park, we are on the path to get there. we want to see a similar vision as the one we have been working on with the city, at the western edge of the boulevard. in both cases, we want to see a managing plan in place, as had been recommended by the organization that the city hired to lead the ocean beach master plan. in both cases, they manage retreat plan calls for not using seawalls or other coastal armory devices, ultimately destroying the beach and many varied recreational opportunities that it provides. thank you for voting to restore sharper park. we support efforts to turn it into a federally managed area that can be enjoyed by all visitors to this area. thank you very much. supervisor avalos: thank you. next speaker, please?

>> howdy. let's see. my name is mike johnson. i am i gardner's greenskeeper at sharp park for 15 years. labor 261. i do not agree with this ordinance. i read with supervisor elsbernd. there is something froggy about this. seems too one-sided. no one has talked to us about suggestions. we have been able to work, hand- in-hand, so far with environmentalists by implementing certain things. we are one of the first golf courses to become 100% organic in the country. other people follow our procedures. there are no petroleum products used at all. in the ordinance here, you do

mention that you will be protecting city employees by reprocessing things to pick up sticks in a city park, or something. but you are also influencing the plumbers, electricians. everyone that comes down as a support group to keep this thing going, which is an historical golf course, which you mentioned in line -- page 2, line four, that you would protect historical sites as part of this ordinance. i prefer to go back and do this thing right, as the supervisor said. the proper way, with proper government, without this dogmatic ordinance being thrown at us. save sharp park. go linniners.

supervisor avalos: thank you. we might have agreement on that. next speaker, please. >> pam, 41 years in francisco resident. i support the legislation to restore sharp park and hope that you will, also. the partnership chance is a wonderful opportunity to add beauty to all of our lives and protect habitats. right now, sharp park is closed off to many of us. yet, it costs san francisco residents money. that money could be used to hire more gardeners in san francisco, keeping recreation centers open. the restoration of sharp park will provide and in view -- and improve habitat to protect endangered species. a restored sharp park will

provide trails for a healthy exercise of walking. exercise that is a long time proposition with handicapped access so that all can enjoy this property. please of support the resolution. thank you. supervisor avalos: thank you. >> my name is christopher. thank you for allowing me to speak in support of the ordinance. it seems clear cut to me. and economically feasible park, i mean there is so little time left.

thanks. supervisor avalos: next speaker, please. [reads names] >> excuse me. my name is ted right. i was born in san francisco in 1938. you could consider me a senior citizen. i play sharp park at least once per month. my partner and i, we get down there to play three times per month. i have to disagree with what i read in the paper, that you lose $1.5 million per year supporting sharp park.

i do not have the figures anymore, but if i did on how many rounds were played there, you would have to have a goal line to park passes to spend the amount -- gold lined park passes to spend the amount of money listed. if you have done right, like supervisor elsbernd said, you take it and do it right, there is no problem. you close it down, by the time you shop the pumps down, when the thing gets flooded, they had better where they're hip boots. thank you. supervisor avalos: thank you. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon, supervisors. my name is kathy. i am a native in san francisco,

living in pacifica since 1977. i support the while equity into. i am in favor of the of a los sharp park legislation. -- avalos sharp park legislation. we have the opportunity to protect the beautiful, natural wetlands that come with this rare, back barrier lagoon. part of a very elite group of lagoons. there are less than 10% of them existing in california. supervisor avalos: we are going to pause. we have lost a quorum. you are going to get to keep speaking. >> no problem. supervisor avalos: sorry. >> it is ok.

supervisor avalos: what is that? how are you going to get it, when he is not here? you do not have the letter yet, right, gail? >> start over. i will start over. supervisor avalos: the chair will let you start over. i apologize. part of my gamesmanship required by responding to nature. >> not a problem.

shall i start over? supervisor avalos: we will restart the clock. i apologize. >> that afternoon, supervisors. i haacif pa lived in -- i have lived in pacifica since 1977. i am in favor of the legislature. i want to thank you for your plan. today we have the opportunity to restore and protect the beautiful, natural wetlands. part of a very small, elite group of lagoons. there are less than 10% of them in california. it has consistently survived, despite being an offshoot of its natural environment. if the legislature is passed, we would have a beautiful, spacious, open coastal wetlands

minutes from san francisco, where people of all ages could go, getting away from the world as they get smaller and more crowded. they would be able to enjoy themselves, gathering, hiking, running were sitting, relaxing and recharging outdoors while the tensions of daily life melt away. we will be thinking the endangered species of specialists of the national parks service for restoring the garter snake and the red legged frogs back to a healthy and flourishing lifestyle. this is a world that we need to have available to all. not just for golfers. please close sharp park so that the national parks service can restore it to national wetlands. thank you.

supervisor avalos: thank you. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon, supervisors. i am a former city employee, retired from the parks department. retired as the golf course maintenance supervisor. without a prepared statement, i would hope that i could shed some light on the situation. what i do not think has been brought to the front enough, and i was glad to hear a bit of it today, the fact that the recreation park department has been operating there department, plus the golf course maintenance operations, pesticide-free, for over 10 years, since 1997. they were using non-synthetic fertilizers, link -- bringing in

new technology and micro- organisms. this is the technique. these cultural practices are what we shall be striving for. playing in conjunction with these endangered species. this is where we should all be striving to get. 7 billion people in the world. 4.5 million in the bay area. about 4000 in san francisco rubbing elbows with these species. we need to learn to work and live together. what the parks department has done is progressive and four were bleeding. we are leading the way i am learning to deal with this situation. to move away from that would be a terrible mistake.

i would ask you to deny this legislation. i would also ask the environmental community here, you should be supporting what the recreation and parks department is doing. these species are proliferating. we are on the right track. supervisor avalos: thank you very much. [applause] next speaker, please. [reads names] >> hello, supervisors. thank you for hearing us. my name is sam. i am a resident of san francisco. i am a graduate student in biology. i am arguing as a part of the legislation. sharp park, as it exists currently, is a habitat.

it is a costly, wasteful, an impoverished habitat for animals and plants. it has potential to be so much better. i visited sharp park on a couple of occasions. i found it to be surrounded by litter and other debris of heavy use. so, the limited habitat is degraded. around the world and around america, around world, habitat loss and degradation is the number one threat to buy a- diversity. as these habitats are debated and fragmented, species are forced to leave or go extinct. restoring it into a more complex environment, there will be increased habitat area, better quality, and internal support of wildlife.

people have been talking about the endangered snakes. as they currently exist, they are isolated in a handful of bodies of water, surrounded by heavily attended golfing areas. by improving the quality, restoring sharp park will benefit the wildlife, particularly those with smaller home ranges. every square meter of habitat will pay extra benefits towards these animals. let's maximize our legacy to various wildlife and various costs of subsidizing golf courses. thank you. supervisor avalos: thank you very much. next speaker, please.

>> good afternoon. my name is roddy. i retired from the state of california after serving 62 years as an employee. i want to come before you today to talk about sharp park. which has a great history. a lot of golfers have come out of their. it is a place where they can go and walk. there are no hills or anything. they prefer to walk, they can walk. the fare is much readable compared to other golf courses in san francisco -- reasonable, compared to other golf courses. and i have been a resident for over 80 years. i think that a lot of the

juniors, a high school kids, they go there. for years, over 20 years, of i have been part of a senior group that gets together at sharp park. we still go over there. once per year, we have a regular tournament there. everyone enjoys themselves. the food is a well-kept secret. it is the best food that you can go down and eat. some of us should try prime rib, play golf, and enjoy ourselves. thank you very much. supervisor avalos: thank you. next speaker, please. >> my name is willie. born and raised in san francisco.

unlike some of these other people that live in pacifica, i am still a resident of san francisco. i live in district 1. i am disappointed that eric mar is not here. i play golf. i play golf in sharp park. i have proof. i only started playing golf eight years ago. do i have written motorcycle all over the country. my friends and loved ones tell me it is too dangerous. so, i decided to take up golf. it was expensive. so, i played at harding park. but now i play at sharp park. i find it affordable. when i go out there, i mean lots of people. african-americans, jeff again --

japanese americans, chinese americans. people of all ages. young people. senior citizens. this is a wonderful place for us to take off. for someone to come out here and try to take this away for all of us, i think that that is abominable. i used to work in silicon valley. i made some good money. the economy there is bad. i have not worked in 10 years. i find myself playing golf. i like playing golf. i am not too bad added. i would hope that you would save the park for those of us that like to play. we are a very diverse community. we like to play golf. one thing that i find ironic.

city of san francisco supervisors tend to talk to the u.s. government about getting out of here and there. i find it ironic that we are advising the federal government about the golden gate national park -- supervisor avalos: for everyone else's sake, we need to move on. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon, supervisors. i am here on behalf of the san francisco public golf alliance. i am here to submit handwritten, original letters to you from concerned residents of seven cisco. i have been compiling these since june of 2011 -- residents of san francisco. i have been compiling these since june of 2011. these letters are mostly in britain. they are old-fashioned letters that come from the heart of bay area golfers.

people that want affordable gulf in san francisco and in the bay area. i want to share one story that comes from compiling these letters that gets to the heart of what sharp park is about. i went there with organizers to get these signatures from the men's club. who were there? two girls from the sunnyvale neighborhood, with their mom, ready to collect signatures to keep the golf course open. why were they there? they needed affordable golf courses. they used this golf course as one of the many means to keep off the streets. one thing that i think will be lost is that if sharp park is

closed, somehow affordable gulf and other ad rescue programs will be brought up. well, you are forgetting about these children that will lose their golf course. you heard from mr. smith earlier. i have worked with terra nova, sacred heart, and the other public high-school to present these letters to you on behalf of the students and younger generation but i think are being missed here today. one of the reasons they are being missed is because they are a school. the other point, we have had many san francisco public all alliance members in the crowd today. because of the way that this meeting has gone on, we have lost some of our support. i am submitting these 800 letters. thank you so much. supervisor avalos: next speaker, please. >> good afternoon, supervisors. my name is o'brien.

thank you for allowing me a turn to speak. a couple of things i wanted to weigh in on. one, the personal experience. when i came to san francisco, i came here without knowing anyone. i did not come here because i had a brother or sister, an aunt or an uncle. i just came totally on my own, setting up routes without knowing anyone. i enjoyed playing golf, occasionally. when i looked to find a golf course that was available for anyone that was not a member of a private club, or anything like that, i appreciated being able to play on a course that was open to the public. while there might be other alternative public courses, every course taken away takes away that opportunity. secondly, for the environmentalists who say that this is an opportunity to shine

to the world san francisco's true loyalty to nature and preserving the environment, i think it is equally an opportunity for the bay area to show the world how they can cohabitate and work together and share this planet together with their different ideological views of the environment. i think that we could spend some more time investigating the possibility of allowing both worlds to coexist. i feel very concerned that a branch of the government's, as in and it is a clean sweep, knocking away a public facility -- branch of the government comes in and it is a clean sweep, knocking away at public facility. it would be a shame to do that. not a good thing for government to do. as a father with two kids, every

weekend i can go somewhere different and i can take them someplace new each time. thank you very much. supervisor avalos: next speaker, please. >> thank you very much for giving me the opportunity to speak today. thank you, supervisor, for putting this legislation on the table. my name is danielle. i am a 10 year resident of san francisco. a concerned resident. a few points, so i will make it quick. it makes economic and environmental sense to restore sharp park. the legislation would transfer jobs from sharp park to other parks in san francisco. it does not make sense to partner withsah san mateo. environmental problems are sure to continue. closing sharp park will follow

revenue to other golf courses. lastly, there are many golfers who choose not to play there because of the poor conditions. it is in a wetland station. we need to think long term. i urge supervisors to support this legislation. supervisor avalos: thank you. next speaker, please. >> hello. my name is marilyn. for the last five years, as a family, my daughter, son-in-law, granddaughter and die, have volunteered twice per month, along with other home schooling families. we explore the wetlands, learn about environmental issues, and participate in habitat restoration efforts. for the endangered species, specifically the red legged frog and a garter snake, birds

and other wildlife, we have seen the effects. a sharp park wetlands are owned by the city of san francisco, but located in san mateo county. the city continues to support this expensive drainage, year round, of this sensitive, coastal wetlands, harming and threatening to read legged frog, putting the community at risk with floods, all for a golf course for a few. and i urge the board of supervisors and the city to take the lead in an environmental conservation, becoming the voice to protect the san francisco garter snake and bread frog, by voting to close at sharp park golf course, negotiating a long-

term agreement with the national parks service for a new sharp park, providing recreational opportunities that everyone can enjoy. thank you. supervisor avalos: thank you very much. >> thank you, supervisors. i am a student at uc-berkeley. this will save hundreds of thousands of dollars paid by taxpayers, and also save two federally listed endangered species. it will create protection of wildlife, offering jobs within the parks system to all who seek recreation from parks employees. the continued training and so sharp part will bring money back to the use of other welfare

programs, but also destroy the habitat of these endangered species. with that the survival of two wildlife species that place, shutting down the over-supply the golf course and turning it to a public park would give back the homes of the endangered wildlife. people have many opportunities to play other sports, try other recreational activities, and have other things to play. these animals only have one home. please support the legislation. thank you. >> my name is jason. i am a golf course architect. i wanted to let the board of supervisors know that while all the circumstances at sharp park are unique, the idea of golf courses and protected species coexisting is not a unique idea. this