traditional coffee shops, restaurants and things that the community might be able to use, all the way to larger venues that might house entertainment related to late night activities and so forth. but also shopping, food, and other kinds of facilities. they were not large footprint. they're designed to take regular retail modules. >> okay. and then on the exterior -- building's exterior, you mentioned an open air walkway. and in earlier reports the examiner had mentioned besides the observation deck a possible roof-top terrace. what are the plans for that? >> that's under consideration very seriously at the moment. but, of course, we are still working through cost mott hethxv. but the goal is to provide that kind of open access to the edges of the building. * models. we do need facilities to get people out of the building so the goal is to try to combine those with open access when there is not a venue in the

facility operating. the seawall side has been of tremendous concern for many people. we understand that. i'm going to move very quickly. we're almost finished. the idea here is to focus now more attention on this site. tremendous amount of energy has been spent on the pier sites. just to show you what is sort of the general zoning restrictions on this site, you can build up to about 100 feet high with relatively small tower-type footprints above a podium. this allows itself to about 600,000 square feet of area that we could build up to. but we didn't find this very appealing. we found it very problematic. so, we are so far exploring designs that have about 100,000 square feet less than what might be allowable. we are also minimizing the height of the podium down from, it could be about 100 feet down to around 50 feet. and we're trying to compress the rest of the activities that are necessary for the site to create the appropriate cost

model into a smaller footprint. some people calm them towers, but they're relatively low and certainly lower than the adjacent structure that are nearby, for example, the water mark. we understand the concerns and we're trying to work through that. there is a workshop tomorrow night. we're going to get feedback on. this we're going to try and work with that feedback to see if we can find a design that will be appropriate to those people that live nearby. but we do like the proposal that we've created primarily because it does open up a number of views. and if you can see here on the north side of the site, we've cutback the footprint so that the area at main street and bryant is an open space that allows for views and movement across the site without interfering with the facility itself. now, there are a number of use studies we're doing and i know people might say, well, you know, you already showed us one view study that puts the triangle of buildable space way out to the east. well, we can't very well build

out to the east. on the seawall site we pushed the higher impact facility, these two 100, 150-foot high towers as far away from the center of the site a possible to promote a large range or large spectrum of views from the surrounding. we're still working on the exact placement of that. or if that's really the appropriate design, but this is just to show you where we are that we're taking these concerns to heart. so, here's a prospective sketch which really is nice i think to show the impact of the buildings we're creating. in the center there is the water mark, which is the only adjacent building directly on the site. and to either side of it, proposed blocks, proposed residential hotel towers. they're significantly lower, sit atop a podium. take out the podium you see the red line points out the height of the surrounding neighborhood. you're given a fairly wide berth of view by pushing these to the side. at least that was our intent,

to create as much openness as possible. we are nearly done. this is a view from the water mark building looking out across the site. because the arena has been pushed far away, its impact of obscuring the horizon line is lessened. and here is generally the red line shows the outline of the existing pier front as it is today. these are just some outdoor uses we're planning for the open space. the open space is about 7 acres. to put that in context, the amount of open space being provided by this project that is publicly financed is about four union squares in size. so, if you open the union square, you stick four of those next to each other, that's how much open space is being provided. all around the waterfront, every edge of the pier will be provided direct maritime use, fire boats, ferry, a docking facility, the water taxi, and human-powered launch, craft launch area to the south. we are situated in a very

interesting location. in some ways, more integrated to public transport than even at&t park. as the transbay terminal is finished, you'll see here that it's equidistant to many of the facilities being planned there. about seven ways to get to the site. * in addition to cars which are obviously are hoping will not occur. there are a number of public transpour venues we are designing this project around. we are providing bicycle routes and pedestrian routes entirely around the perimeter of the building. open access to the core of the pier. exit ways that distribute people over a wide range of areas after an event occurs. and as you can see here, we're pulling the entries and exits very far back from the embarcadaro which many people are aware of at&t park today all the exits and entrance is right off the street, this will create a different kind of atmosphere where people can gather. and it is actually a much smaller venue. we hope the impact will be

diminished. although today there are no cars on the site. it has historically parked up to 1500 cars and we're trying to reduce that number to about 6 30. and we're working with some of the key transportation figures here, as peter mentioned earlier, to design some of the complex crossings where bicycles, cars, and pedestrians will cross at the northeast corner. so, we're opening up those zones and creating a controlled and managed traffic plan for that key portion of the site. and i just want to conclude by saying one sentence as i'm at the end here. we very much appreciate and are focused on the fears and concerns of the neighborhood. i myself live in an urban waterfront community in new york city that is undergoing significant development. so, i have all of the same concerns in the area where i live and i take them very seriously and so do we all. but we are trying to create a situation that will alleviate those fears and concerns and at the same time provide economic

development and job growth for the neighborhood for the city and the region. we're focused on making this a place where families and other people of the neighborhood and the city can enjoy themselves. and the space that is today a surface parking lot of about three acres in a degrading concrete pier. this is something we all feel we can only improve the quality of life, the property and social values of the neighborhood as we take the concerns of those nearby to heart. thank you very much. >> thank you, mr. dikers. i actually just had a couple of comments, more comments than questions. i just want to express -- by the way, thank you so much for the presentation. the design is beautiful, and i thank the comments and feedback that we got. there is general consensus that it was presented to the neighborhood, it was quite stunning. but, you know, as we've heard some of the concerns from the neighborhood -- and i just a kind of want to put it out

there, when we're introducing a project, we often kind of put out a design of all the bells and whistles. and so the concern is we promise [speaker not understood] and when the actual project comes forward, real costs come into play and start to whittle our way at the positive aspects of the plan about the neighborhood dikes. i want to, as we move forward, i want to have a realistic presentation as possible to the neighborhood so that what actually gets built on that site, if it gets approved, is what we actually show to the neighborhood. so, i just want to bring that up. around the open space, i think the open space is incredible. i think it could actually increase public access to the waterfront which i think is the goal of the project. i love the transparency. i love that people can use the arena even if they're not going to a game or an event. it is actually quite large. i remember when walking to the press conference walking from embarcadaro all the way to the edge of the site, i didn't realize how long that walk would be in my heels, actually.

so, it is a very large site and i think there's a lot we can do with it. i just want to make sure that we create open space that's usable because sometimes we create open space and the public doesn't utilize it. and then it becomes more of an issue and concern than a benefit. and one thing that i -- you know, we talked about that i liked was even more kind of recreational spaces and being that it could be a basketball arena and having outdoor basketball courts is something we would see the neighborhood utilize. basketball courts are popular in all of our neighborhoods. i notice when i pass by them they're used in all hours. it might be a fitting parallel given what's happening. i think a lot of our youth would be excite today play basketball outside by the arena as well. i know wind is a concern, that's come up in the design. i've seen some sheltering. for it to be usable, we want to ensure that we look at wind. and another issue that i've heard is in how we designate rules for privately owned

public spaces pudx. people have brought up to me, can we do there what we do at dolores park? i'm not advocating we do that, but i think a community process with the neighborhood about how we manage that privately owned open space would be very important. * puds so the neighborhood feels they have input in terms of how far we utilize that open space. last, in if -- terms of the retail, i appreciate the warriors said they wanted [speaker not understood]. i think that shows a commitment both to the history and also to supporting small businesses in the neighborhood so they also benefit from this project and aren't pushed aside in order to create the best project for the project sponsor as possible. i think in terms of the access to the retail, we want to make sure that there is as much access because it seems to be on the second floor and i just want to make sure there is as much interplay with the ground level and the retail as

possible so we're creating more pedestrian flow that creates skipping safety in the neighborhood during the daytime. and, so, last, i think i brought this up, i have concerns about public parking in the neighborhood. i'm not sure what would be better, less public parking or more public parking. we want to make sure we're addressing congestion. so, i just hope that we kind of adequately study that as we move forward. whatever we can do to reduce congestion in the neighborhood and not making a parking lot i think would be the number one priority of the neighborhood. the last question that i have is not necessarily for mr. dikers, but actually for the city. this is something that's come up. this is a beautiful design. it's really clear why this would be an iconic location for the warriors given its proximity to the bay bridge and also proximity both to bart, the new transbay terminal, and

caltrain. the one question that comes up often at our neighborhood is how thoroughly do we explore other sites? and, so, i don't know if this is a question for mr. rich or ms. matts. that is something i think has come up a lot in neighborhood discussion. >> ken rich interest again from oewd. the site has been the focus because of the many very key advantages it offers and also as we hope have been devon straighting trying to work on some of the challenges as well to take advantage of those, the advantages of the site. the environmental process, which is just able to start because -- well, the action you will hopefully take at the full board tomorrow, requires us to examine at least one, if not more than one, alternative site required by the ceqa under state law is done. that alternative site must be something that has fewer impacts than the proposed sites. so, that will have to happen. i think early -- that will be

identified and worked into the environmental process. >> and i just want to say, i think this is a great potential site. of course, it comes with its challenges given the density of a residential neighborhood that's been built up over the last ten years. i hope through the eir process we do more than give the alternative locations lip service that we truly explore them so that members of the public feel that we really give that an adequate look. thank you. >> should i respond in any way? i can only just say a few things very quickly. >> sure. >> retail i thought was one of the key ones. if you look at the design, you'll see that each of the modules of the retail is set up like a pier. it's about the same width as one of the finger piers, 28. if you go through pier 28 going through the central opening, you'll see how big that really s. you can imagine retail on either side of it, just like a pier. it's only about one-third the depth of a pier.

so, as you move through the retail, you move through retail on either side and up onto the next terrace. and that terrace above also leads in the same retail. it's like a split level kind of design where there is a tremendous amount of access all along the embarcadaro. that is the proposal right now. so, we're hoping to enliven the embarcadaro with that design. the other thing i wanted to mention very quickly was in terms of climate and outdoor space. we are working with landscape features as well as physical architectural features to diminish the impact of wind on the raised plaza and, of course, the arena itself will create turbulence that we have to study and understand. while this is something we're very much accustomed to and will be part of the process, design process in the future. >> thank you, mr. dikers. >> i like how everything builds around that red java house on

the northwestern corner. >> they have great breakfast sandwiches. >> and i like the bicycle routes around the structure. that sounds wonderful. i was going to say i agree with supervisor kim on making sure that open space is accessible for the public. i'm just wondering, is there any consideration of play grounds or family type space? i know there is a kayak area but i'm wondering kind of in consideration of families that live in the area if there is any building of the open space for that kind of recreational use. and then my last question is you mentioned four union squares in size. that's for the total 7 acres of open space. >> yes. >> not the full project. >> the four union squares is the size of the pier. and we have about two acres, a little over two acres of open space -- sorry, four union squares is the size of the pier and two union squares are the amount of open space. >> okay. >> i probably made an error

when i spoke. >> and, mr. dikers, what about consideration of family use for the open space? >> yes, it's an interesting question because for many years, certainly in the '70s and '80s it was considered important to specifically design social functions into space. so, you'd go to a courtyard and you'd see like a little amphitheater and that was for a certain kind of thing. we found over the years making design specific doesn't promote use. instead, what you do is you provide a variation of spaces that can be used and occupied in different ways by different people at different times. so, our proposal currently shows a very wide range of types in space. some have steps that lead to them. some are soft, some are hard, some are high, some are low, some are narrow. each of those little places can be occupied in a different way. we haven't put in any sand pits or anything like that if that's what you're asking. >> one would be petco park in san diego that has a children's playground area with direct

access to view the padres playing, i guess. >> right. >> there is no consideration of those kinds of things. >> along the south edge as i mentioned earlier, there is a lower -- all of the south edge connects directly to brandon street wharf project which has soft scape related to t. so, in fact, we're designing a park-like access there i suppose you could say is softer than concrete or some other kind of surface that you could play in or gather in if you're younger. >> thank you very much for your time. >> thank you. * >> supervisors, noe we've been running late. i want to give a quick minute to representatives from the [speaker not understood] and office of disanalyst to speak briefly on their involvement in the project with your permission. >> thank you. good afternoon, supervisors. i had it all prepared but i'll keep it brief.

i'm assistant deputy chief ken lombardy [speaker not understood]. along with that i'm in charge of our earthquake safety emergency response bond which the voters of san francisco passed in 2010, recognizing that the fire department had many aging buildings and facilities that were not seismically safe. and, so, over the past two years the fire department has identified several properties and one of those properties is pier 22-1/2 where we currently have our station 35 which also mans two fire boats which is basically a block away from this facility. we have had this facility on our radar to redo and we're planning on redoing it. and along with doing that, we would be redoing the piers out the back to accommodate also not only our two fire boats but a third fire boat that we have coming this fall. while doing this research we were approached about the i warriors and been asked if we would want to be part of this other project here at 30-32.

there's many benefits to this. easily, 30-32 is a bigger project. could easily house the three fire boats. so, we would not have to rebuild the piers out the back. we could remove those piers. it would be better for the community. we would create more open space. give more views behind pier 22-1/2. the historic fire building would stay there. but those piers in the water would be removed and it would move the three fire boats that we will have when this project is completed down to piers 30-32 which can easily accommodate the fire boats, it would be a great maritime use down there and would be a great facility for the fire department. >> just a quick question. does this match the timing needs for the fire department? >> actually, as you're well aware, supervisor kim, we've met with you and we've been producing this project. right now currently, if we went our own road at pier 22-1/2, we'd be getting done around the end of 2017 which is basically the same time as this project. >> thank you. >> that would be perfect. any other questions? >> none.

>> thank you. >> thank you. >> good afternoon, supervisors. i also will keep my comments brief and out of respect for your time. but i'm carla johnson, the interim director with the mayor's office on disability. and as you understand, we are the city's overall a-d-a coordinator here to make sure that all of our city programs and services and facilities comply with americans with disabilities act. and part of our role is actually to perform an architectural access plan review of important city projects as they come forward. we prefer to be involved with the city projects at the earliest possible stage and understanding that and [speaker not understood] the office of economic and work force development called a meeting that i was involved with about ten days ago in order to introduce me to the important project at an early stage. i had an opportunity to review the conceptual drawings and also to ask some fairly detailed questions about the

universal design concept which was all entries are accessible entries. all paths have an accessible path collated right next to it and so forth. i have to say i was very impressed with design. often our office has to take on an educational role along with our regulatory role and try to teach designers about access compliance. that wasn't really the case here. i felt that the developer had done their homework and the designers [speaker not understood], it includes accessible site features and the surrounding open spaces and the park areas and the boat launch and also the approach to the [speaker not understood] entries. we discussed program access for special outdoor events that might take place out in the open spaces, and we also discuss accessible boat docks. as we move into the inside of the stadium, you know, under plans yet to be developed, we also come across issues about obtaining accessible line of

sight. [speaker not understood]. this office is a lot more detailed review as this goes on as the concept evolves into fund r finished design. i also do have the commitment from oewd to be part of those discussions and be to be able to be certain that the access is built in from the very beginning. and that's something that we had to show horn in at the very end. thank you. >> thank you. there are no questions. at this time through the chair, maybe we can open for public comment. >> we're limiting it to two minutes per person. supervisor wiener? >> i have a question for oewd. [speaker not understood]. i wanted to raise an issue you and i have talked about privately relating to the stadium and night life. >> yes. >> that in many ways, even

though it's going to be a great venue for the warriors, it's going to be used for entertainment -- i shouldn't say entertainment because it could be [speaker not understood]. an awful lot, that is going to be a real key purpose of the stadium. i know when the cac was put together there was no one from the entertainment industry on the cac which i thought was -- i know was a complete oversight, it wasn't intentional. i know you assured me that [speaker not understood] in the community would be involved in the planning process. i want to make sure we're continuing to really take into account the fact this is an entertainment venue. i think that community can have a huge contribution in making sure that it is successful both in terms of design, working with the surrounding neighborhood. i want to see if we can get a little update on that. >> thank you. supervisor wiener, we very much take seriously your questions and the need to integrate the

entertainment and night life community into the design and programming and thoughts around this arena are critical to its success. the warriors have reached out to event promoters in the area in order to start talking to them about some of the specifics around the design. it is their intention not to have this facility be designated to one particular promoter, but it had to be an open house that all promoters could book actsv and shows into. in addition, we have reached out to the entertainment commission to start working with them and through them to talk to folks that are interested in using the facility, not just the main [speaker not understood] of the a rectionverctiontion a but also the smaller multi-purpose room and the outdoor space on a year round basis. as you'll see in the attachment to the conceptual framework as part of the feasibility report where it talks about that number of events over the course of a year, the vision is

really a variety of events of different sizes. the intention is to design an arena that can really be collapsed to host shows and events that are -- that attract a wide range of audience and different size audiences. so, that means really reaching out to the full breadth of the entertainment and night life community. in addition we're working very closely with sf travel to ensure that this venue is complementary to the convention -- the convention industry and the tourism industry and making sure that those types of uses are also fully addressed. and i believe we also had alex rosenthal who represents the night life music consortium here at budget and finance talking about her organization's ongoing support and commitment to working with the warriors as the proposal moves forward. >> thank you. >> okay, thank you. so, at this time we'll open up

for public comment. >> supervisor kim, can i just ask, ms. matts, can i just ask if you could summarize the public benefits? i know we mentioned the benefits of the port. [speaker not understood] went over those. i think from the budget committee's discussion, i think it was last week, 5,000 full-time jobs, about 2800 -- 5,000 temporary jobs and 2800 permitted jobs and about $80 million annually from visitor spending to the city. * permanent also mentioned by the fire department, fire boat station and 7 acres of public open space. was there anything else that's left out of those public benefits from the development? >> i do think it's important about the 7 acres of open space, for commitment of the warriors to maintain all of that open space. in addition, the three sides of the pier that would be active for maritime use really not only forward the port's goals

of having continued maritime access, but really do provide some pretty wonderful water-based amenities for residents and visitors. whether it's the water taxi or the ferry or the excursion boats including the boat launch and the potential of a deep water berth on the eastern edge of the pier. another sort of ongoing public amenity is just the walkway around the edge of this pier and the spiral going up to the top. you can really envision becoming a destination unto itself. and being a place that people want to go and experience on a regular basis. the varieties of open santa fetion and the ways they are -- have the potential to be both programmed and unprogrammed, i think it would be a real neighborhood amenity as well as being a gathering spot. and the multi-purpose room or the space that is really the size of a full professional-sized basketball court is envisioned to be a

community space that can be accessed and used by the community in a myriad of ways. having a space on that northeast corner that is envisioned to be glassed in, open to the advice taz, something to be used is really an amenity that is lacking. * vistas the south beach is a beautiful room. it is used all the time. but to have this type of space on the edge of the pier we think would be really enhancing. >> thank you. >> thank you. so, at this time we will open up for public comment. [speaker not understood]. i have a meeting scheduled. i'll try and push it back as much as i can. i'll call the first five speaker cards. jamie whitaker, glenn da leanhart, [speaker not understood], barbara, and david hartzell. good afternoon, my name is

jamie whitaker -- >> sorry. please feel free to line up on this side of the chamber if i called your name. thank you. good afternoon, my name is jamie whitaker. thank you very much. -- for having this hearing. i took a break, went to the rest room and i overheard some conversation that was basically i'm just looking to get a piece of the pie. that's fine. we all need to make a living. but my fear is that while a lot of folks are pursuing a piece of the pie, whether it be building trades unions, members, hotel union, lawyers, political lobbyists, they're creating a dichotomy. what is getting lost in the process is the speed which this is going through, environmental and impact review in nine months instead of the typical year and a half is the health impacts that could be made worse by increased traffic congestion and e