have occurred in certain areas or segments of the line, so we will focus on cleaning up the segments. the work next week will give us a sense of a preparation plant and what we need to do to get ready for the third phase of the project. they will prepare this baseline and proof of concept plan. then, what we will do is prepare with their oversight -- they will play a role in this because of the significance of the signal cable. we expect some time later in the beginning of november to begin the work. we will work within the time windows that we have at night that works once we have our baseline. we identify where the areas are that we have to replace. we will do that -- each time we replace cable, obviously, given the function of it, we have to test it immediately. we will have test trains in to test every section of cable that

we go through. this will take place over approximately four months so that we should be done sometime in late spring, pushing towards mid-2012, four or five months. excuse me. what will we have when we're done? again, an improvement. in service reliability. it also positions us for the radio replacement project, which is coming down the road. there are probably three or four other train control projects in the queue that we will be bringing forward to you to keep the system in a state of good repair. splices remain the weak spot in the cable, in the sense that we want them to be absolutely as reliable as we can. striving to keep all of the signal system in a state of good

repair. we thought it was important to brief you on this project that is ongoing right now. given the importance of this project to the subway and the subway, of course, to our entire transportation operation. director nolan: thank you. excellent presentation. very thorough. members of the board, questions or comments? director heinicke: i have what i am sure is an easily answerable and dumb question, but the wire system -- is it rubber or plastic? what is the coaching? -- coating? >> it is plastic coating. director heinicke: we have seen antennas and sander hoses and things splice it. should we in case it in something else or something more so that that does not happen or does that just make it too hard to get it to wire or repair and that sort of thing? can we not put some sort of

kryptonite around it so it does not happen? [laughter] >> given the market value of kryptonite, from what i understand, it may blow our budget, but your idea is a sound one, and we are looking at how to protect perhaps the shield both as the top of the cable -- we are looking at a couple of things to do to protect it, yes. as well as to get at the source of the -- >> obviously, retrofitting the sounder hose is one thing, but the reality is a lot of these problems we do not know until they happen. retrofits are hard. it seems if we could protect the cable and prevent the problem, that is two ways to go about it comes to protecting the cable makes sense to me. director nolan: other members of the board? members of the public? thank you. >> item 15, discussion and vote as to whether to conduct closed session. director nolan: is there such a

motion? second? all in favor? we will >> bod discussed anticipated legislation but took no action. >> we are adjourned. thank you very much. good work, everybody. >> you even that the board running on time.

>> i'm susan buckbinder. i'm the director of the h.i.v. research section and of the sore project. on behalf of the entire project and the entire team which is large, i want to welcome you all to our ground-breaking ceremony and just give you a little bit of background on the aids office itself and the reason for the soar project. the aids office is really a unique research institution. in addition to the care that's provided and the resources that are given to the community to care for, to prevent and care for people with h.i.v. infection, we really are the

only health department that is leading the h.i.v. prevention and surveillance effort. the kind of research that we do is done primarily through universities, so we're in a unique position. we have three research organizations houses within the aids office. there is the h.i.v. epidemiology unit that is headed by dr. seussan sheer and willie mcfarland. they really are the premiere surveillance group for h.i.v. and aids in the country that train many other groups globally about how to track h.i.v. infections and h.i.v.-related disease, so that we can know how best to target our prevention efforts and our treatment efforts. so they have really done a huge service to the global h.i.v. aids community and also in addressing health disparities. the h.i.v. prevention unit is headed by dr. grant koufax.

they also are really a ground-breaking research organization as well as providing prevention services and leading the presense efforts in the city. they have really spearheaded this effort at looking at how treatment can effect prevention, how if you get people tested and treated more globally, you can really drive down h.i.v. infection. and so through that, they have pioneered on viral load and h.i.v. testing, in treatment of substance use and a variety of other topics. and then i head the h.i.v. research section and we have a number of talented folks who work with me. we're test age number of different kind of prevention interventions including h.i.v. vaccines, preexposure prophylaxis which is using h.i.v. medication to prevent new infections, reaching out to the african-american community

to understand what is driving the epidemic particularly in that community and using peer health navigation to connect them with services, combination prevention intersenses and so forth. in the last year, we have had a couple of major breakthroughs in both a new h.i.v. vaccine that seems to be providing partial protection and we are understanding how that is working and preventing new infections. the entire aids office has come together to work collaboratively to address the epidemic. now, we were challenged in that we are based in a health department and so we don't have the resources to build buildings and to renovate buildings because we're largely grant funded. one of our employees, janey vincent, saw a -- [applause] >> saw that there were federal stimulus funds

that we could apply for to renovate our building. we needed to work together more collaboratively. teams were split up on different floors and there wasn't good meeting space to work cross teams. we needed more clinical space to see our study volunteers and we needed more community space to bring community into what we do. under barbara garcia's leadership, we came together and put in this grant and it's the first time that the federal government, n.i.h., has awarded this kind of money to a health department. they've only awarded this kind of research money to universities so it's really through the joint efforts under barbara's leadership that we've been able to move forward and it's really through the support of the city government through the mayor, through our supervisors, through the health commission, that we've moved this field forward so without further ado, i want to introduce the honorable mayor lee.

[applause] mayor lee: thank you, everybody, for coming this morning, and dr. buchbinder and barbara and the commissioners, congratulations. these days it is so difficult to land federal grants, so matter where they're from and it only takes the dedication that you've identified, the people who worked on this very hard to put together a grant specific to modernize our aids research office and it's absolutely needed. i remember in the early 1980's where we joined three major cities of the country, this city and new york and los angeles, where the initial aids research got started and we are concentrated in our areas but we understood that this epidemic had to be studied further to make sure we were on the right track to discover not only breakthroughs but prevention ideas that would be directed at curtailing this epidemic.

so you fast forward the 25, 30 years since that time, and we need more of that research done so i am glad this money was identified. it's going to be very helpful. the $9.5 million of aid from the national institute of health. this is almost miraculous. you don't see these grants very often to public agencies unless we are doing the absolutely necessary thing, and that is focused on improving and making sure we make great breakthroughs and we are going to be able to do that with this additional space. this money will go towards additional 8,000 square feet on top of renovating another 9,000. so it's a total focused on the 17,000 square feet of space that is in different floors of this building, making sure they're connected up and that we have additional physician space, counseling offices and

examination rooms as well as research space. that's invaluable. i want to put on my d.p.w. hat for a moment, as well, because d.p.h. doesn't work if a vacuum. when they identify this, they work with everybody. i want to thank supervisor wiener for coming here today, too, because he knows how important it is for that collaboration to occur. so d.p.h. working in this facility -- and by the way, i need you to know that probably the last time i was standing here was having barbecue when it was a barbecue restaurant here and i was at the top floor, at rooftop hall, heading up the human rights commission and we were already working in concert with the aids office to prevent discrimination against people with aids and i recall those meetings because it was so important to make sure those people weren't discriminated

against as they tried to survive and find help in this wonderful city that we have. public works, you're amazing, you working with our real estate department in finding ways to make sure we have the best approach to this and we are also working with our private contractors. i know turner construction is doing the construction management here, working closely with our bureau of architecture and engineering to make sure this is done on time, within budget. that's the mantra of using federal funds these days. you better be on time. better be on budget. and we also better make sure that when we do this, we reach out to our local vendors and make sure they're participating in this economic times, struggling. we have a 25% goal to do this correctly. so this renovation is important for all of those different levels but the most important thing is that we have more modern offices for our aids epidemic research. because i know, i know that in

our lifetimes, barbara, we're going to find fantastic breakthroughs with your leadership, the leadership of the commission and the wonderful staff that you have that is focused on ending this epidemic and making sure people not only get the resources that they have but that they also know that this is the city of hope, that we're going to continue doing what is necessary to make sure that we end this epidemic and to provide cures for people around the world. it isn't just for san francisco any longer. we know the disease knows no boundaries so the discoveries that we will make here, the prevention ideas that will educate more and more people about safe practices, safe lifestyle, and the discoveries that we have in finding the appropriate drugs, will happen as a result of this effort here. and so i want to thank everybody for working together, and i want to thank mark primo, as well,

and his private consulting capacity, that he's been able to take a look at the physical things that we can do to ensure that the research goes on, and i want to celebrate this day and get ready to knock down these walls and make sure that we provide the space that we have. thank you very much for being here. [applause] >> i'd next like to introduce supervisor scott wiener. supervisor wiener: thank you, thank you. i thank both of my constituents, dr. buchbinder and mayor lee. i have the honor of representing the castro, among other neighborhoods, and as you know the castro is arguably the hardest hit neighborhood in the country in terms of this epidemic so i feel a special

responsibility to always thereby and make sure that our city does what it needs to do to beat this disease. and i know that our department of health has done such a tremendous job in terms of the services that it provides to our city, to our community, to make sure that people have access to prevention resources, to treatment resources, and i know they will always be there and this project will increase the effectiveness of our city government in terms of consolidating services, having people together and working collaboratively. so i'm really excited about that. also, in addition to all the great work that the office of aids and d.p.h. do in san francisco, it's a reminder to the world, the international leadership role this department plays in terms of fighting hiv/aids and i was reminded of this a few weeks ago when i was sponsoring a grant acceptance

for the department for some international work and i got a call from a reporter about why are you sponsoring, you know, something relating to kazakhstan, and it was actually a great opportunity because we got to educate this reporter about what this department does and how this is an international epidemic and how people around the world look to san francisco for leadership and expertise in fighting hiv/aids and the reporter said to me afterwards, wow, i had no idea how much brilliance is in this department. so this is an exciting department and i want to congratulate everyone. thank you. [applause] >> thank you, supervisor wiener, for your ongoing support. i'm next going to introduce our director of public health, barbara garcia. [applause] >> good morning, everyone. i am so honored and i'm so proud

of the department's staff. i get a lot of travel requests and it's to peru and mozambique and tanzania and at the bottom it says how much it costs and it's usually zero and those are the ones i like to sign but it really does. and i want to just acknowledge the d.p.h. aids office staff, please raise your hands, because you clearly -- [applause] >> some of you, in culmination of years, i know you have hundreds of years of experience here and i know that is so, so important and we've done some incredible work in san francisco and you've taken your work and your understanding of this disease to other parts of the world and it makes such a big difference for everyone in the world, particularly around ending this disease. you're doing aids planning and my job as the principal investigator is to help with space planning. this is a 100-year-old building

and we were in all kinds of spaces and i want to acknowledge the staff that helped and figured out how to move people and how to construct behind them. mark primo and martine soto -- raise your hand, martine. he's been my negotiator whenever people are trying to figure out what the next space process is going to be. i also would like to recognize the department of public works. i believe we have representative. the real estate division, john updike. the 25 van ness real estate team, leslie, jerrold and john updike. one of the things that we're looking at is how to bring this to the 21st century in technology, where, also, we're going to have a large conference room. i believe it's going to fit about 150 people, and that will be able to bring community people in, but it's also going to be an advantageous one for

us. we're talking about telemedicine so we can speak to other parts of the world in terms of our work. so the department of technology. do we have representatives? all right, great. and our own san francisco department of information technology unit, do we have our staff here? and turner construction. what could we do without a construction company. so -- [applause] again, i wanted to thank all our staff but also it's really important to acknowledge the role of our commission who continue to support our efforts, and this effort. i wanted to introduce steve cherney. >> i just want to take a second to congratulate everyone. i had the pleasure to work in this 100-year-old building for a while. the exciting thing about san francisco is when the c.d.s. and hearsa said we want to cut

new hiv infections by 10%, san francisco said, no, 50%. when they said we'd like to get folks in line with undetectable environmental load, susan and the rest of the team said, no, that won't do, we need everybody in undetectable environmental load and they said if we do that, we can cut down on care dollars and we said, no, folks living with hiv in san francisco across each community will receive the highest quality care possible and that commitment is demonstrated again over and over again and the awarding of this grant and the mayor coming to tell us that he supports these efforts in the strongest possible way and will over the next administration is just news that's important for everybody in the community. so we're proud to be here and i can't wait to see who hits that wall with that hammer. and begins the good work. congratulations, everyone. [applause]

>> i think, with that, we're going to begin our ground breaking and i think our mayor has the opportunity for the first swing. mayor lee: are we ready? ok! [applause]

>> and thought to ask what all of this minority interest in a joint powers authority to order. we call the roll, please. >> i would like to note that vice chair ortiz as the conflict. we have the newly appointed representative with us. we have director kim. >> present. >> she has not been here for a while. >> director lloyd. >> present. >> director metcalf. >> present. >> director rohan. >> present. >> director harper. >> present. >> you do have a quorum. tony is expected. i think he is a little delayed. >> forgive me for my clumsiness in a chairing the meeting, since it i am not terribly used to doing that or being here.

communications first. do we have any? >> i know of none. >> ok. old and new business, board of directors? i am kind of old, but you know. >> so am i.. >> that is true. we're both old business here. >> the director's report. i know we have one of those. >> good morning. i would like to welcome our newest board member, representing the sentence is the municipal transportation agency. welcome, director. >> thank you. >> secondly, to those of you were not able to attend yesterday's event at noon at the transbay site in the zone 1, the first block of the four blocks reconstruction on, we were invited by merely to have an event celebrating the demolition of the old terminal. and where it we will have the new transbay transit center. and the soon-to-be released district plan you will hear more about later in the agenda.

we're joined by a number of our board members, including director kim and other dignitaries. and the men and women who have been working on the construction site and have been dedicated from the beginning, since august 7 when we started demolition. we had over 55,000 hours of labor on the demolition without any injury or accident. i want to point out that we were joined by the, -- carpenters in action. there also here joining us today. so it was a really good event, and nice turn out, and it was a good celebration with a number of key milestones. with respect to the construction documents, i want to report that we're making good progress. the early to low-grade documents were transmitted on august 29. we're at 90% cd's. we expect to have the full set transmitted to us on november 1. then on hit yuri 17, we're expected to issue the early to

low-grade package out to bid. as i indicated yesterday, we continue to be on schedule and within budget. that is good news. on the bus storage, we continue our cornyn nation with caltrans and transit on the design and other issues having to do it the fremont street off ramp and so forth. the bus runs we expect to bring, where about 35% for the design. hopefully more at the latter end of this year. with respect to the rail extension, we're working closely with caltrain and the rail authority. high-speed rail asked us to make some design changes to the rail component of phase one and two to accommodate high speed rail trains to a certain level. we have done that. they have approved a redesign variances. now i would like to have steve come in and give the bulk of the

presentation, since we're now in construction, on where we are with construction and utility work. >> good morning, directors. i am with turner construction management oversight. if we can shift that over to the presentation. as the executive director just pointed out, we are complete with the demolition, with 55,000 craft hours completed during that operation over the last year with no injuries to the workers, no accident, no injuries. it also culminated in about 92,000 cubic yards of concrete being recycled and used to back felt the site. that equates to about 28 olympic size swimming pools getting filled up with concrete. as we move into the olympic year. 50 million pounds of steel was recycled during the operation. that was all the dresses that crossed the street in the reinforcing steel. during the operation, they took

down over two miles of the overhead, overpasses and bus rams. that was pretty significant, and with no incidents or injuries to the workers. utility relocation package work is wrapping up rapidly. most of the streets will be repaired during this month, with the exception of the final package, which will be starting the first quarter of next year. that is the auxiliary water package on mission street. but the other packages are wrapping up quickly, and we just finished the phase 1 work with pg&e as well, so that released the final s your work on natoma. the first street to be completed, which allows the western end to be able to go in completely. as far as the transit center operation, the 301 mission was completed in july, since our last board