lines of construction. the communication has been the one major problem. i have been on the road since march so i have not been keeping up with this public health issue. there are issues with the irs and city college and even permits to operate a business repeatedly. i found all the communication had been done exclusively in english only. i oftentimes have to play the role of translating for him as well. i think what i am here to emphasize the point that we need to give him another chance and i think he has been completely and -- financially ruined. i could go into a lot of details beyond that but i do not have time. he is very much paralyzed because of what has been happening to his business. he has been there for 13 years.

during those 13 years, he could not be violating all those health codes. but i think is important for this commission to give him a red-herring so we can better present his case before you. -- a rehearing so we can better present his case before you. president hwang: thank you. next speaker. >> i have an overhead. can you turn that on? i am richard [inaudible] his restaurant being open for 13 years, often i went there to eat. lunch, dinners quite often. i never get sick from it. i do not go in there myself. i always go with a bunch of

friends. sometimes to tables, sometimes three tables. -- two tables, sometimes three tables and no one ever got sick from eating from the restaurant. business was good at the beginning. there was lots of fund-raisers for politicians, leland yee, willy brown was there quite often to, at the beginning. -- too, at the beginning. if anyone got sick or their friends, we would know about it. there would keep going back. and then, what happened? construction of the community college right next door. not even right next door. wall-to-wall. kicking up the dirt and the

noises of putting the pilings and hundreds of thousands of cement trucks go in front of it. they line up in front of his restaurant. so business went down. as morale went down, too. you nkow, -- know, he did get lots of notice, complaints from the health inspectors. he did not really take care of it. since it was closed and from time to time, i go in there for a cup of tea, he hire people, lots of his friends, trying to clean up for him.

i am very reluctant but he insists tuesday we down to his basement and show me how much more he has done. and how many refrigerators he cleaned up. there was really an effort even though after the restaurant closed, he tried to continue for the business. his whole life is life savings and all his friends were based on the restaurant. i hope that you will give them a rehearing and ask the inspector to inspect one more time. thank you for your consideration. president hwang: thank you. next speaker, please.

>> good evening. i teach at city college. for the past year, i tried very hard to organize teachers and staff of city college to help this restaurant. it is a shame that during these economic times, so many restaurants are closed in chinatown. give them a chance, give him a chance. i am willing to help him translate because i am fully bilingual. i would like to say please consider the economic climate in chinatown. if you close another restaurant, another one at another one, what is going to happen? i am the founder of an organization called a better chinatown tomorrow. which has nothing to do with restaurants but hopefully, by promoting traditions and art, culture to bring in visitors to visit chinatown. i had an idea of how to really

promote this culture through the eatery outfit. anyway, everyone has said so much about it and i plead you, please. give him a chance. i am willing to help and city college, the faculty also is going to help, too. we feel very guilty about this campus and dragging him for the last four years. thank you very much. president hwang: thank you. is there any other public comment? >> hello, commissioners. i with the san francisco small business development center. -- i am with the san francisco small business development center. i was his client and i am still his client. now he is my client, too. my work is to help small business in chinatown.

i am the only bilingual consultant. by -- we help small businesses in chinatown and other chinese- concentrated areas. i have worked with so many different businesses. i notice a lot of them do not know chinese and they were glad, he is glad that we have someone to speak chinese for us so i have been having a lot of them and that is how i got to know him. i used to be there, i never had any problem after eating there. in the last couple of years, i started helping him getting back his business. we usually provide technical support. there are some things we cannot do. what i have been able to come up with, i said, you have got to have something, if you've got back your business license, you

have to work for support. food safety is important and he understands that. he has a plan to how to upkeep of the food sanitary. we worked together to ensure the health and sanitary conditions of this restaurant is up to the city code of food safety codes. he always has pest control. in the last -- in the last century has had his business, i said make sure you are beyond the standard, about the standard. have the inspector -- pest control come two times a month. cleaning, usually it is three or four months of the time. he would have it every month. the dishwasher, maintenance every month. he has been doing that ever

since. also, struck the requires all employees to adhere and work according to the standard set forth by the department of health. also, the personnel to check the restaurants, the kitchen, bathroom, every hour on the hour. twice a day in the morning and after. i really wish that you could grant him a chance of a rehearing. thank you. president hwang: next speaker, please. -- any other public comment? >> good evening. for years, i have been a proponent for small business, especially restaurants. restaurants face many challenges today. in this case, there is a big

extenuating circumstance where he is a victim of where his location is. aside from compromising any safety, it sounds like to me the man did not have clear communication. he was going through the process of not falling -- and not fully understanding where he needed to be. we can see it is not only himself but the community that has gone behind him to help aid him through this process. i think we should grant a rehearing because at the end of the day, we will find out whether he needs -- meets all requirements and whether he can khristine all the requirements. but to close him down is going to cost family jobs and he will be in financial ruin and it will be devastating consequences that will spiral throughout the community. we're at a time where we're not starting from a round one. we're at the end of the road here. he their shapes up or he ships out.

at this point, i would think the consequences of him being shipped out tonight would have dire consequences on the community. we can give, rehearing and say get it right or we closing down. -- give him a rehearing and say get it right or we are closing you down. on behalf of this restaurant and the community, if we can have a rehearing and give him more time to get it right. president hwang: thank you. is there any more public comment? >> [speaking foreign language

-- [speaking foreign language] >> he was a worker there and because of this and he is off work and he really wished that he does not have to go for unemployment. so he really wishes the commission will be able to grant a rehearing so that he can get his job back. thank you. president hwang: there are other workers of the restaurant. they need to share in the original three minutes by the rehearing requestor. they are not outside part --

parties for public comment circumstances. president hwang: are there non-affiliated parties who wish to speak? >> how many workers are here? >> thank you. assuming there are no other members of the public who would like to speak. >> i have a few questions of inspector hong.

one of the points raised by the requestor's attorney that was not in any paper submission relates to the abatement hearing and the ability or the failure of the requestor to bring documents that would have shot that he had corrected those deficiencies -- sean that he had corrected those deficiencies. with that -- shown that he had corrected these deficiencies. would that have made a difference? >> we have seen these pictures before and they can be cleaned up and we have witnessed that and that is why we continued to work for the last three years. it is the custom return and cycle that does not end. it was not about showing as a piece of paper. president hwang: -- -- showing us a piece of paper. president hwang: if you were to

inspect today which has been suggested by the speakers, would that make any difference to you if it looks like a clean the shop? >> again, no. the reason we're here because -- are because of operational problems. a clean-up operation can be done over a weekend. we know that can be done. i am sure these pictures proved that to be the case. after working since 2007 and violations since 2010, it is the operational problems that lead to these structural or other for graphics -- photographs you have seen before you. president hwang: since this is your jurisdiction for inspection purposes, you testified here today and at the prior hearing on the merits that this is the worst situation, worst case

circumstances you have seen in 12 years you have been doing this work which is compelling testimony. i think one of the speaker stated a lot of other restaurants in chinatown are watching this case carefully. are you using this case in any way to set an example for the rest of the community? >> no, ma'am. i agree. they're watching this to see of the person so far out of compliance -- most of the restaurants are in compliance. to see that this allied air -- outlier would have a chance would send a reverse message. >> i have a question. if you're able to answer this question. how dangerous is it to have these conditions where people are eating food out of an establishment like this, particularly for children or

elderly people? how dangerous is it? >> dangerous for all people but you bring up a good point. we know scientifically that the immune system of children and the elderly and that is the predominant population in chinatown do not have the immune systems we have. when you get sick or you think you have a cold, it could come from food poisoning. probably the most underreported type of illness that people have. >> thank you. vice president fung: you had a long and extensive history with this appellate and his restaurant prebon -- appellant and his restaurant. >> two years. vice president fung: during that time, is this the only person you have dealt with? >> no.

vice president fung: are there other people involved on a management basis? >> the workers who have been there in the past or sometimes he has had people who have identified themselves as his friends who wanted to help him. vice president fung: no partners or anything like that? >> i have not met any. identify themselves as partners. -- identifying themselves as partners. >> you have been the inspector in this area for two years? >> i took over in late 2010. the documentation is mostly mine but the prior inspector. the 2010 evidence was from the prior inspector. >> how many meetings or hearings did you have with the restaurant during that time, at least when

you were involved? >> typically it would be as little of -- as to inspections a year. i made 10 inspections over the last two years and the last made 2 in 2010. one abatement conferences, we usually turn someone around. we have had three. we were trying to avoid were becomes more irreversible in terms of a decision. >> 3 abatement conferences and a hearing and -- >> i have had two and the inspector before me also took him into an abatement conference. it was violated -- decided that the next violation would bring him in but we chose to string it along hoping there would be

better compliance and partner in public safety and health. president hwang: thank you. vice president fung: i have a question for counsel for the rehearing requestor. you or whoever from your side. one of the largest issues here is whether your client after multiple opportunities is going to be able to now toe the line, so to speak, with respect to something that is not rocket

science. >> i understand that. i do believe at every hearing a plan will be in place. it is already in place to address those issues but part of the problem and again, it is a fairness issue. we're not judging the rehearing. what the department has come in and said is there is a systemic problem and i believe they said to the president's question, it is not a question if they did every inspection -- a re- inspection, the notice said there were three issues here. only in english. you have an abatement hearing because we have a notice of violation. they did not say this is a notice of a historical problem and you have not cleared this. i know that this is the department's position. their position does not conform

with the notice the issued. the notice they issued, there is an issue of whether it was understood or whether it was understood to present the documents. the notice says three issues. three violations on the 22nd. it did not say whether you fix them or do not fix them you are done. we had enough. you need to show us that you have a new operational plan in place. there was none of that. that is the basis and that is a fairness basis for a rehearing. there were only three items that were listed. vice president fung: we have heard this argument. thank you. >> i want to thank the people

who came out to speak. that was compelling and very moving testimony. frankly, i am moved on one of these -- i one of these kind of people who want to give people another chance, but i have the images from the work done by the department to assist this individual, and those images are not going to disappear from my memory write off. the compelling testimony here by the public, i think is important in informing my decision that it is going to have an impact on the community. this is something that is very important to many people that this restaurant stay in business. the problem from both -- if this

were a hearing on the merits, the problem is it is too late. the rehearing request does require more material -- new material. this evidence existed at the time of the last hearing. from that standpoint and the standard we need to apply for purposes of granting a rehearing request has not been that -- met. i am not sure whether i would be persuaded to allow this business to continue at this time. vice president fung: i have some comments, also. i would agree that the bar on rehearing requests is quite high and most of the presentations that were made

really brought back most of the same discussion that occurred in the first hearing. the one part that was not focused on and perhaps can be considered to be new information relates to and it is only in the brief. it was only rarely discussed by the people here. talking about perhaps an infusion of for their finances. perhaps -- for their finances -- further finances. there is no doubt on a couple of things. the department has not been unsympathetic in the number of times they have proceeded to try

to work out the situations here. the number of inspections, the number of abatement hearings, all these kind of things leads, i accept what they said in terms of what it meant and have not been accomplished by this operator. it is difficult for me to accep t that it is totally a language issue. it potentially could be. the number of times that this occurred leads me to not accept that tollway. i do except, however, that it was a difficult economic time. i have no comments on what the construction did. most of us who know construction know that when you are dealing with old buildings adjacent to new construction, there is a difficult interface, whether it is from pests or dust and

shaking of the facilities. and i considered what was presented in the brief in terms of financial infusion and additional management support to be new information. i would support a rehearing but i would add a caveat. only after the department has gone through and given it a clean bill of health. >> i agree with what a lot of people said. it seems like the department of public health should not be in the present -- business of closing down restaurants. they -- or educate businesses on

how they should run their business and it seems the department has done less -- done this in this case and it has given an opportunity for the situation to be abated. it is unfortunate that a lot of what has happened, the community that has come together here were coming at a late hour after a significant work by the city and the health department trying to fix these issues. >> would -- what i would add is we did hear this case previously when we voted to uphold the revocation. given thehistory -- the history of that case and what we heard at that hearing, the fact that now a language barrier is being raised does not seem to me to be

something i can rely on to find extraordinary circumstances. the fact that there is new economic support does not go to the heart of the issue to me, which is is about public health and protecting the public from dangerous good conditions. i don't see any basis at this point to grant every hearing in this case. it is very unfortunate, the economics? -- economic circumstances that may be prevented this gentleman from fixing the problems and it is unfortunate the campus was built in his vicinity and affected his business, but all that does not go to the heart of the matter to me, which are the persistent violations over years and years. my feeling is that perhaps so