these guys come each one of them made each and every permitting decision having to do with any permit in the neighborhood. the captain was essentially, to put it and not such politically correct terms, a rubber-stamp.

these guys were on the front line and these guys did the leg work and interact with all of us, the folks who ran the venues. each of the 15 precincts, 11 precincts 15 years ago, each and everyone has their own person. the last of these old-time permit guys, officer gallagher, just retired. today, most if not all permitting stations and decisions are made by the precinct captain. this is unfortunate. the captain is a very political role and there are pressures that go along with being commanding officer of a station that often make risk avoidance rather than what is best for the neighborhood the driving force behind decision making. also, the captain is responsible for every last thing that happens at the station. there are just not enough time, not enough hours in the day for

the captain to be familiar with all of the players and all of the issues. finally, the captains get moved around regularly. i would undertake the board to once again encourage career permit officers and empower these officers to make decisions. thank you. supervisor avalos: thank you very much. if we could now call upon nanette duffy. i know maybe she had to leave. if we could all -- if we cannot call susan king. is miss king here? i don't see her. david lupo? is he here? solomon jones? don't see mr. jones, either. ok, timothy benetti?

>> can you hear me? supervisor campos: yes. >> supervises, thank you. i guess my qualifications begin with i am a homeowner in the mission district. i know full well in the bars close and i know what kind of disruption that can make. i am very sensitive to the need for quiet around property. i was owner of 19 years. i was the managing general partner. i learned early on if you open up a nightclub or even a sandwich shop and a mixed use

area, you are entering into a partnership with your neighbors that must be constantly nurtured. in light of that, i reached out to my neighbors initially, wrote a letter, door to door, provided everybody with my home phone number to contact me if they had a question about my nightclub. i developed a good will that lasted 20 years. i spent four years as a deputy city attorney at the office of city attorney, three of which i spent and code enforcement, developing a working relationship with the code enforcement officer at ingleside station and my capt.. -- and my captain. it is a very complaint-driven office, some by appreciation of making sure that neighborhood complaints were dressed was enhanced as well. i also developed a good working relationship or familiarity with

the san francisco charter and the administrative code, which believe would come in handy with my job if was appointed to the entertainment commission. i also left a lot of colleagues behind, many of which now populate the dome and who are still in code enforcement at the city. i know during this way revocation hearing, the city attorney was involved. they were former colleagues of mine. at the revocation matter came up again, i would feel very comfortable interfacing with the city's office if that was required. the last year, i have spent hundreds of volunteer hours helping develop an organization that is going to be permanent, we hope, an industry representing organization called the california music and culture association. along with my colleagues, we are passionate advocates for the need for the industry, but we have agreed to do so in a collaborative manner with the

police department and with city agencies. we think we have been highly successful, and we hope to continue that work for a long time. what i'd like to bring to the commission, i like to continue to professionalize the relationship between nightclubs and the police departments. it i was in a meeting at the city attorney's office a couple weeks ago with about 15 club owners. i looked around the room and it occurred to me this was not allow this group, as is often depicted in the press. -- this was not a lot less group. these were professionals. i think we're getting to a point now where the relationship between night life and the commission and enforcement is getting to a point where we might be able to work together to satisfy safety concerns that might come up from time to time.

my most passionate issue would be one of access. right now, i would like to encourage club owners, to the extent possible, to invest the money in improving the sightlines at nightclubs. i don't go to the fillmore. i don't go to the great america music hall, simply because i cannot see. the solution was simple, create a simple ramping mechanism so i can hang out by the sound board, see over the crowd. i got hurt when i was 23 years old. prior to getting hurt, i had the experience of dancing in clubs all night and living that. if you have never done that, if you don't know what that feels like. i am sure out there in wheel chairs to love that experience and might like to go to clubs, but i cannot get in it or they don't know thinking get in. i hope to see a day, much like that feeders do, where it is

accessible. if there was a nightclub listing, whenever a nightclub advertised, that have been a little insignia at next to their name, accessible or not, by creating a simple ramp area, feel the music, just enjoy the experience. that is all i have. thank you very much. supervisor avalos: thank you. and thank you for your presentation. no questions? if we could now call upon linda weissman? >> good afternoon, supervisors. but i have been an event planner in san francisco for over 25 years. producing public/private, charitable, political fund- raisers, as well as a concerned

resident about entertainment in san francisco. i have managed large venues, probably the first gay disco down and the embarcadero in the 1980's, studio west, which you are probably too young. i have also managed venues. the pavilion was one of mine until it burned down. i understand responsibility to ensure that guests and patrons have an enjoyable experience, while always mindful of creating a safe event environment for all. my business allows an unusual insight and knowledge of the entertainment industry, without any conflicts of interests or ties to current clubs, the news, or promoters. i would be able to make their decisions about business that become before the commission

without any obligations to anybody. i come with clean hands. it might life and community events are vital to the san francisco -- night life and community events are vital to san francisco. i served two terms on the civil grand jury and was instrumental in writing reports about the commission. i have a very strong working knowledge of the commission's weaknesses and strengths, of which there are a lot. i support the recently introduced legislation regulating promoters so we are aware of who is doing business in san francisco and if there are problems who is to be held accountable. i have one person and support of me today -- in support of me today. the rest of my backing are working. the weber, i think each of your

offices have received a flood of emails from various people in the industry. and supervisor campos, you asked somebody earlier about the attendance of meetings. i believe i have attended more attendance -- more commission meetings than a lot of the commissioners over the last four years. it think euphoric your consideration, -- thank you for your consideration, and i think would be a great strength for the commission. thank you. supervisor avalos: thank you very much. next, michael o'connor. thank you for waiting, mr. o'connor. >> good afternoon, supervisors. my name is michael o'connor. i'm here to request a possible appointment to the entertainment commission. i will acknowledge i have served last six years on the small

business commission, where i have spearheaded the small business assistance center downstairs, which i'm very proud of. i think small businesses are the lifeline to all of our communities. i have also worked on the mayor's health care task force. i have worked on the back street business task force. one of the things i really appreciate about entertainment, night life, art, business business is the finalization these businesses bring to save his code to allow the city -- to san francisco, to allow the city to have businesses that are centralized. my interest in the entertainment commission was sparked last year when our mayor was throwing around the possibility of adding the commission.

i did not agree with that idea because i think the commission plays a valuable role, and i felt i had a voice that could serve a strong purpose on that commission. i own a couple of clubs right now. i owned my first club when i was 21, off market street. i started throwing big parties, primarily hip-hop, when i was 18, that or of the underground friday. but that was a long time ago. i think i bring a perspective that crosses live music, dance music, and hip-hop, which i think is part of a unique perspective on this commission because we need to deal with all of those industries and they are all very different types of sectors of entertainment, with their own subsidies and nuances.

i think the commission has done a lot of great work and i think it could be tightened up a little bit, but i definitely would not like to see it disappear. i could talk more about the police relationships and the roles of neighborhoods, police, and nightclubs, but i will leave it at that. i definitely have practiced and i firmly believe that all clubs play a role in our part of the neighborhood. a have to be responsible, good citizens, participate with neighborhood organizations, and follow through on their word. i believe i have done that in my past, so i will leave it at that. i would also like to say i think there are a lot of great candidates. supervisor mar: i think there was a shooting at kokomo recently, and i think it was more rented out four and a fat

-- for an event. what would you bring to the entertainment commission to deal with holding clubs accountable for violence or promoters as well, to counter the violence? >> personally, i think my perspective has been controversial because as an outside promoter as a youth, i feel that clubs do not have a right to just hand over their permitting, their liquor license to an outside promoter who is noto be held accountable. i think outside promoters have to be held accountable. having said that, having done a lot of youth activist work in my 20's, i firmly believe this city has a right to provide a places of entertainment, locations of entertainment