jumbotron, a video screen on a barge that is approximately 10 stories long. the size is roughly the same panel that is directly on your wall behind you, and the category of both the environmental issues of sound, air, water, and the safety issues for our swimmers is paramount for my concern. the gravity of that is there is no mitigation for our swimming. there is no other place we could safely swim. the category of communications on a jumbotron has other options. the last category is we are in support, but our biggest concern is the safety of

themselve environment. the details have not been explained, but we do not want our water activity diminished more than it is now, and i invite you to either come for a swim, come to test the waters. we also have this sunday, and i invite you and the rest of the crowwd to the new year's eve alcatraz swim. you will see the category of 4000 per month. it is something you cannot sit nine or diminish. -- cannot deny or diminish.

>> we have 6000 members in san francisco and 30,000 in the bay area. i represent those members on the environmental council. we have been working for the last 10 months. we share some of the concerns about the pollution to the aquatic park area, also concerns about the golden gate park conservancy, the concerns of the national park service. it is important for our park lands to be protected. we have supported the america's cup since the beginning, and we continue to do so. we wanted to be as clean and sustainable as possible and for the city to be able to enjoy the

your own while it is going on. -- to enjoy their own city while it is going on. thank you very much. >> i represent the south beach yacht club. we support the certification of the environmental impact report and an immediate vote this weekend. we have concerns about traffic, increased cost, difficulty parking, and those sorts of things. we believe the amount of review and the comments and responses have been well done. our members and neighbors have followed along closely, and we are satisfied with how that process has taken place.

we believe it is appropriate to service via -- to certify the report tonight and focus on details of implementation, and that is where we are at now, and we are happy to assist with that. a key consideration is water access and how to increase the for the city. not for us it means a events that we do for us it means the events that are not racists -- for us it means of vans that are not -- events that are not races. we have seen interest among sailors, and if we can get city- backing, we will increase the amounts.

the ability to host another international of france -- international event. the redevelopment is hamstrung now, so we are hoping they can come together to increase access on the water. it is about jobs, access, environmental awareness, and we hope you will certify this report tonight. >> hello, my name is vincent, and i have lived in the bay area since 1963. i came to the bay area wanting to sail, and i came here wanting to do that. the fact of the cup has come to san francisco is something i have thought about for many years.

i wanted to speak briefly about what i saw take place in auckland over the two cops that were there. they took an underused waterfront area and did a huge redevelopment that included apartment buildings, shops, and the america's cup team. in really alter the city, and i think it has the opportunity to do the same kind of alteration to the waterfront common -- waterfront, and they made sure the area had plenty of public access, but they could have the same access they have started with. it was much greater because they had taken on used warehouses and made it part of the public domain. i also want to talk about what it will do for the media community. i am a videographer. i make my living shooting

sailboat races, and if you have seen any of it, you have seen them go head over heels. for me, this is a big opportunity, and i urge you to certify the eir so we can move forward with this. thank you very much. >> i am norman peers. i am a founding member of the yacht club. it is called fog city yacht club. this idea was spurred by the america's cup because there is a need for everybody in the city to participate. i have been fortunate enough to attend several america's cups in the past.

i have the opportunity to be in portugal and also in san diego. the event management, the oversight is extremely professional. they are very concerned with every aspect of the environment. they take the time and energy to clean up after they leave, and it is one of the best professional organizations i have seen. as far as its impact on the ecology and building, i think it is going to be nothing but positives. the awareness of we do have a waterfront and we have the ability to participate in recreation and taking advantage of the changing waterfront to the maritime recreation.

it would be very positive for our fiscal impact and growth in these hard times. we have people lined up ready to go. we just need your permission to launch 100%. >> is there any additional public comment on this item? >> good evening, chairman and members of the commission. i am from one of the largest and oldest neighborhood associations, and we have been thrilled to be working hard with the city for over 10 months to make this a winning a vent for all of us. it was also one of the first

groups to champion moving the center of america's cup from the southern waterfront to the northeastern waterfront. we are excited. sometimes it is said people who live on the waterfront do not want anyone to come here, that we are afraid of people visiting us and want to keep it to ourselves. nothing could be further from the truth. the people who live along the waterfront love it more than anyone. we want to show it off, and we are proud to do so. we are happy this is moving forward and expected to do so in a timely fashion. our concerns are that the environmental document failed to look of the actual impact. it treated it like an island unto itself, and this is where people are going to go to look at the america's cup, but they failed to consider with the

volume of traffic and noise might be, so we would urge you to take the time to do this right. it can be done in a timely fashion without rushing it, and we can make this a better event for all of us. >> thank you. >> good evening, commissioners. this is a san francisco nonprofit organization in california. our nonprofit-run businesses we have employed over 6000 individuals facing barriers to employment as well as supporting over 50 different non-profit-run enterprises. we are in support of the america's cup and are excited about the partnership to bring opportunities to the america's

cup. san francisco have a leading tradition, and we think the america's cup presents a fantastic opportunity to showcase that tradition of using such a prestigious event which with such impact to harness that efforts to improve local communities, so we encourage you to certify tonight. thank you very much. >> katherine hoover. and >> i speak before you wearing two hats. my first is representing the passenger cruise industry. most of my professional career has been in the professional cruise industry. i am happy to be back in my native san francisco. in my role as a marketer, one of

the things we did was market research, and there is no question that we have one of the most desirable sports to visit. i was blessed to travel the globe on passenger cruise ships and can say there are four or five gloria's ports in the world, one of them being in san francisco, hong kong, sydney, vancouver. one reason i am in support of america's cup, and i am not a small boater, but i am in support of sleep week because of the partnership and the results to have a proper professional passenger terminal. sadly what we are operating wilson is embarrassing ways of standard, and one of the benefits is going to have a fantastic, compliant, ecologically sensitive port facilities. just go down to the port and take a swim.

come down to the court sunday when we have a passenger ship, and you will wince. i admire the speed these partnerships have been evolved. the second half i am wearing, and i speak on behalf of sleekly because i am the operations director. we support america's cup, because a while we may suffer for a couple years, we support it because it once again what we are going to be left with after america's cup realizes the joy, will be some proper port facilities, because it is really sad. we have snaggletooth course -- ports, but what will be left is

going to be ecologically sound. it is going to give us the option to be compliant, and it will be a fantastic thing for fleet week to bring sailors back to our report. they had a fantastic time last year, but it was a struggle. i thank you, and hats off to america's cup for all the work they have done. >> thank you. >> good evening, madam commissioner, commissioners, and san francisco citizens. i am a member of the association of disabled sailors. we are so excited. not only are we excited, but we see this as a benchmark for so many things that are happening. furthermore, next monday, the 19th, oprah winfrey's network is going to feature sailing on the

bay in san francisco, even though our club is only 120 members, but we are all coming from sacramento, from santa cruz, as far as santa rosa, so even though we are a small group, we are very connected to the world through the media, and for us to be able to provide the visuals, the excitement, and not only the comfort and security of having a bay for the rest of the world, but knowing we have set an example of security, safety, economically common and environmentally. we are excited about that, because we have the opportunity to build this as a model for all

other merinos but are as large as san francisco or as small as one is in lakefronts, and i commend the commissioner to move forward with this, because this is going to prove that it is doable, and i would like to quote from "field of dreams." build it. they will come. >> thank you. >> good evening, commissioners. i am so delighted to come here tonight to be positive. all the years you see me i am usually a clown complaining. my name is frederick, and i am representing recreation and open space for the waterfront and to celebrate what is happening in my city. i have had the opportunity to

watch america's cup events from the time they were first taken to australia. i watched all the races in new zealand and the raise where he put the ac1700 i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i

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i know the amount of economic pressure a little bit. i know that mr. ellison and the folks associated with him have a little bit of political swag. and i have no illusions that this environmental impact report, all of the comments not with standing all of the good work of mr. weico not with standing, there are some things that could be better and san francisco's the town that knows how. normally these things are worked out between now and when the board of supervisors has to ultimately aadjudicate this matter in some number of weeks but this is getting a little complicated because the port commission is meeting tomorrow on this. and this cannot be appealed to the board of supervisors unless miss avery produces a motion. i think that creates great legal uncertainty as to how the port commission can hear this without a motion and how kit appeal to the board of supervisors to

create that space without a motion. so i would suggest that. >> is there additional public comment? >> good evening, madam president, commissioners, first and foremost, thank you so much for joining us on this journey. i'm monique moyer and it is my pleasure to serve as the director of the port of san francisco. the port of san francisco is san agency that is now 149 years old. it has assets that are older than everyone in this room by far and some of us like myself are already starting to feel that pain. we have been a city agency now for 40 years. it has been 50 years since an investment of this magnitude has been made in the port's assets.

the port was build by the port, by the workers of the state of california with one exception the ferry building. every other pier, 55 of them were built by the men and women and the engineers and the maintenance people who work for the state. 50 years is and i credably long time to not make a significant public investment in the port. and so you are here at a watershed moment. the crew ship terminal project is an extremely important investment. it is a public investment in our port. it comes with our same only in san francisco brand that is, it is a maritime activity married with an event activity, not just the america's cup but everything that will come there after, married with open space views, public space. you name it. what we don't talk about is what it will do for the protection of

the seawall and all of the fabulous property that lies in the seawall. and we've already heard from people i think you don't get to hear as often. i doubt the petty cab and the aisle of b.u. and the masters and pilots and the ferry operators get to come to your meeting. that struck me as rather remarkable to come here tonight. and i'm most grateful. we appreciate all of the help. your staff has been outstanding. the staff that have come together as the supervisor mentioned. i really urge you to support this effort at this moment in the port's history. thank you very much. commissioner olague: thank you. is there >> public comment is closed. >> we have to hear from the staff.

>> there is no commission reduce inflation -- no commission participation. the public hearing for this category is close. the only item on this category is item number 14, the america's cup and cruise terminal final environmental impact report, and this is before year-end as final certification of the final environmental impact report, -- before you in the final certification of the final environmental impact report. >> with me here today are

bill and jessica range from planning staff, and we also have peter albert', mike martin, and you have heard from monique, and we also have members from o'brien environmental. the item before you is the final environmental impact report for the proposed 35th america's cup cruise terminals and northeast project. it was circulated for review and comment on july 11. the hearing held a public hearing