coming and providing and coming to you for the findings and directions that they will be headed in. and the last meeting i informed you that the sbdc the city was awarded the proposal and so, this official contract has not been signed yet as far as the official transfer of duties, and it is not, complete yet, and i will be meeting both with todd and jordan cline to start working out the logistics of the integration. >> the mayor, and the small business leaders have their fifth quarterly meeting with the mayor last week. and two topics and of course, commissioner dwight you were there, and so feel free to add your comments, and the key topics were the mayor has launched a pedestrian awareness

campaign. and as he noted, that now in san francisco, we have had more homicides, pedestrian homicides than we have the other, i am sorry, not homicides deaths. and so, which sort of raises the significance of doing a pedestrian awareness campaign. and so the small business leaders really wanted to let the mayor know that they really want to be engaged and support the mayor in that initiative through educating tenants. and you know, employees, and customers. and so, our office will be working with the mayor's office, and when, getting the collateral information and start distributing that and i will be able to give you that when it comes available. and then the second ited em that was of discussion was around the minimum wage, and just beginning that discussion

with the mayor as he is starting to do his look and analysis into the increase to a minimum wage. okay? >> and is there anything at this point, or that you would like to... and i mean that i think that the business leaders did a very good job in doing a very sort of well constructed presentation for the mayor. and one of his concluding remarks did say as part of his assessment of affordability is also, you know, wanting to insure the affordability for small business as well. so, in kind of in conjunction with sort of our last meeting that i mean our last presentation that we had, the mayor has issued an executive directive to all departments to do water conservation. and now, our office is very

small, we are housed in a building that we are housed in a building that already has someone else dealing with the water conservation issues in terms of changing out toilets you know, sinks and things of that sort, but one of the things that we can do is work to really educate businesses. because we are in a severe drought, that, and you know the message is every drop counts. and so, i will be, and oewd will be working with the puc's, pio and public information officer to see what we can do to encourage businesses, there is rebates available, for toilets, and rebates available for laundry equipment, and for businesses, that utilize the laundry equipment and encourage the businesses to take advantage of those, and replace any old equipment that they may

have. >> also, the mayor has convened a jobs stake holder forum which is led by miller, and so the office of small business has been invited to be part of this. because taking a look at individuals, some individuals are you know, want to work for other individuals and some, when we talk about the job innovation and job innovation also can be a small entrepreneur as well. and so this is really taking a look at our diverse communities with an emphasis on african american youth. and which sort of just does tie-in with what commissioner dooley talked about during the new business last week in terms of what can we do to work with

small businesses, to have around hiring and employment and but our focus and our participation with this forum is how do we also help these individuals who may have a business idea, be able to instead of going the job route, and you know, working for someone else, and understand what is the route and the avenue and the resources available for this them to start a business? >> i have provided you with a list of workshops and conferences that are coming up. a couple of things to highlight is you received some invitations to the mayor's winter of love. celebrating the ten years of mayor, and then mayor newsome or the governor in terms of doing the gay marriages then there is the lunar new year we have the sf, nighty awards coming up and i did want to

take a quick discussion to maybe talk about the small business retreat and we are having some difficulty in being able to schedule all commissioners to be there. and so, we can tentatively have it on the fifth. and march fifth and but we will be minus one commissioner, or what i would like is some direction to either push that out in to later march, to try to find a date, for all commissioners to be able to attend. so that is kind of open for some feedback for you. >> i don't think that anybody should get a bi, on this. >> we need to have the retreat. >> and i am okay with the fifth if everybody else is. everybody is okay with commissioner... >> is it all day? >> well, that time slot is proposed that seemed to work

for most of the commissioners was 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. >> is everybody good with that. >> good by me. >> all right. so, good, and then i will be following up with everybody to start, i would like to start thinking about, i have in your binder, is the strategic and action plan from last year and so you can use that to reflect on and then think about for this coming year what you would like to put on that and i think that i will just close out my

time and unless there is any questions. and you know, there is a list of all of the legislative matters that are before the commission. >> i would like to let this gentleman know that the broad way restricted alcohol use will be heard at our next meeting on february the 24th. >> it is not supposed to be put before... i was told that it will not be put in front of the, it has not been heard by planning, and it will not be heard in front of the board of supervisors until the end of march? >> early march. >> so we will hear that before they do. >> okay, any other comments? >> next item? >> item number 8, legislation and policy committee report. this is a discussion item.

>> everything that we had at the legislation and policy was moved to this body. so we will be hearing, and we heard two items today and we will hear the other two items in two weeks. >> right. the two items that didn't make it on today aagenda were the ecigarette legislation and the broad way alcohol. >> right, but we will be hearing those at the next meeting >> right. >> at this point, definitely the broad way, i am not sure about the ecigarettes, the supervisor has not... he indicated that there is still some more work that they are doing. >> okay. >> hopefully. >> it will be broad way, and so we told them that we would hear it and we need to hear that one. >> so that is all that i have for legs and policy. >> takes us to 9, the president's report, a

discussion item. >> the only thing that i have to say is small business week is coming up, quicker than..., and already. >> and in may, and so we are already starting to meet on that. and more to follow at future meetings, also, i attended the council of the district of merchant's dinner last week which was interesting. and i also caught a ribbon for the euro's express that opened up on saturday with supervisor weiner and senator leno which is kind of fun. that is all that i have to report. >> thank you. >> item ten, vice president's report. >> nothing to report, i did it also, attend the san francisco council, dinner. as well. >> thank you, that takes us to

item 11, commissioner reports discussion item? >> do you have any commissioner? >> dooley. >> i also attended the council of district merchant's dinner, but what i really wanted to report on is what i had brought up at our last end of our meeting which about encouraging minority use, especially african americans, to get more involved in different industries, and to that intent i met last week with the folks at the elama hutch community center and starting next week, i am going to be starting a program, that is going to train interested youth there, on how to get involved in the floral industry. we are, aiming to actually create at the center a group of kids that will be well trained

enough that they can participate and designing flowers and making some money, in the community, and bidding on different contracts, and i will be there to be the team leader as they do that and our first event will be may 8th, they have an event coming up at the admiral's house and we will be doing the flowers, myself and the kids that i am going to be putting together for that. >> awesome. >> also, i mentioned to them that i would be able to have some speakers come to talk to them about opportunities in the pet-related industry. and so, we are going to be inviting pet store owners, and pet walkers, to show them, you know, we just, i want to open up, some ways for people to be thinking about careers that maybe had not occured to them before and especially if we are

going to be not as much encouraging large big box stores coming in. and we need to have an alternative for people coming up into the workforce, and show them a way that they can be more independent, and earn a good living and have a skill that they can take with them ever wherever they go. >> thanks, thank you very good that is cool. >> okay. >> any other commissioner reports? >> so, i did attend the quarterly meeting with the mayor. and obviously the hot topic is minimum wage and so, i think we are going to be need to prepare for a lot of discussion on this matter, because it will effect small business, as a matter of fact it will have the most dramatic effect on small business. and so, i think that there is a lot of research that needs to be done and a lot of case studies that we should be soliciting from, businesses who can describe how changes in

minimum wage are going to change their profitability and their viability. and so, this will be an ongoing discussion, and i am going to be part of it. >> as will i. >> yeah. >> okay, any other commissioner comments? >> seeing none, next item? >> item 12, general public comment, this is a discussion item and mr. president, i have one speaker card from ace washington. >> okay. >> good evening, commissioners my name is ace washington and as i mentioned before i was just about my first time or second time coming here. but i am not a person that don't know about the city and i have been here 25 years. probably longer than most of you all. i was around in the 5th district and i have credentials and ross was the boss, in my district. let me speak clear and frank

and i don't want to get attention. i am glad that commissioner came to hutch and you mentioned african americans and two or three teams which is good and which i am an african american. and which i am also here to also to share some information that you may or may not know. the issue in the fillmore, we have been devastated by redevelopment agency in the city, for over 50 years and i am 60 years. and it is my, next tuesday. and you know, i am a historian in the fillmore. and i am also here talking about, the things that is going on one of your commissioners is a former lady and what do you call it a merchant association and i have been there for over 25 years and i was there when you had one merchant association and i worked for them and created everything that what they are doing now for the last ten years. and i am apauled for what is going on for the individuals with a strength on the community that won't let go and won't let go.

and they are leadership, is just clickish, and it has set us back a number of years. and it did that 50 years ago, and it has done in the last ten years but i am going to break it up this time, the thing about is it that we are going have to a request about a public hearing and it did not take place and kristina, the last supervisor for the planning commission and also for the oewd and the workforce development, and which are very integral in our community, black community, and we have got a strong hold on what is going on, my credentials show that i have been involved in 25 years and i have been in the state commission and talking about the redevelopment agency and i was there for the jazz agency and currently right now yoshi is closing, our businesses that are closed down and it is iron nick that you are trying to launch some business thing and talking about you going to help disadvantaged communities, well when he came to our community,

he just started closing down, and i don't have to go into the history of that, i have a history of three supervisors. and i was there with yoshi and i opened it and there are articles on how we gave the money to the business in the fillmore that failed us, and we cannot use a facility at that fillmore, whatever it is called, yoshi but i am here to going to tell the city that i am going to intervene if i have to go to jail i will go to jail. hands out, we need all hands on deck. in the western edition and i am glad that you came we have problems, big problems. that on the surface it looks like with the name, doing a good job, she has done a good job up until recently things have changed. and the other thing that i have been up to the state and talked about it. this is the biggest problem that we got here. millions of dollars that failed us, that we gave on our tax increment and you talk about

the black businesses and we don't have none in there and we talk about the people working and not on fillmore street and even at the established businesses that are owned by our own people. there is a, and i am going to do a report, and that is going to reveal, everything, and it is called the faces, the places and the traces that is on ace's cases and it is going to reveal what happened to the last ten years and that have been did he devastating to the community. >> and i don't know how long the organization is together but it does not really help us out at all. your director came to a meeting to talk about yoshi and explain and all of them and nothing has tooken place, i am here to tell the city and county and ed lee, which he knows me quite well, i worked with him when he was not even in politics. and so i am here to say ace is on the case. and i am not new to this i am true to this. but i am very upset the way that things are going right now. particularly in this... >> you will see me on a regular

basis from here on out. >> stew. thank you. >> any other members of the public? >> closed. >> item 13, new business, discussion item. >> do you have any items for new business? >> seeing none, that item is closed. next item? >> item 14, adjournment, action item. >> do we have a motion to adjourn? >> i move. >> i second. >> meeting is adjourned, thank you. g?s?s?c?c?c?c?g?g?g?g?g?g?w