[applause] >> thank you. first of all, i want to welcome everyone here today to this great event, the final papers to really implement our new treasure island. all of the people behind me, i want to spend the time thinking them and everyone involved. when you have a project that has lasted decades, where you are working with federal agencies, the navy, all the funding that we did not have, developers that we had to make sure were together time and again with us, residents and had the confidence that our city could not only treat them well but also plan for their future, with them,

working with them. groups such as the homeless, those on the lower end of our housing affordability. all of that has come together over decades of hard work. right up until last week, that work continued at the highest level in order to make this happen. i need to spend a moment thinking the people who have been before me in this position and other federal positions. they have their history marked in many years of essential contributions to this plan, and to the workings of the island, to the vision that is being presented today. first off, senator feinstein. i want to thank her deeply for her contributions. [applause] leader pelosi for giving us the funding. [applause] former mayor willie brown.

his vision for the island. [applause] the only thing i have to apologize for is the casino idea. [laughter] lt. gov. gavin newsom. my predecessor. thank you for his wonderful contributions. when supervisor and now still helping us with this, former supervisor tom ammiano. thank you very much. [applause] i only carried these cards because there were so many people to think. i want to begin with the incredible city staff team that has worked for many years on this project, starting with rich ellis. [applause] michael temoff and john from the office of economic development.

[applause] the incredible and ongoing work of our city attorney's office that has been wonderful in crafting a good language that people are not only living with on the island, but the delicate legal issues. eileen molly, charles sullivan, john malamut, andrea esquita, our city attorney's office. [applause] thank you also to your boss for giving you the time to do this. from city planning, john ram, i do not see him here. kevin guy, rick cooper, city planning, thank you. from the mta, i want to thank matt ford for his staff.

[applause] from the puc, ed harrington, thank you for allowing us to work with mark -- michael carlin. doug schumacher, thank you for the great work you did on the office -- from the mayor's office of housing. then there are great members of our board of directors. they include, for many years, claudine chang. larry delcarlo. larry mazolo jr. lord richardson. john paul samaha. [applause] to members of the treasure island citizen advisory board, countless hours from our

citizens involved in every way, especially the president, karen knkowles pierce. [applause] she has worked so well with the other island residents including becky hoge, john conners, and bnetty lettington. we have our organizations on treasure island, who have been working so hard for us, and of so many other important things ever present our city. including the director of the homeless initiative, sarah. [applause] thank you. member organization that are included in this initiative have been the boys and girls club of san francisco, catholic charities, community housing partnerships, mercy housing, rubicon, tool works, and walden

house. thank you for your cooperation. [applause] and to our development partners who we have come to know, cherish, lived with, talked out a lot of issues, at the state level, local level, and of course, the treasury -- a treasure island community development. chris, thank you for being here. [applause] have i gotten everything else? i know we have other speakers here. we have a number of the board of supervisors that i want to thank each and everyone of them. we have jane kim, carmen chu is here, scott wiener, mark

farrell. they are here as well. there may be more coming. i want to give a special thanks. i know not only gain, but her staff, has worked hard to spend the time necessary to explain to everybody but this is all about, and to also make sure the commitments that were made by the city family are actually carried out. whether they are affordable housing or transportation, or open space, parking challenges that we will face, or whether they are simple communications of what this is all about, i want to invite supervisor jane kim appeared to speak. -- up here to speak. >> thank you, mayor lee. i got to come to the end of a really long process, close to 14 years, of the development

project, the last six months, and it is amazing how much can happen. so many people were involved in the process for many years. mayor li the enologist many of them. -- lee acknowledged many of them. tida, the citizen advisory committee. i look at developments with a careful lens because they have a huge impact on the city of san francisco and shape of our city looks like. one thing i am proud about in this project, which i cannot take credit for, is the immense community outreach and input and process them and through this development, and to talk to folks who were formerly homeless who felt like their input was heard and taken into account into with this new neighborhood would look like. up to 2400 units of affordable housing for the city of san francisco, something that our city definitely needs.

something to be clapped for. [applause] an unprecedented number of units going to formerly homeless communities as well. sherri williams and many of the community-based organizations will continue to not only provide affordable housing but actually support the community as well. we are looking at a mixed income neighborhood in treasure island. treasure island will have an impact on the city. i want to think ross mirkarimi and david chiu for introducing some changes to the development agreements, which will help to mitigate some of these impacts. of course, the mayor's office, for being a really good partner on this project, working with our office. thank you. [applause] >> thank you, jane. it does take a lot of teamwork. i think we are resurging that team work in city hall. i know the work of david chiu

has been instrumental in doing that. i want to get david appeared to say a few words and also to signal, and we do not get -- often get an 11-0 vote. i can remember one other -- [laughter] david, you have been working so hard. come up and say a few words. [applause] >> it takes a village to build a village. i want to thank the village behind and in front of us. over the past year, we have put 10,000 units of new housing in the southeast part of the city with the shipyard project. [applause] we are putting 8900 new units of housing on the west side of the city with the approvals we did at parker said -- park merced. and with a much more comfortable 11-0 vote, we are moving forward

with thousands of new units of housing on treasure island. i cannot say how proud we are of our city for coming together. we have been talking about for years how important it is to build new neighborhoods, develop new affordable housing, make sure we have transit-oriented, sustainable, green development that is worthy of the 21st centuries the san francisco. what we are doing today and this year will have impact on the city for decades to come. thank you all for being a part of this. i look forward to the ribbon cutting. [applause] >> any others? ok. chris mini, on the development team, you excited us. one of the greenest developments that you might see. the city continues to be excited

because of the work you are doing, to be environmentally friendly, to have a residence that the city can be ground up route -- proud of. [applause] sf ++ my partners, we want to say thank-you to the city family. on this happy occasion, i just want to recall how we began so many years ago with the discussion in this building that

at treasure island we could not only create a new neighborhood for san francisco that set a national standard in and sustainability, but that we could do it in a new and different way than land use had been practiced in the city, and that we could come together and craft a plan together. the happiest part of the situation today is we stand with a terrific plan that was not our plan. it was a collective plan that was crafted together and in public. that long process, thanks to the leadership of supervisor kim, supervisor chiu, in this 11-0 vote. it think it to the staff and everyone who participated -- thank you to the staff and everyone who participated with us. >> finally but most importantly, you can have the greatest plans, best designs, but if he did not connect with the people who live on the island, the people who need a place to live, a decent place to live, but also be a part of this great city, i want to thank cherie williams of tida. [applause] >> thank you, mayor lee. i want to thank the mayor. i guess he is the fourth mayor

that we have worked on on this project. he pushed us over the finish line and we are grateful for that. the treasure island homeless development initiative started in 1994. this is a major milestone for us. this is really unique in san francisco. it is not just a portable housing, but it is affordable housing for people with the lowest or no income. formerly homeless families and individuals. there is also an enormous amount of opportunity for homeless people to gain jobs and job training opportunities. we wanted to acknowledge the work of supervisor kim. her and her staff worked hard over the past few months to make sure all of the goals and the plan that we have worked hard to achieve are going to be real and meaningful. thank you for the work that you did. [applause] and over the years, we have had a really great community

partnership with the treasure island development authority. the board has been amazing. they have had the vision of including low income and formerly homeless people from the ground up, from the start, so i want to thank the treasure island development authority for all of their leadership over the years. i also want to thank the director of operations. [applause] really, i know supervisor chu said that it takes a village to build a village, but it has really been that kind of story. that is why you had the 11-0 vote. it is not just city government doing something or developers doing something unilaterally, one group be more represented than another. it has been an iterative process where we have all work towards a common vision, one that will serve all san franciscans. i want to thank the developers, too, for the integrity they

brought to the table, the citizens advisory board, and all the members of the tidhi commission, residents of treasure island that have been a part of this. so really from the ground up, everyone has been a part of this to create a new san francisco neighborhood that represents all seven systems. thank you. [applause] >> i want to make sure that you know anybody can come on treasure island. right now, we are about to see that sculpture dance. are we ready to party? let us get this done.

be[applause] >> sherri, this is for you.

[applause]

>> happy arbor day, everyone. we have a lot of volunteers from

the richmond district center. i grew up in the california area, ended up at uc-davis. i made my way out to san francisco in 1984 when i was a college student. i remember growing up on clement street. i have always lived around in richmond area, just being around a unique area of the richmond, discovering san francisco in the 1980's. >> i am hoping we can not support small businesses like this because they are the unique character that makes neighborhoods like this so rich and lively to live in. >> i have also been active as a community organizer. i worked at the chinese progressive association. i also worked at the mental health center in the richmond district. i have always been passionate about civil rights, equality for

everyone. i have a 10-year-old daughter, so having a girl has made me much more sensitive to gender equality issues. i guess i have always been vocal about my politics, but as a supervisor, i have to listen to other perspectives and making decisions. >> very soon there will be of much more seniors in that area. we are trying to focus on whether a stop sign or stoplight might help. >> tried to look at issues of senior nutrition programs, alzheimer's research, even housing policies that allowed our buildings to become more senior-friendly. also looking at how to support senior services, neighborhood- by-neighborhood programs that allow aging in place. people who are getting older helping each other stay in their homes and communities longer so that they can contribute as long

as possible, as opposed to institutionalizing them. >> i support working families, livable communities, definite drawn support for the small business. even in my district, there are pockets of poverty and many people of work. so it is also about supporting those under employed people, small businesses in this difficult economy. >> there are a lot of vacant storefronts, so we are trying to find people to read these spaces. there is a bookstore over there. this way there are a lot of businesses that have been closing. >> i support the small businesses versus more chain stores that seem to be coming in to some of the vacant storefronts. i am trying to be sensitive to the local merchants because they make up the unique character and diversity of our neighborhoods. you go to lafayette. i was just there reading to a

bunch of kids. i think i was reading to fifth graders. what grade are you in? >> as a member of the school board, i know strong schools in the richmond is key. also, from the birth to 5 commission -- each commission has an organization to oversee pre-kindergarten kids. i want to ensure that the state level that we advocate strong support for young children and their families, good parenting support as well. >> often, we have to govern with our hearts. 80,000 people in the richmond district sometimes have different needs than people in the mission district or bayview hunters point. so often, elected officials and other hard working staff have to make tough decisions. they are political in nature, in many ways, even though people denied that, but at times, many of us are politicians, but we

always try to govern with our hearts. >> i have always considered myself having progressive politics. i believe in a vision of people having their needs met. i believe in equity. when people have special needs, we should be considered of that. i also feel that working families in the lowest income population should have a safety net. we should have civil-rights and equality rights for people as well. if that is being a progressive, then i am proud of being a progressive.

>> is housed in a spectacular building described by the world renowned architect. it is the san francisco destination for provocative expositions and programs that explore culture, history, art, and ideas. the director of cultural affairs told us more about the mission and to give us a tour of the latest exposition. ♪ >> today we find ourselves of

the contemporary jewish museum. with me is the director of the museum. >> i am so happy you are here today. >> we're getting close to a milestone for the museum. it is your third anniversary coming up. >> it is. you were here to help cut the ribbon. it has been an extraordinary journey ever since. we welcome hundreds of thousands of people into the building. we welcome school groups, interests -- tourists. >> the addition of the museum to the cultural pantheons of san francisco has been phenomenon. you have fabulous exhibits. there is one i want to talk about, "seeing gertrude stein." >> gertrude stein is a local woman. she was raised in oakland.

she was an extraordinary individual who helped create -- many people call for the mother of modernism. years ago, i was introduced to someone doing research on her. i thought it would be an extraordinary exposition to take her and understand her at all for complexity. that is what we have on view during the summer of 2011. >> it is full of wonderful drawings, paintings, and sculpture. >> there is incredible art on view. we have photographs. we have sculpture. we have a lot of different things. we have a little something made for her by picasso. there are five different ways of looking at her life.

it is not in chronological installation. it is looking at how she is portrayed in help artists, painters, and photographers presented her and how she thought about her own style and presentation. many people think she always had short hair. it was not until she was 52 that she cut off all of her hair. the second element is called "domestic stein." alice b. toklas was her lifelong partner. they had several different homes. we know about their home in paris, the famous salon. you get a taste of what their domestic life was like. >> one thing recreated is the fabulous wallpaper. the black-and-white photos do not convey the color. >> in doing a lot ofre