slip. i see this as being a banner year for recreation and park, for our membership, for our city, and a recreation programs. our programs are buttered than they have been in years. we continue to expand in program quality. if you look at our catalog, we are not just a tiny tots anymore. we are doing skateboarding. we're doing rock climbing. we are doing fencing. this is stuff we have not done in my 22 years with the department. we are on the right track. i encourage you to support this budget and to consider -- and to continue supporting the recreation and parks department. thank you for your time. chairperson chu: thank you. >> good afternoon, supervisors. don franklin, vice president of

our chapter. we have come a long way since last year. last year was about pain and heartache. i saw a lot of good people get hit, unfortunately. sometimes, you start to see a light at the end of the tunnel. the tunnel is getting shorter. the light is getting bigger. it is kind of nice. i hope as we keep going in this process that what we have made in investments, as far as our department -- it is nice to be recognized. we had an event a couple of weeks ago, an extravaganza. i had plenty of people from the city say, "this is great. we need more of this. it is fun coming to your department." that is the bottom line for us. we are the fun department. we want people coming to us to have fun. i see in this building you have

a yoga program we are not providing. maybe that is an opportunity for us to provide some more fun. i want to and it with this. recently, i have been in charge of alternative recreation. i have to run around twice a week to get cooking supplies for our culinary programs. i heard somebody call my name and i turned around. it turned out it was a person who played on my baseball team 18 years ago. she came up to me with her children and said, "this is that crazy park director i told you i did all those things with." now, her children are coming to our program. in short, we hope to support us. we hope to increase things we do to get the job done for the city of san francisco. thanks. >> good afternoon, supervisors. i am the recreation supervisor for the waterfront. i am also a shop steward.

i am not here in either of those roles. i am here as a paying participant in a recreation and park department program. every night at balboa pool, i am taking scuba diving to become a certified scuba diver. i say this because it has not been offered by the recreation and park department since the late 70's, 40 years ago. i think that illustrates how well the plan is going that we are now able to, in these desperate budget times, be able to offer something we have not been able to offer in 40 years. i wholeheartedly support the budget and hope you will too. thank you. >> my name is john cunningham. looking back 20 years, i was a property owner on dolores park.

the city was in a very similar budget crisis in the late 80's and early 90's. the deferred maintenance to the park system of san francisco took numerous years, if not a decade, to catch up. as he sought in the presentation from phil, the number of years that recon park -- rec and park has realized a significant reduction in its budget, there will come a breaking point. one will be the line that shows the revenue that has been generated will stop, parks will not be a place where individuals and groups will want to come and use them and pay for it. secondly, the citizens of the city will not be able to enjoy what this city offers. on a final point, speaking to the need for increased park patrol, i can think back to about nine months ago on the way to work. i received a call that there had

been a murder in the eastern part of the park. they originally told me it was within the growth. it was a tragic event. thankfully, it did not occur inside of the grove. but the violent crime that continues inside that part of the park as a result of the activity in the outer haight and what was formerly the recycling area -- there is only one patrol person available to be in all of the park's city-wide after midnight. there are times when i go to the grove at night to ensure that some of the activities that have been going on consistently are not taking place. i encourage you to support this budget as well as the increase of park patrol. thank you. chairperson chu: thank you. >> i am from the san francisco

parks trust. we are the nonprofit partner for recreation and park. i want to briefly express the parks trust support for this budget and for what rec and park have been able to accomplish this year. we heard about the great programming that is going on and we are really happy that has been able to take place without increasing the fees. we support the budget. we look forward to continued partnership with the department. thank you. chairperson chu: thank you. >> i am here representing the neighborhood parks council. one of the things we are excited about with this budget is the principal so many people worked on together. we heard the five-year budget plan for the city, to know where you are going. we all have a better idea of what our park system needs and how we are going to do that together. the key as we see it is having revenue generation conversations at a neighborhood-by-

neighborhood, park-by-park basis, so that decisions are not being made without careful thought and out reach. that is something we feel passionately about at neighborhood parks council, making sure that park users can contribute and looking at them to increase sweat equity and gifts to the department. i think it is important you know this deep down. parks are vital to our communities. they are vital to our families. they are vital to everyone, visitors and residents alike. please no more general use tax in the future. >> if there are other speakers, please lineup. >> my name is taj. i am the bernal heights recreation facilities coordinator. i want you to imagine life without recreation centers. what would our children's lives be like? what would your life have been like if you did not have a park or recreation center to go to?

i have a little boy in my center. his name is domenic. he comes every single day. but colonel heights was closed for a long time so he had nowhere to go. he was planning on sidewalks -- playing on sidewalks with no one to talk to are play with. the day the rec opened, he has come every day. he is interested in the park. he loves it. he plays basketball. he helps out. on days out from school, he comes in and asks what he can do. i want to see more of that in our community. in order to do that, we need to continue with the funding. we need our budget approved so we can open the doors for the dominant -- dominics, so they have some future. think of him and the kids like him when you are making

decisions. >> good afternoon. robert connolly, president of boys and girls clubs of san francisco. i wanted to speak in favor of some of the model changes that ms. ginsberg and parks and recreation have gone through in the last year or more. we now operate the site at wheeland and cora at a visitation valley. there were hard decisions parks and recreation had to make, but it has worked really well. we now serve five times as many kids there. recreation and park no longer has to employ folks to provide services there. it has been good for the community. we worked closely with the school next door and the library going in down the street. it is a creative way to keep services coming into the community that really needs them. visitation belling need these services. and it allows park and recreation to use the money

elsewhere in the system to reach as many kids as possible. i just wanted to say i applaud that effort. thank you. >> my name is joseph young with "ninja news." i applaud the efforts you guys are doing. i think that is great. but as far as our parks being updated and up to speed with all the new gadgets and toys for the kids -- they are the future. however, at the same time, consider the homeless problem we have in the city. this is something that has to do mainly with parks and recreation, but a lot of homeless people sleeping in those parks. you guys are upgrading security and making sure that no property is being contaminated in the parks. that is great. however, where do they go? i speak as the voice of those who are homeless. these are the people who stay in our parks. a lot of times, they are good

people that just had misfortune in their lives. i want you to consider if you are going to go ahead and say that people are not allowed to stay in the parks, please allow them a place to stay that is safe for them. please keep in mind that poverty can happen to anyone of us in this room or any one of our audience at any moment. please use your hearts when you make this decision. i do support the improvement of our parks. the kids are our future. i get that. a lot of americans get that. but also consider where these homeless people will be staying, if not in our parks. thank you. chairperson chu: thank you. this will be the last speaker. >> good afternoon. my name is douglas. i would like to thank supervisor chu for having a hearing on this recreation and park budget update. to be honest, i have been very

ill informed on this department since one of my current project. i actually learned a very much new information listening to mr. ginsberg. i think the department is definitely improving. we have to credit mr. ginsburg for that. since we are having today's hearing on recreation and park, i would like to pull the contrasting idea. i was wondering whether there was ever a similar budget update for the department of public health during the last fiscal review. i am not sure whether it happened. since recreation and park is important enough for this budget update, since department of public health is the greatest general fund user, i would

think this committee would support a budget update for the department of public health. it is so important especially to the needy and immigrant population in the city. it deserves a very similar, if not identical, hearing like the one we are doing now. so if we can justify the time and expense for recreation and park and learn a lot from mr. ginsberg, we ought to have the department of public health up here giving a similar presentation, and hopefully some good results. i suspect results will not be as good as recreation and park. thank you. chairperson chu: thank you very much. if there are no other speakers, public comment is closed. i want to thank recreation and parks for your presentation and providing us a brief update. i know your budget will be

before us again. i asked this committee to file this item. can we do that without objection? thank you. item four. >> ordinance appropriating 6,000,361 $808 of general fund reserve and the appropriating -- appropriating approximately $6 million of general fund reserve and appropriating approximately $2 million of expenditure contingency and debt service savings to fund salary expenditures due to fewer retirements than anticipated, disability pay, and workers'

compensation claims. >> this is a request for supplemental appropriation to pay for salaries through the end of the year and to pay for underfunding in disability and workers' compensation plans. mr. rose's office and our office have worked together. he recommends a certain level of production in the request, in line with his agreement. >> perhaps we can go to the budget analyst. >> this is a supplemental appropriation. it would we appropriate existing sources of funds. but it would have a $6 billion of mid-year reductions. it would have a $600 billion impact on the general fund. we point out in our report on

page 4-3 but with approval of this appropriation at the $6.30 million level, it would reduce the general fund reserve to $40.50 million. we did review the numbers. they are high, but they are in line with the spending to date for the sheriff's department. we are recommending, based on our evaluation of on going over time, a reduction of $250,000. chairperson chu: think you very much. the supplemental and the general fund value -- is the anticipated and captured in your projections? >> it is anticipated. it was factored into the six- month report. it will be factored into the nine-month report. we are assuming a value in the current year and an adjustment in next year's budget to reflect

these costs. chairperson chu: thank you. if there are no questions from the committee, are there any members of the public who wish to comment on this item? >> thomas picorello. first, let me thank sheriff hennessy for his 30 years of service to the city. but i am here to speak in opposition to this appropriation. frankly, i am surprised to still have $6 million left in your general reserve fund. it is my understanding that the sheriff's department needs funds now because the anticipated 80 sheriff's retiring and only 25 are now retired. -- because they anticipated 80 sheriffs retiring and only 25

are now retired. i would prefer you put money to work people having lunch is on weekends instead of people searching my laptop. thank you. >> i am here to say that we oppose this appropriation. we represent institutional -- we support this appropriation. we represent international -- institutional officers. chairperson chu: are there any other speakers who wish to comment on this item? seeing none, public comment is closed. supervisor mirkarimi: motion to accept. chairperson chu: we have a motion to move the item forward. can we take the budget analyst's recommendation? we have a motion to accept the recommendation, and that is agreed upon by the department. we will move the item forward as amended, without objection.

thank you very much, and thank you, sheriff, for your patience. mr. young, are there other items before us? >> that includes the agenda. chairperson chu: thank you very much. we are adjourned. >> welcome to culture wire. we will look at the latest and greatest public art project. recently, the airport unveiled the new state of the art terminal. let's take a look.

the new terminal service and american airlines and virgin america was designed by a world- renowned architecture's firm. originally built in 1954, the building underwent massive renovation to become the first registered terminal and one of the must modern and sustainable terminals and the united states. the public art program continues its 30-year legacy of integrating art into the airport environment with the addition of five new commissions that are as bold and dynamic as the new building. >> this project was completed in record time, and we were able to integrate the artist's early enough in the process that they could work with the architect

said that the work that is completed is the work that really helps complement and instill the space as opposed to being tucked away in a corner. >> be experience begins with the glass facades that was designed with over 120 laminated glass panels. it captures the experience of being under or over clouds when flying in a plane. depending on the distance or point of view, it can appear clear for more abstract and atmospheric. the subtle colors change gradually depending on the light and the time of day. >> i wanted to create an art work that looks over time as well as working on in the first glance. the first time you come here, you may not see a. but you may be able to see one side over the other.

it features a couple of suspended sculptures. each was created out of a series of flat plains run parallel to each other and constructed of steel tubing. >> it is made up of these strata. as the light starts to shift, there is a real sense that there is a dynamism. >> it gives the illusion that this cultures might be fragments of a larger, mysterious mass. >> the environmental artwork livens it with color, light, and the movement. three large woven soldiers are suspended. these are activated by custom air flow program. >> i channeled air flow into

each of these forms that makes it move ever so slightly. and it is beating like a heart. if-0 when as of the forces of nature moving around us every second. >> shadow patterns reflect the shapes of the hanging sculptures. the new terminal also features a children's play areas. both of the market the exploratory n.y. -- exploratorium. the offer travelers of all ages a playful oasis. using high quality plywood, they created henches shaped like a bird wings that double as musical instruments.

serving as a backdrop is a mural featuring images of local birds and san francisco's famous skyline. >> in the line between that is so natural, you can see birds and be in complete wilderness. i really like that about this. you could maybe get a little snapshot of what they are expecting. >> it is an interactive, keck sculpture that is interacted with by the visitor. >> they are a lot about and they fall down the belt. it moves the belt up, and if you turn that faster, the butterflies fall in the move of words. >> the art reflect the

commission's commitment to acquiring the best work from the bay area and beyond. in addition to the five new commissions, 20 artworks that were already in the airport collection were reinstalled. some of which were historically cited in the terminal. it includes major sculptures by the international artists. as a collection, these art works tell the story of the vibrant arts scene in the early 1960's through the mid-1980s's. the illustrate san francisco's cultural center and a place of innovation that is recognized and the love throughout the world. one of the highlights is a series of three left tapestries. they are on view after being in storage for 20 years. these tapestries representing various gardens.

from his years of living in san francisco. hydrangeas, chrysanthemums, and whilst dahlias in rich, deep shades as they make their way to the baggage area. they can access behind-the- scenes information and interviews with the artist through an audio to work. it features archival audio as well as interviews with living artists. he can be accessed on site by dialing the telephone numbers located near the artwork or by visiting the commission's web site. the public art speaks volumes of san francisco as a world-class city with world-class art and culture. for more information, visit