exactly. this is a lesson in politics. under-promise, over-deliver. we thought we would engage some of the businesses in the area because they always say, what will you do about the park? folks across the street for saying the same thing. get some money together because i don't have the courage to do it in the board of supervisors. he was kind enough to come out and get some businesses together. we connected with our friends and others of local 261. they said they would contribute. the mayor apprentice program, they say they will step up and step in. we had some fun with this.

a lot of folks came together. they all said they would help, which was great. somehow, a good thing is never easy to convince at city hall. they have to create some controversy. that is san francisco. that elevate of the project and that is why you are here. otherwise, you would never know we are doing this. here's the controversy over the little things. i am grateful to everyone is here. thank you for your support. i don't know who will sign for getting. the bocce federation. this is a world-class court. this is not one of those 1965 -- this is the highest-quality court out there. we will have world class tournament here, right? all right. that right.

we will bring bocce back in the forefront of sports in san francisco, right? we're excited. where is thebocc bocce champion? this is the face of bocce. sponsored by adidas. bengie is back out here beating the italians. bengie is now the new face of this. supervisor avalos never thought he would be doing something like this, but thank you for your support in the budget committee. you know, that is all i've got on this great day in san francisco. thank you to rachel gordon for writing all of the articles in

"the chronicle." i don't think she ever thought she would write as many darn articles. phil frank would have done 10 cartoons on this bocce court. let's get the recreation and park director -- director and thank his commission for all of the work. thank you, sir. there are a lot of ways to describe our mayor and persistence is one of them. i worked for the mayor in a couple of rolls and this has been on your list for how long? we are thrilled to be able to pull this off. like many things we're trying to do, we cannot do it alone. i want to thank all of our partners, local 261, who we have an incredible relationship with, we just want to the first apprenticeship program, and we are very excited. bocce federation, peter, where are you?

peter, so you know, was the driving force but the region behind the renovation in golden gate park. -- was the driving force behind the renovation in golden gate park. supervisor chu, supervisor avalos, thanks to all of you for being so enthusiastic. so, thanks to everyone. we are absolutely thrilled. we will be -- we will be back out here when, chris? in three months, we will be out here to play some bocce. >> let's think bill ginsberg for letting us get away with this. it was not easy. communities in san francisco are passionate. they are passionate about however you touch these great spaces. without his team, we never would have gotten out of the starting

gate. thank you. as far as a construction schedule, this could be done in eight days. >> i want to send some thank you's to the companies that have been mentioned before, but did all of this work. had we not had your support, this project would have never happened. if we could of got in the money, it would have been $200,000. a lot of people put a lot of time into this. the original study was done that said bocce was a good idea and give us the path to go down. value engineering made the plans affordable and doable. without your help, we never would have gone anywhere. we have put hundreds of hours into designing the very first championship-size, wheelchair-

accessible courts-- championshir accessible courts anywhere in the world. [applause] i want to thank our partners in boston properties who manages this space in a public-private partnership, and they are going to keep this square in tiptop shape. i want to next thank the folks there really make it possible. mark and the fabulous employees from salesforce came in with a $50,000 cash grant. we would have never have gotten this done without that. >> thank you so much. we are delighted to be part of this project. it is amazing to see the

community rally around something that is so exciting. and we get to benefit from it here, with a nice view from our headquarters. salesforce.com started here 11 years ago in a small apartment in telegraph hill, and now we are all over the world. we want to have a new model for business and philanthropy. we always wanted to be part of the communities we are part of, and that is so important to us. when we think about our next decade in san francisco, as we are building our headquarters in mission bay, we are excited to be part of san francisco and all other projects like this. thank you so much for everybody that made this happen, everybody putting in the hard work. [applause] >> thank you. speaking of hard work, this impressive project is actually

a class room. i'm going to invite ramon and courtney and theresa up from the labor training foundation. here are five students who started at -- you got here at 6:30. that is early. they are going to build these courts and learn how to get out and work on these types of complicated projects. i could not have imagined how complicated but to ball -- bocce ball courts could be. ultimately, this is giving real jobs to real san franciscans. so with that, i want to bring up ramon, court may, theresa,

our partner at dpw -- courtney, theresa, our partner at dpw. thank you for doing this. >> thank you to all of you all for being here, helping to make the project going forward. thank you from all the companies who are here. webcor, thank you for helping us. amd, all the unions that are here. janitors, carpenters, laborers and operators are here, too. thank you to all of you. also to the mayor, he is the one that started the jobs program,

here in san francisco. i want to let you know how the program works. the program is done september 30. now we have these four guys coming out of there and we have to give them a chance to go forward. they want to do something good. that is why we have these three apprentices here. more than 50% of these guys are san francisco residents. i do not know about the rest of the projects, but this one we have more than 50% from san francisco. thank you for helping us to make this project go forward. >> thank you. [applause]

ok, benji, let's talk about community support. i did not know there was such a robust community of bocce players in our city. we talked to our partners, neighborhood groups, i see the folks from the barbara coast, and jerry crowley, one of the great leaders of san francisco, and they showed us the way to put the community support you need to put a project like this together in a public space. the most fun community, though, has been the bocce community. we have all heard of tenants come, -- tim lincecum, but benji has an even better record in his

career. we have a former american champion here, too. they are really elevating this came to a world-class sport. we are going to have some great games here. thank you guys for having so much fun, helping us design this court, making it the right way so that we can have your cake and ship -- championship. >> thank you to everyone who has made this possible is really great. there is a big tradition here in san francisco. it started with the immigrants that came here 50 years ago. the use to be a lot more bocce ball courts back then but they started to disappear because space is a premium. this is great, to be able to

replace some of those courts that have disappeared over the years. just another example of san francisco's commitment to supporting the cultural diversities of the people that make up this great city. i am the president at the aquatics bocce ball club, the oldest in the nation, and we are always having to turn people away because the courts are so busy. this is just another outlet for people. this is open to the public but we look forward to having international-style tournament here, -- tournaments here. there are plenty of courts in the area, but there is definitely a shortage of world class, regulation courts. so here we go. thank you. >> thank you. before we put the shovels in the dirt, i want to thank tom harrison from the wreck and park

commission, who has been so supportive -- rec and parks commission, who has been so supportive. they did so much work. thank you all for doing this. our hats off to you. finally, i want to thank my partners, jacqueline, duane jones, the community at home, my wife, for putting up with three years of obsessive bocce talk at home. with that, i want to invite people up, mayor, people from webcor, there are troubles for everybody. -- shovels for everybody.

[applause]

>> thank you all for coming out. thank you, jeremy, and thank you to the staff for being kind of us to let us walk around and see the work you are doing here as it relates to promoting healthy eating and promoting at a very early age and awareness of the importance in terms of making good decisions about what we eat and how we feel, and making sure we make a lifelong connection to a healthy but the. the issue of obesity is important. everyone understands the extraordinary cost, human cost in terms of lives lost because of the consequences of obesity, but also the economic costs to

the taxpayers, those that have no direct connection, that are paying the price of our inability to reconcile the issue of obesity. that is why 2006, we initiated a program called shape up sf. it has been recognized all over the country as a model program for any city, large or small. the robert woods johnson foundation recognized the work that was done through our team as the country's best practice. i am proud of it because it is a comprehensive strategy that incorporates physical activity and walking challenges. it incorporates strategy is to provide options and alternatives. the options you saw in the cafeteria were an example of that. we have put salad bars in 50 of our elementary and middle schools.

we are open to provide more wars to -- more resources in the upcoming year to provide more resources to public schools. i don't know many schools that are funding salad bars. some people wanted that. they said these kids would never get excited. you saw for yourself that kids are actually eating broccoli. george bush sr., eat your heart out. kids are truly enthusiastic about eating broccoli. they are an enthusiastic about eating something a little different than your typical burrito or pizza. we have initiated a real effort, a deliberate effort, to become sugar savvy, to think a little differently about what we drink. we have a program called

"drinkwater." we have a soda-free summer program. we have done a lot of things that have marked the trend across the country, dealing with the issues of trans fats, raising the awareness are around the issues of salt and sodium. all these things are important. i am proud of it. it is comprehensive. it has been inclusive. we have public-private partners. the school district has been a big part of it. we have closed streets in order to encourage physical activity. we are taking over corners of our city and turning them into small parks. the sunday streets program promotes hula hooping, yes, as well as roller skating, ideas

encouraging physical activity. none of that was important to you as much as it is important to me because it sets up the reason you are here. that is because there are times when a city can go too far. there is a time when we get involved in making determinations in the private sector about what choices people should have. it is one thing to educate. it is one thing to promote. it is one thing to create options. everything i said was about educating, promoting, and creating options, and dealing with the issues of race, providing a geographic framework for education. we have addressed the issue of environmental justice and poverty as it relates to these issues. it is different when we decide as politicians what we believe

the private sector should do, as it relates to the item that the board of supervisors passed, that ti today officially vetoed. i think it goes too far. i think the idea of banning toys in restaurants gets into the private sector decision making and tries to insert our own values and try to replace them with the values that should be inserted and promoted by parents and caretakers that can make better decisions. point being, politicians are not going to make the best decisions for these children. it is going to be parents. the government should be in the business of educating, promoting, and creating a framework of alternatives, not dictating and prescribing exactly how you can provide a meal and what you cannot provide

if you provide that meal. i was walking down the groceries or the other day. there is tony the tiger. i thought, is this next? is captain crunch next because there's a toy inside? is jack in the box going to be banned? what is he of not a giant toy? it is a toy promoting fast food. why have we not considered the impact of that promotion in that chain? we have not done those things because most people say, that goes a little too far. that is what we just did that the san francisco board of supervisors. we said, you have to have a certain milligram percentage of this, and then you can have a toy. i think it goes too far. i applaud eric mar for stepping up to the plate on this issue. i know a lot of good people disagree with me. health professionals think this is a great idea. i think there's a better

approach. we officially have our 1-year report, our annual report, on shape up, that provides an alternative. we are not talking about the abstract. we are talking about celebrating what we have done and continuing to promote it. doing these types of toy bands is inappropriate, i don't think particularly effective, and i think it goes too far in inserting government to be the decision maker in someone's life, as opposed to parents. i have no problem vetoing this. well i have a problem maintaining my veto? the board might override my veto. we will know that very soon. i will try to make a case to one or two members of the board who were uneasy about this. trust me. there were few. all of the world, people have talked about this ban. it has not of unfavorable.

things like shape of san francisco helps our reputation. it brings people together and provides a substantive solutions. bans hinder, don't help, our effort to solve this critical issue. >> [inaudible] it is not about taking away toys. >> that good. let's encourage them to make the meals healthier. we have been doing that. we have built some good partnerships. let's provide alternatives. this is government sighing, you cannot have this type of toy unless you provide this kind of food. we do plastic bag bands and the

like. -- bans and the like. i think there are a million ways to promote alternatives. we did that with menu labelling in the state. that is education. that is information. that is a better approach than prescribing the time, manner, place, and how you provide a meal. i think it is a very truly and alarmingly slipperly -- how do you say that? slope. >> [inaudible] >> there are all kinds of alternatives. there are venues to access. we have strong opinions about pharmacies and what pharmacies should be promoting. again, i think this goes too

far. i think this hurts our substantive efforts in terms of health promotion and wellness, and the work we have been recognized for all over the country. there is a reason there is not a tv station in this country that has not been mocking us. i understand why. i am a little concerned about that. it gets in the way of the good work the city has done. eric mar has been fabulous on this, and i just wish we did not go that far. >> [inaudible] >> one more than we have got at the moment. you never know. i am notnaive. -- not naive. there was one other veto they overrode. i cannot support this. again, i am not being figurative.

why not a crackerjack band? -- ban? how can a giant jack in the box toy be able to promote fast food? that is the biggest marketing toy anywhere. it is not the little boys at mcdonald's. go down the list. when you have a child, you get this. everyone wants the cartoon. they love the toys. the city cannot go down this path in the private sector. dangerous. educate, promote, create alternatives. do not prescribe 600 milligrams of this. who are we to judge? this is crazy. >> [inaudible] >> it is similar to the one i did with supervisor maxwell a year ago.

tragedies have befallen some of the clubs and some of the incidents that are more acute than they were a year ago. i think there will be the support for this when there wasn't for a similar initiative a year ago. i think the entertainment commission and supervisor chu have done a good job. i'm inclined to support it, whatever details appear on my desk. i am not naive to think one thing one day and the next day, think a little different. all of these are ideas. i think i have had a dozen meetings with club owners and promoters. we are just throwing out ideas. sometimes they get headlines. we just want to get a sense of people. i am worried about civil liberties. i'm concerned people could share these lists. how do we know these lists are

not shared? people have a right to know the lists will not be marketed or exploited. those things have to be worked out. there's a reality. we have not been able to address this in a substantive way. we had an incident during the world series in my neighborhood. i had some folks telling me the inevitable is going to happen. boy, it happened. we have to be aggressive. i told the promoters and the club owners this. we don't want to be too prescriptive. the majority of people do the right thing and are promoting safe venues. there are a few bad apples. we cannot let that continue. i think most of them get it. they don't want it to go too far. we have to be sensitive to those concerns. >> [inaudible] >> i am not -- i have said more than you will never hear me say