the economic and racial mix that are the keys to a healthy, diverse, and vibrant city. that is why this community benefits agreement, the only one of its kind in san francisco, that we negotiated with the developer are significant. they provide a sorely needed investment into the future of the bayview hunters point and district 10. the benefits are broad. and they create access to new homes in the development for both low income and working class district 10 families and residents. and with the goal of stemming the loss of affordable housing in and around the surrounding area, this agreement is also part of a strategy to bring those families who have been displaced back to the community. [applause]

this agreement also secures funds for job training and workforce development grants, and provides the opportunity for stable, living wage careers in the community. later this month, we will be launching a community input campaign so that we may be guided by district and residents and our strategy for the use of the funds from our agreement. together, 8010 and the ic are committed to a transparent and accountable process that ensures all of the funds are deployed for the benefit of district 10 residents as an investment in the economic future of our communities. thank you. at this time, i want to introduce dr. hernandez. >> thank you. it is very nice to be here. i am glad i was here.

it is a real opportunity, i think, for the san francisco foundation to be playing the important supporter role that the community and lennar have asked us to play. we are a community organization that is committed to economic and social justice issues in district 10, as we are throughout the city and region. the specific rules we will be playing will be to administer these funds to have the maximum impact in support of the implementation committee in the areas of affordable housing and job-training, as has been mentioned. these are two areas that are the priorities to the san francisco foundation, and we have been investing in for many years. we look forward to as well a very accountable, transparent process. there have been many, many hours by the implementation committee to understand these types of programs and to begin to

understand how to have maximum impact. i want to thank all of them for their partnership, kofi for your confidence in the foundation. we look forward to continuing the work with the city. it is a day that is important in terms of getting the gift. it will be the best day when we actually have families living in the district, in affordable housing, and jobs that are really created to make economic prosperity. thank you very much. [applause] >> now i would like to ask mr. bonner, if you would -- and i want to ask members of the community, anyone who participated in any effort, to bring about this day, to please gather around for the presentation of the check. our friends from the fake-based

communities, or as labor, implementation committee, dr. hahn a cut, dr. walker, please.

>> good afternoon, everyone.

the meeting will come to order. this is the meeting of monday, april 30, 2012, of the land use and economic development committee of the san francisco board of supervisors. my name is eric mar. to my right is supervisor malia cohen and scott wiener. alisa medicaler is our clerk. -- miller is our clerk. >> please silence all cell phones. items acted upon today will appear on the may 8 agenda, unless otherwise stated. supervisor mar: thank you. ms. millioner, we have six items before you -- miller, we have six items. please read item number one. [item one read.] supervisor mar: thank you. colleagues, as you recall, this item was heard at the last meeting and then amended and approved, and then we heard

testimony at the last meeting that it's been continued to this meeting. it's a simple measure that would allow more attractive store fronts along the make merchant corridors of the richmond district and i strongly urge your support. in addition to the small business owners and others that are supporting this effort, it was also supported at the planning commission, where an amendment was made to also include another measure that supports small businesses by limiting lot mergers, so that smaller merchants have more of a say in the process. so, colleagues, if there are no questions, let's open this up for public comment. is there anyone from the public that would like to speak on item number one? seeing none, public comment is closed. colleagues, can we move this forward with a positive recommendation without objection? is that ok, colleagues? great, thank you.

ms. miller, our next three items, two, three and four, could you please call all three items together. >> [reading item number two] [reading item number three] [reading item number four] supervisor mar: thank you, madam clerk. we have this item that's sponsored by the hearing by supervisor olague. there's the other item sponsored by president david chiu, and then there's item number four that's sponsored by president chu and supervisor ferrell. why don't we start off with president chu. >> thank you, colleagues. i want to thank the members of the public that have been

focused on this issue of tour buses. to frame why we're all here, i know everyone in this room absolutely appreciates tourism as an economic engine for san francisco and the role that tour buses have in bringing millions of tourists here to sfg. i've seen in my district and i know supervisor olague has seen in her district that unfortunately we have had tour buses that have created numerous quality of life problems for quiet streets. we have had numerous complaints about tour buses idling too long, blocking traffic and using loud amplification systems. this is a topic that i've been working on for over a year with the san francisco m.t.a., with the police department, other city agencies as well as neighborhood folks in my district and representatives from the tour bus industry. there have been two things that we have done in my district to move this forward, and then today we are considering two other legislative items. and i know in addition to that

supervisor olague wanted to also hold a hearing generally about this topic but also specifically to hear from residents of alamo square, who i've also heard from from district five who have had issues around this. about a year ago because of some of these concerns in the north beach neighborhood, the m.t.a. moved forward with prohibitions of tour buses on certain blocks in the north beach area, and in particular, with some of the most quiet residential blocks in my district. in addition to that, i asked the m.t.a. to help develop our city's first tour bus management plan, and this is a plan that has proposed different solutions for better tour bus loading and parking throughout the city. and i'd like to ask -- i think jerry robbins is here -- to help outline what that tour bus plan policy is for my colleagues. in addition to that, i have two pieces of legislation, colleagues, that i'd like to ask us to consider. one is a piece of legislation

really to legislate the aspects of the tour bus plan that will be outlined from the m.t.a. the second piece of legislation deals with the topic of loud amplification systems. as i think many of you know, if you live in these residential neighborhoods, when you have open-air buses with loud loud speakers, particular during times of day that are not conducive to the quality of life of our neighborhoods, it creates issues. and initially i had proposed that we require our tour bus operators to implement essentially a headphone system. this is a type of system that has been used in other cities around the world. and i certainly got an awful load of feedback from the tour bus industry that this was a system that was going to have a number of implementation issues and cost issues. so i have introduced a substitute piece of legislation that was worked on with the tour bus operators and the san francisco m.t.a., and i want to

thank all the folks that worked in recent months to do this. the substitute legislation will establish a regulatory system by which our department of public health will license tour bus operators that have buses that have put into their control systems the ability to make sure that sound does not travel over 50 feet. and that is the state law requirement in this area. this is legislation that we unfortunately can't vote on today, because it requires a certain period of time for it to sit. but at the end of the hearing today, mr. chair and members of the committee, i'd like to ask that this committee call these items at the call of the chair to come back in two weeks, so we can vote on them and send them to the full board. and at this time i'd like to ask mr. robbins if you could outline what the m.t.a. has currently been doing to really address the situation of tour bus management citywide as well as to comment on the legislation we have in front. and i realize supervisor olague just came. and if it make sense, if you'd

like to make any opening comments to help frame this. supervisor mar: thank you for being here, supervisor olague and thank you for calling this hearing as well with president chu. >> when i first was appointed in january, this was an issue that was brought to my attention by a lot of neighborhoods or residents, particularly of the alamo square area, who were dealing with a lot of issues around noise smmbings the impacts and the -- some of the impacts of the tour bus stops and just the quality of life issues that were basically weighing on residents of this neighborhood. also, i believe that in many ways -- i'm glad that i had the opportunity to speak with the tour bus operators, but it just seems to me that at the time i wasn't aware that supervisor chu had been working for some

time on this issue. but one thing that i found is there seemed to be a certain way of approaching it that maybe was more focused on neighborhood impacts instead of citywide policy. so at some point i'm hoping that this is the first of several conversations. i haven't looked at your legislation yet, but i'm sure that some of these issues around noise that would have to go through the health department is a step in that direction. but i think in many ways that there doesn't seem to be a citywide policy around the behavior of this industry. so at some point i think it might be good to start the conversation here, but then to continue it and to really look more deeply at some of the other impacts that tour buses have on our neighborhoods. we are a transit-first city, so we certainly don't encourage individuals renting cars and

going about the city on their own. but maybe there are more productive ways in which we can engage muni around this issue, and also, i think there should be further discussions around the routes, the hours, the noise levels, of course, and the impact that it has particularly on neighborhood commercial districts and residential districts. so maybe there should be different rules that apply in residential districts and maybe certain considerations given to neighborhood commercial. i know that there have been times when i've gone down haight street, which is where these tour buses frequent and it's 1:00 in the afternoon and you're dealing with delivery trucks and you're dealing with tour buses, and you're dealing with pedestrians, and you're dealing with all these different people who are just trying to move around haight

street in the middle of the day. so i just think that we have to look at it more comprehensively than just d-3 or alamo square or whatever, because i do believe that it has to be looked at in a more comprehensive manner. i'm happy to be part of this conversation and look forward to finding solution sthass would ease the burden on residents who live in neighborhoods that are attractive to people who are visiting our beautiful city. dd supervisor mar: thank you, president chu and supervisor olague. i wanted to add also that a number of residents from eighth avenue and 15th avenue on the richmond side have often over a period of time complain beside the loud amplified sounds and also the increase, it seems, in the number of tour buses going through fulton street. actually not far from where i live as well. i'm impacted by it as well as the residents of the richmond

district. i know in some of the documents we have, it has some streets that are limited, and my hope is you can consider some of the streets in the inner richmond in particular that are also impacted. but thank you so much for calling the hearing. >> and mr. chair, if i could make one more comment, which is some of the things that i've been working on were specific to my district. but the tour bus policy that mr. robbins is about to discuss does have more citywide application, as does the legislation i have around loud speakers. i do think that if there are particular neighborhoods like alamo square or richmond or others that wants to think about additional restrictions in those neighborhoods, those are things that i would obviously be happy to work with you, supervisor olague or supervisor mar, in order to implement that. part of the conversation today is around the citywide management of tour buses. maybe it might make sense to hear from mr. robbins. >> eventually we may want to lock at certain citywide regulations and neighborhood/commercial versus

residential, versus look at the different zoning types, see what's there and move accordingly. so i think that might be one way of approaching. i and then eventually we'll want to have a conversation, i think, about the shuttles. but i think that is a separate conversation. supervisor mar: so, mr. robbins. >> thank you, supervisors. jerry robbins with the sfmta sustainable streets division. about a year ago our department drafted a tour bus parking management plan to look at tour bus issues throughout san francisco. some of the issues that are discussed in our draft report include improving enforcement of tour bus passenger loading zones, establishing more tour bus loading zones where necessary, establishing paid on-street parking spaces for tour buses, so they can park someplace when they're waiting for their tours to come back.

facilitating a plates for tour buses to be -- place for tour buses to be parked overnight. currently there isn't any place in the city where tour buses can park securely overnight. and also, considering the establishment of a permit program to permit tour buses to operate in san francisco, and that's something that the legislation that supervisor chu is bringing forward today would help us to accomplish. so that's pretty much summarizes what's in the plan. we've released it to all interested parties and we're happy to take comments on that draft proposal. >> could you tell the public what the process isst >> the first step was to make some changes to transportation code section one, which is on

the agenda this afternoon. the future steps would need to be approved by the sfmta board of directors following public hearings and outreach with all interested parties. >> i have a feeling there are a lot of folks in this room that would love to give you feedback as well as see this policy become enacted as soon as possible. do you have copies of it that you can circulate to folks who are here? >> i don't have enough today, no, but i can email them to anybody who would like a copy or send copies. >> so one thing i might suggest, and i know supervisor olague is in touch with her constituents and we are in touch with ours in district three, as i'm heaping to circulate this to all the folks who are here that we have emails to, and hopefully get any feedback over the next couple of weeks to then move our legislation forward that would implement one piece of that, and then hopefully kick it back to the m.t.a. to finish

up the rest. >> great. and i just wanted to mention that, i guess we have a list of presenters today. we may call you back, i'm quite sure. so thank you. >> i also know that there is someone here from the department of public health, and i'm not sure who that individual is. but tom, who manages noise issues, promised me that there was a staffer that was going to come to present on the specific proposal concerning loud speakers. >> good afternoon. my name is patrick, and i work with tom. he's the manager. couldn't be here today. i don't have a really prepared summary for you today, other than to say that the health department has reviewed the ordinance specifically around the idea of a 50-foot rule,

audability rule for the loudspeaker tour buses. we did do sort of a feasibility study of the buses to see whether or not that rule was practical and determined that it was. you can operate the bus and the audible speaker and have it not be audible from 50 feet away, and still have the people onboard hear what is being presented. the health department is in support of the legislation as written, and we'd fully be prepared to certify around that requirement. any questions? >> and if i could just, again, clarify for the public. so what is envisioned is for a tour bus to operate, an open-air bus that involves the amplification of sound, they would need to pay for a license fee. the department of public health would have staff that would do sound tests and make sure that the volume controls are such that maximum volume would not allow the projection of sound

beyond 50 feet. the 50 feet measure is established by state law, and that is why that was selected. and any bus that is not permitted to that specification could be cite and pulled over by the san francisco police department and not allowed to operate here in the city. so that's really the structure that we have suggested as a way to really get at this issue of open-air amplification. >> i just wanted to ask about the 50-foot requirement. so that helps me understand that it's a state requirement, but i'm just looking at this room. it might be about maybe 40 or 50 feet. so if the tour bus was near our clerk, ms. miller, you would still be able to hear amplified sound kind of on the other side of the room. i live off fulton street and i know a number of the neighbors are saying it's so loud you can hear it inside your place. so it sure sounds like 50 feet is a very lenient requirement.

so i'm hoping that we could look at other ways to reduce the amplified sound so it's not disruptive around surrounding neighborhoods around golden gate park and other spots, too. but it sounds like 50 feet is a pretty large area, and that could allow noise and tour bus that's are way too loud, i think. >> and if i could respond to that, because i actually had exactly the same reaction that supervisor mar did around the 50-foot requirement. and there are two things of note. first of all, there is a state law on this area. and for the local jurisdiction, like san francisco, to actually make it shorter than 50 feet could potentially create some issues. but just as importantly and perhaps, patrick, you could speak to this. i do understand that there were tests that were done by your department and tom, who manages this department, was present at the sound tests that essentially showed that this requirement, given the ambient noise of your typical tour bus

and the sound of an engine, that the 50-foot requirement -- the sound of an engine is about equivalent to what one would hear at 50 feet. so the loudspeaker is not louder than what you would hear from the sound of an engine at 50 feet. are you able to elaborate on that? >> yeah. that's pretty much exactly it. actually when we were kicking around the 50-foot rule -- and you're right, supervisor, the state has established that as part of the vehicle code, so that was kind of the starting point. but 50 feet is really not that far. 50 feet is not that far for sound to travel. so the tests were performed with the engines running, with the diesel engine running. and i think the initial concern was that at those levels, whether or not the people onboard would be able to hear what was being said if you couldn't hear it 50 feet away. but after performing the tests, we were able to work it out so

that there's an adequate volume so that the people onboard the bus can hear, but at that volume you can't hear it 50 feet away. it's not audible. one of the beauties of the standard is that it doesn't require an instrument reading, like many of the other noise ordinance requirements are here in the city. this is just an audible standard. so if you can hear it 50 feet away, it's too loud. >> and i think one other thing i'd just like to reiterate in my conversation with the tour bus operators. from my perspective, if we are able to move forward with this legislation and we don't see the type of impact that we're all hoping it's going to have on noise levels in our neighborhoods, i will look to the initial proposal that i had made and others to figure out how to really -- to really tighten down on this. but this would be the first time that noise from tour buses would be regulated here in san francisco. and i do think that the

standard, given what was just said about the 50-foot level not being above the ambient noise of an engine, is worth us moving forward with and seeing how it is applied. and i do actually think and expect that this will address the situation. but if it doesn't, we will be back looking at other solutions. >> yeah. i just also wanted to add that at least setting some kind of regulation is a way of placing the burden, really, on the tour bus operators as opposed to the residents, because at least they'll come into the city with expectations in terms of the noise and the impacts in that way. so i'm glad that we're starting the conversation certainly, but it may be eventually that if the noise impacts can't be mitigated, you know, with these laws in place, then we need to

look at routes that would avoid impacting certain residential areas. that's the other option. certain hours, certain routes. so thank you. >> mr. chair, would it make sense to go to public comments? >> there are other presentations today from the -- we'll be hearing from the neighborhood as well as the industry members. so we'll go ahead and start with the industry members, including john ballasteros from san francisco travel and mr. oppenheim, and then we'll end with the alamo square association board members, and then we'll open it up for public comment. >> good afternoon, supervisors. i'm john with san francisco travel association. thanks for having us today. i was just asked to sort of

begin by laying the framework on which tourism or the role tourism plays in san francisco. as you know, it's a vitally important driver of economic activity here in the city. last year 16.35 million visitors came to san francisco, and those visitors spent 8.5 billion dollars here, and that supported 71,400 jobs and at the same time contributed $526 million to the city budget. to put that in perspective, if tourism wasn't here, each tax-paying household would have to pay in excess of $1,500 more dollars a year in taxes to have the same level of services that we have in san francisco. now, going back to the $18.5 billion in spending from visitors, as we know, that includes