stadium so people didn't get hit by the disks during track meets. it's used for various events and we've worked with coaches and athletic directors in the area to preserve this in our plan. the park is presently irrigated by a quick coupler system that's manually operated. there are pipes underneath the park and quick couplers all over it. if you visit it, you'll see gardeners moving sprinklers from one quick coupler to the next. and it's resulted in somewhat marginal maintenance of the lawn. so, a part of our plan is to install an automatic irrigation system in the area. this is the plan and you can see by the plan there is a new accessible path leading from lincoln way across and through to the main body of golden gate park. we did reach out to the

department of public works to establish a new crosswalk there across kesar drive. presently the existing crosswalk is at the left there. people have to cross into an island and wait at an island and cross to get to the children's playground. so, we did manage to secure an assurance from the department of public works that they would establish a new crosswalk there with crossing lights to make a direct link into the park. and our plan consists of increased planting at the edge at the southern edge to kind of shield the parked cars from view and reestablish the meadow as a form. there are a few new trees that will be planted in the park. there are new entry areas that will have kiosks.

trash cans and features of the park that will kind of locate people where they are and direct them into the area. we had located along the pathway several locations for benches that will allow people to sit and enjoy the park while we've maintained the openness of the space. you can see in the plan the kind of triangle of the discus. so, this was a major thing that came out of the public meetings, was to shift the path out of the way of the discus thrower so people could have a safe passage across. the path will consist of a natural paved, much like what is at the new lafayette park out at lands end and it's a good stable surface that's accessible. we have talked to the accessibility coordinator about this and seems accessible --

acceptable to them. the next is a planting scheme. we vetted the plants with the parks department, so, they've looked at all the trees, looked at all the shrubs. and the main thing about the shrubs is that they will be low, low enough to look into the park but high enough to shield the cars along the south. there is one particularly dedicated natural art space you can see in the circle there to the right that will be a kind of agricultural changing exhibit. but i think sam and carla might talk a little about that afterward. so, the next is some of the plants that will be used [speaker not understood], there are existing [speaker not understood] in the park that will reinforce and we'll plant

some new iron wood trees as well. some of the other plantings are shown here. the arbutist will highlight the entryways of the space. strawberry trees, and the plants will be -- the interesting thing is with the new irrigation system, we think that the maintenance, dedicated maintenance work on the park will be dedicated particularly to maintenance of the plants in the park as opposed to moving around hoses to take care of the lawn. so, that concludes my presentation. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> thank you, jeff. as we mentioned, in addition to the paths and the additional plantings, the friends of kesar triangle group, they have worked with the community to form the kesar triangle arts coalition. the arts coalition is a

volunteer-run advisory and planning group that combines art, ecology, and community engagement to support activities and cultural infrastructure at kesar triangle. there has recently been local interest and art programs, art programming and created more artful and inviting entries to golden gate parka long lincoln way. [speaker not understood] curating and supervising art component of this project. at its july 2013 meeting, the arts commission approved five nature-based temporary public art projects and i can show you pictures of those. this first one is by daniel

mccormick and o'brien. these artists plan to create sculptures from world and natural elements at the entryway of kesar triangle. these sculptures will celebrate the environment and eventually become part of it. not only will they look beautiful and interesting, but they will help prevent the reoccurrence of erosion at the mark of the entryways and protect the planting and direct people onto the paths. mr. mccormick and ms. o'brien have created natural art installations in golden gate national recreation areas and the east bay regional parks and their sculptures have been on display at local museums such as the [speaker not understood] museum. the next event is by cameron hawkinson, and he intends to install temporary ground installations most likely little areas for people to sit. and he hopes that they will serve as an artful and interesting element to the

park. the quigley house is an original idea from the arts coalition. according to local historian patrick quigley was the superintendent of construction in golden gate park from the early 1870s to 1912. patrick and his large family, they had at least seven children, lived in a house situated in kesar triangle. patrick lived in the house until he passed away in 1912. then the house stood empty and was considered haunted until it burned down in 1914. the idea behind this art project is to use 400 pieces of recycle ed brick to outline where the quigley house once stood and the 400 is to honor the past and present golden gate park staff.

this is another original idea from the kesar arts coalition which also has a historical reference. this triangle is an example of one of the types of agricultural art projects that is being proposed in the plan and the idea is to plant barley since this is a natural plant and was once grown there to feed the horses. this is an example actually of an art project that the arts commission considered more landscaping rather than art. so, this was not one that they thought the need to review or approve, but i did want to share it with you today just to show you some of the beautiful ways that artists can install some natural art that sort of is there for people to enjoy and then kind of blends in with the current grass.

this is an idea to add some color and beauty to the discus cage while it is not being used. this is an anonymous artist who may be able to decorate the cage. and as i mentioned, the friend of kesar triangle have had numerous picnics and social gatherings at the triangle and they plan to continue doing so. the m-o-u before you establishes the framework for collaboration between rec/park, the parks alliance, and the friends [speaker not understood] this project. the agreement [speaker not understood] assigns roles, responsibilities to design construction of the project. specifically the m-o-u includes the following provisions. the san francisco parks alliance as fiscal agent to the friends shall provide all labor, materials, and project and construction management services necessary for the completion of design and the

construction of the project in accordance with this hopefully commission approved conceptual plan. the parks alliance again is the fiscal agent shall provide funding and services necessary to implement the conceptual plan. the proximate budget value in place of the landscape improvement is valued at up to $650,000. in addition, there will be a cash gift to support the cost of one of our project managers from the capital division to oversee the construction document review process. and also construction. the city, of course, shall be responsible for the maintenance of the project according to the proposition fee maintenance standards. as you may have noticed, the conceptual plan does president have a typical donor recognition plan like cabrillo playground like we see some some of our other parks. the friends at this point are not proposing any formal or permanent recognition.

however, i think that it may be nice when the time is right to install an appropriate plaque honoring the friends of kesar triangle, specifically honoring david and carla crane and their foundation for supporting such a beautiful project. if that decision is made, then of course that plaque will be in accordance with our guidelines under the recognition and plaques. that's about it. that concludes our presentation, but we're happy to answer any questions. thank you. >> thank you. >> i have three cards. dee [speaker not understood]. carla crane. and sam bower. good morning, commissioners and director. [speaker not understood] with the san francisco parks alliance. we're the fiscal sponsor for the friends of kesar triangle. it's a real privilege to be working with this group on this very interesting project that

brings kind of a special treatment to this area of golden gate park at kesar triangle. we're really excited about this project because of the great vision that it has to bring some artistic elements and the connection with eco logic design into the park. we feel it is an opportunity to make it a special place and possibly is a model we can use in other parks around the city as well. the great thing is it also builds on activation events that the group has already been doing. we've been able to have some events where we're out in the park enjoying music, blowing bubbles, and the usability of the space will also be greatly increased by improving the turf area and the buffering some of the high traffic areas nearby as well as from the parked cars that are there on lincoln. another great thing about this project is it's being privately funded so, there's not actually any public resources that need to go into this project.

thanks to the generosity of the crane foundation. and, so, this is a great opportunity to accept a wonderful gift from them for the city. so, we urge your support for the project and look forward to working with you on it. thanks very much. >> thank you. >> [speaker not understood]. hello, i'm carla crane. i'm the founder and funder, and i just thought you might want to know a little history how this all came to pass. my parents passed away, i thought i would find a project that would honor them and the city that we all loved. and there were avid gardners and nature lovers and i have a background in the arts. so, what followed was -- what inspired me, anyway, was two things.

the wonderful [speaker not understood] in the presidio. and in new york, if you've been to the jai-alai, you know these are two projects that have brought artful interventions to lots of people in an urban setting. so, i love that idea. so, that led me to phil ginsberg who is very enthusiastic and he arranged the tour for me to look around all their wonderful sites. and it was kesar triangle that really took my heart. so, there was something about it, it's kind of under loved and a little scrappy, didn't seem to interrupt any activities that were going on. what i really love was that you could not only experience maybe something artful on the ground, but it is as well when you drive by, maybe there was some way you could catch people's imagination. ~

as well when you're up in csf looking down there is an aerial view from [speaker not understood] hill. and i love that. fortunately, i met sam bower. he's been invaluable. together we saw this whole little park should be treated as art, and we have, you know, seen that it needs to be healed and kind of brought back to life. and, so, i hope that this project can in some way be an example or a precedent that other people could, you know, who are park lovers and donors, that they could focus on one spot and the thought they could partner with rec and park and bring it to its most beautiful possibilities. so, thank you. >> thank you. >> sam.

hello, thank you very much. as mentioned before, my name is sam bower and i have a background making environmental art and also as part of an organization called green museum.org that highlights projects around the world that address ecological issues through the arts. working with carla over the past couple years on this project and getting to know neighbors and staff at rec and park and their organizations has been a really wonderful experience. and for us, the goal from the start has been to combine art, ecology, and community engagement to help, as carla said, bring some life and attention and love to this section of golden gate park that for many people as jeff said, doesn't really feel like golden gate park. and it's an area that is really

windswept. not a lot of trees and attention go into it. it's a basic sort of open space and the opportunity there to address irrigation issues, involve local folks to select native plants, and make it that much better. and from an arts perspective, weave that into all the physical improvements in a way that engages neighbors, makes it fun, helps people connect to local history, and learn a bit more about the ecosystems and really [speaker not understood] serves as an entry point to the rest of golden gate park. on the map, you might not be a clear, but this is a major entry point for families also going into the children's playground, and into other field and things nearby.

so, for people in the inner sunset, it's a place that they're quite excited about to have as a gathering area. andth cultural events in the hope that long-term with the arts -- kesar triangle arts coalition, this could be a place people could propose temporary projects that really highlight the beauty and history and connection of the place. so, we urge you, of course, to support this and i really hope that as this thing moves along we have a chance to visit the kesar triangle and connect to the local history there. thank you. >> thank you. >> is there anyone else who would like to make public comment on this item? seeing none, public comment is closed. commissioners? >> well, i just want to say before we vote that we owe a debt of gratitude to carla crane for supporting this financially and having the vision to see what could be done to a place that needs a

little tlc. i think it is a very visible space and i like the idea of contemplating community art exhibits. i love the goals worthy projects in the presidio, the sculptures that are on loan down at crissy field. and sam, thank you, jeff miller as well. with that, entertain a motion. >> well, aside from the comment that our general manager is energetic, i would move this forward for approval. and i felt the president's remarks and thank the crane foundation and all those who are involved on this exciting project. >> i second that, commissioner. >> point of clarification before we -- >> sure. >> before we move on this item. i just wanted to have a clearer understanding of the design elements for this project. so, all of these pictures in

here that are renderings in here, are all of these -- >> commissioner, clearly speak -- >> yes. first of all, are the design elements finalized or you're still working on refining these? and the other question is the design elements that i see in here, are they already -- i mean, is it set in stone that they will be part of this triangle? just want to get clarification on this. >> well, we have had three public meetings in light of input from the public. so, the location of the path is very well final, i would say. we have shared this with staff of the park and vetted all of the plant material with them. so, those seem to be on track. we will be going to the

maintenance, structural maintenance group for their final review with the construction documents. but we're getting closer and i think we've got a fairly final layout of what we've got and there may be some tweaking with some of the plant material. we've got an irrigation plan that's underway and it's being finalized right now. so, i'd say we're pretty close. >> okay. and along those lines you touched on something that i actually wanted to -- with regard to a question i wanted to raise, and that is the plant material. we're talking about planting, putting in some vegetation plants along those areas to serve as a buffer between the cars or the vehicles that continue to be parked there, i

would imagine. have we paid particular attention to the types of plants that we will be using with regards to the exhaust fumes of those vehicles and -- because oftentimes when i've gone through the park i do see places of that in some of our plants that we have now. i just wondered if you had any -- took that into consideration, the types of plants relative to the continued parking activity. >> most of the consideration for the plant material really had to do with size of the plant material, the sustainability of those materials so that they're not water loving plants. the visibility for police along the edge so that they can still see into the park. and actually most of the

parking there is all head-in parking. so, it's not people running their exhaust into the plant. >> yes, they do. >> there is also a sidewalk that separates that edge of the park from the planting areas. but it's a good comment. and as we, as we finalize the final, final, final data, we'll certainly take a look at that and make sure that these plants will be sturdy and hearty. our main goal with the plants are to create -- and this kind of comes out of the community and from review from the park staff folks, is to create kind of broader swaths of plant material so that we have bigger impact of certain species as opposed to a very mixed planting design where we have three plants here, five plants there, six plants there. so that this will have significant visual impact on

the area. but really most of the discussion has been about safety and about visibility and actually we kind of wanted to plant a lot more trees than the parks department wanted us to plant. but we're happy with the amount of trees. >> i would appreciate if you do get some consideration or some thought to that. >> sure. >> what the type of plants that will be there. >> well, yeah, we've definitely given a lot of consideration to what types of plants there, but as far as the pollution, that's an interesting comment. thank you for that. >> thank you. denny. >> yes, thank you. just a follow-up to the response to the commissioner baneia. thanks for the question. our landscape team has looked at the entire landscape plan and the species recommended. [speaker not understood]. they like the mix. they like the fit within golden gate park.

as jeff said, the current species we have in there expands them a bit, but in a way that aligns with the park design. so, we think it's going to be a very good plant [speaker not understood]. >> thank you. yeah. >> seeing no other questions, we have a motion by commissioner low. is there a second? >> second. >> seconded. all those in favor. >> aye. >> so moved. thank you. >> commissioners, we're on item 12, [speaker not understood] athletic field and innovation project, award of contract. ~ >> good afternoon, commissioners. my name is [speaker not understood]. i'm standing in for dan mower today. the item before you today is discussion and possible action to approve a resolution of debt findings, a negative declaration and mitigation

monetary and important program, california environmental quality act. and two, to award a construction contract to o.c. jones and sons. the lowest responsible bidder for the [speaker not understood] and levee ward renovation project in the amount of $4,483,000. just to provide a bit of background for you for this project, this project is part of the fairfield initiative program in partnership with the city field foundation. they are also here today. this will be the 13th field renovation we have completed at eight different park sites. improvements for this project includes field lights, field

drainage improvements, fencing, new pathways, new parkway entrances that meet accessibility for requirements, landscape and irrigation improvements. this project was bid in may of this year. we saw a total of four bids in june. so this year also. the low bid did not make the contract requirements because it did not meet the minimum qualifications that were set for the project. hence, we are moving to o.c. jones for this bid of -- amount of $4,483,000. this contractor has been approved by the city administrator's contract monitoring division as a medium to local business enterprise goal of 21%. this project has received c-e-q-a approval. a mitigated negative

declaration which the commission approved in [speaker not understood] of 2012. although the commission approved this m. m.d. already, the lowest bid that we need to approve it at each phase of the project ~. there is only one mitigation measure left which we have to complete, which is to complete the back survey prior to removal of some of the trees. we have a biologist under contract, and this will be completed towards the end of this month and prior to proceeding on the work. this project is anticipated to go into construction in late september and complete by the summer of 2014. the contract duration is approximately 270 days. the department will host the groundbreaking ceremony as the

construction nears and all the commissioners will be invited. this particular contract does not include the synthetic turf material. we are bidding this material separately under a separate contract. the turf work will be completed at the same time as the site improvements. the reason we have bid this separately is we are currently refining our specifications for this project and we want this project to benefit immensely from that analysis. dan marrow will come back to you in a few months to award the synthetic turf contract. therefore, the staff recommends that you approve the resolution in your package. i'll be happy to answer the questions you might have. >> i do have public comment. >> i do want to make one

comment before that, and simply to note that in october of 2012 we approved the conceptual plan already. so, this matter has been before us in terms of what was planned and this is to let the contract and we adopted findings and mitigation measures associated with the mitigated negative declaration as well. plea. >> i have two card. i have kelly and anastasia, please, in either order. ~ please hi, my question is what's wrong with the city and what's wrong with rpd? whenever there is a project that is tree removal. this particular [speaker not understood] intends to move -- i'm not political. now i'm coming here to talk [speaker not understood]. i don't want to be here.