successful businesses he that are suffering through these unnatural economic pressures that have created the economic affordability crisis in san francisco and we cannot afford to lose established independent business he. there is no one solution to this. supervisor campos is work tog create a series of concrete steps to stabilize our neighborhoods and keep small business he in san francisco viable. the first part of this initiative is to establish a legacy business registry for local businesses. this would include bars, restaurants, retail establishments, art spaces, performance venues, and manufacturers that have all served san francisco for more than 30 years. these business he must also demonstrate a strong connection to the neighborhood and the community in which they operate. throughout the world programs have been developed to protect bars, restaurants, and retail establishments. san francisco heritage who is here with us today is going to provide a little bit of additional information on these programs throughout the world

and their legacy bar and restaurant program here in san francisco. san francisco, with this legislation, would be the first city in the united states to codify a legacy business registry. designation of these cultural assets la victoria's bakery, green apple books, the rock see, gallery [speaker not understood], the list could go on and on, will provide some is civic recognition of the importance to the community of these establishments. one additional piece is that we would like to begin this process with one tangible benefit. this legislation would provide property owners purchasing buildings in which a legacy business operates a rebate of a transfer fee if they extend a commercial lease to the legacy business for ten years. additionally, if a legacy business is able to purchase its own property, then it would also qualify for a rebate of the transfer fee. there is so little data that exists regarding the number of legacy business he in san francisco.

we don't know how many there are, what their status is as property owners or tenants, the size of these business he, the ownership models, et cetera. therefore, this legislation also asks the office of small business to conduct a study and make substantive recommendations for the expansion of this program and provide additional ways to financially incentivize and encourage the stability of legacy business he in san francisco. this study would be due to the board of supervisors in june of 2015. assistance for this study will come from the gallery family business resource center and the university of san francisco, dr. monica hudson is here today who will provide you a little bit more information on how we're envisioning this going forward. maintaining the unique and independent spirit of san francisco is so important. this is an opportunity to celebrate the businesses that serve our neighborhoods and provide for our city. supervisor campos would like to thank supervisor farrell for co-sponsoring this legislation. additionally, we've had enormous input from san

francisco heritage and cannot thank them enough for their commitment to this issue. additionally, the gallery family business resource center, the university of san francisco, and so many of the merchants associations and businesses throughout the city have participated and commented and are willing to continue to comment and participate as we move forward. with that, i'll take any questions and turn it over to san francisco heritage and the gallery family foundation. >> great. >> commissioner white. >> this is fantastic, by the way. >> thank you so much. >> just quick question for you. is the qualification for legacy business, is this 30 years in business >> 30 years in business and a small statement ~ that would demonstrate their commitment to the neighborhood, how they've been connected to the fabric of the neighborhood. we don't want it to be a large hurdle for people to go over at this initial stage, i mean, become a part of this, help to form this a we offer more

incentives later on, whether they be financial, et cetera. then raise the bar perhaps a little bit higher, but to become a part of the legacy business registry, we want to kind of welcome folks with open arms. >> great. >> i have a question about the rebate for landlords. >> um-hm. >> the extension of the lease for -- from -- >> ten years, um-hm. >> is that only the length of the lease that is taken into account in your opinion? >> it would be an extension of 10 years from the point of the landlord a sold to landlord b, landlord b extending the lease for additional 10 year. >> under the same terms, different term? what would be the -- i'm just curious -- >> i think the term investment legislation, i'd have to double-check the language we use, i believe it would be -- we wouldn't want them to, you know he, increase the rent too much.

>> so, at least an additional ten years -- >> correct. >> -- shall be entitled to rebate, did you it mention other term? [multiple voices] >> a lot of that, when he we consulted the city attorney, we have some difficulties in interfering with contracts. >> okay. >> between -- >> that's the reason -- [multiple voices] >> it's a little bit loose in what we can and cannot control and step into. we can say, you know, you can get the city benefit by extending the lease, but there is question as to interference of contract there. >> that's why you depth mention it. >> right. >> thank you. >> commissioner dooley. >> i just wanted to clarify. if a business, say, ha more than one outlet -- >> um-hm. >> -- does every outlet qualify for the legacy based on the original opening one? like if the first one has been open for four years but they opened one last week in another neighborhood, how did you that apply to this? >> it would be -- i mean, it

would be business location determinant. so, it would be the oldest business had to have been there for 30 years. so, i'm just going to use [speaker not understood] a an example. so, say that all of their business he, because they are a business that has existed in san francisco and expanded, they would be a legacy business because they have had at least one shop that's been open for more than 30 years. >> thank you. >> and, laura, correct me if i'm wrong, but that is -- some of those details are thing that are under the purview of the office to maybe clarify and refine and so for staff to work with you on? >> yeah, this is an initial step, but we want to grow. we want to make this program as successful as possible, as broad as possible, and as stabilizing as possible. and so we are looking forward to collaborating with director [speaker not understood] and you to make this the best

possible piece of legislation and program that we can. >> this is great. i'd like to hear from our other two, the san francisco heritage and the geller. i really like the work san francisco heritage has done. i've been to some of your functions in the past. i like what you do. you guys do amazing work, so, thank you for being here. >> thank you very much, commissioner adams. of course, you participated in our early work in june of 2013 when he we convene a community summit entitled sustaining san francisco's living history ~ that looked at these very issues about how do we provide assistance to struggling businesses he and nonprofits facing displacement in san francisco ~. and really that workshop, the genesis of that was recognition on our part as a historic preservation organization that landmark protection is ill-suited to provide assistance to these really cultural establishment that are so valued by the neighborhoods

in which they exist, and that was really -- early our first step which culminated in the report that i believe you have the executive summary in front of you, the sustaining san francisco's living history report, that not only discussed the community summit that you participated in, but also analyzes a series of international case studies of what other major city across the globe have done to recognize and provide assistance to these businesses to ensure their long-term sustainability. so, i'll be brief with my remarks. i just thought i would provide a little further context to add to laura's introduction. for those of you not familiar with san francisco heritage, we are a 43 year old historic preservation organization founded in 1971 with a mission to preserve and enhance san francisco's architectural and cultural identity.

we're a membership based nonprofit organization, and we're so proud to be collaborating with supervisor campos on this legislation. it' really we feel a validation of our earlier efforts in this realm ~. we feel that the proposed legislation is modest, but highly significant step towards recognizing these businesses he which are so important to defining the identity of san francisco ~ a. too often these places are taken for granted until we learn of their impending closure, which unfortunately in san francisco is almost a weekly occurrence. many of thea businesses are successful, long-standing business he that, but for the current economic climate, would survive and thrive today. as documented in our report sustaining san francisco's living history that was just released in september, one of the primary challenges facing these businesses is the fact

that they do not own the spaces in which they operate and that they are subject to the economic force he that make their lease renewal prohibitive or oftentimes result in displacement and we're really pleased that the incentive that is included in this legislation aims to assist business owners purchase their buildings, or if that is not realistic, to incentivize new buyers to extend those leases. and, of course, as you know in the legislation there is a requirement that the office of small business report back to this commission and the board of supervisors with further recommendations as to other substantive incentive and assistance that can be provided. another important part of, we feel of the legislation is the recognition piece. and the other case studies that we've evaluated in places like

london buenos aires, barcelona, part of the program is to promote these businesses he in the aggregate as part of the history of the city and their often cultural heritage destinationses and that has also been a part of the success of those programs. the legislation, of course, is also informed by our own legacy bars and restaurants program, and i think you have our pocket guide thats was handed out to the commissioners today. and it is really intended to be a public education program, to raise awareness about these places and how long they've been in existence and it's really had a phenomenal response by the public, both locals and out of town visitors have really had a hugely potive response to these places. and there is great debate as to which business he are not included in that map. i'm sure you'll look at that and say, well, why isn't this place included and that what really one of our primary aims

in printing that, is to kind of stir dialogue and debate as to which businesses are important in my neighborhood and should be patronized and included and supported. so, we're really happy to participate in this legislation, the first of its kind in the country, but as well documented in our report, there are many other global world class cities, and san francisco is certainly a world class city, that have taken meaningful steps to recognize and sustain these businesses and i hope that san francisco will follow suit. i'm happy to take any questions as well. >> commissioner dooley. >> i do have a question a was leafing through this large amount of potential businesses. so, there is a architectural component to this also, being qualified? >> not under the proposed legislation there is not. for our legacy bars and restaurants program we defined loose criteria that was kind of derived from the argentina

program that required businesses be in existence four years or more, have significant architecture or interior features and are significant and have -- can demonstrate significance in the community in which they are located. of course, this legislation does not reference architectural features directly, but it does have the requirement in the application form which will be developed by the office of small business to demonstrate in some way significance in the community in which they are located. and one of the case studies in the report, the assets of community value program in london which enables citizens to nominate -- pub have actually been the most frequent type of place that has been nominated in that program. they are also required to demonstrate community significance. so, there are lots of great models in term of existing application forms youed in london and other cities that i think san francisco could draw

from and what types of evidence are relevant in establishing community significance. >> i notice that, for example, there are quite a few cell phone locations. i what just kind of curious as to how that -- >> let me just -- do a little bit of clarity. so, what we did -- just to kind of give you an idea, this is nothing definitive, we'll go into a little more detail. i just wanted to give you an idea based upon pulling together the data from sf data, the tax and treasurer's business registration. we did not delete or pull out anything that does not necessarily fit in one of these categories. so, they are defined, so, like if you're talking about cell phone, define -- in the legislation in terms of what types of business sectors will be part of this program.

just to kind of give you an idea and to -- i think before i start making a decision on who is not in there and who is in there, i think it needs more eyes than just me. so, the list that you have is just the class code 08, which kind of covers retail, restaurants, it doesn't cover manufacturers or other categories. but just to kind of give you an idea a to who might be there, we're going to have to scrub through the entire list because there are businesses that are misidentified in their classification on their registration form. >> so, you'll be refining -- [multiple voices] >> and dr. hudson is going to go a little bit more into how we're going to work on that. >> commissioner tour-sarkissian. >> i have a question about the

transfer tax in the context of a sale, correct? >> yes. >> okay. that is the -- if a purchaser's -- purchaser buys the building, then he or she would have a rebate if he or she keeps the business in question, okay? >> yes. >> now, is it not possible also to consider the rebate for an existing owner who would be willing to extend the lease beyond the initial period? i mean, is that something that you considered in your -- >> well, for an existing owner, of course, you're not going to have the immediate transfer tax from a recent transaction. >> yes. >> now, what we have also been investigating with the supervisor's office and the

office of small business is the possibility of extending novack property tax abatement benefits to existing property owner that house a legacy business. it's worth noting that some of the bars, for example, on our own list are also city landmark, places like twin peaks tavern or sam jordan's bar. certainly those properties can already qualify for mills act property tax relief. if you have a building that houses a legacy business that is owned by a third-party, i think a strong argument can be made for allowing the mills act to include a term that would require extension of the lease in order -- in exchange for extending, extending the lease ~. >> that's what i meant. that is something you're considering, correct? >> it's something the -- [multiple voices]

>> pendling the legality of, the mills act is implemented pursuant to state enabling legislation in san francisco and i believe the city attorney is looking at whether or not that type of term, a lease extension, is allowable under the state enabling legislation. me as an advocate, as an advocacy organization, i think an argument can be made certainly in the case of legacy businesses that are already city landmarks, that that should be an allowable term. >> so you would be in favor of that? >> absolutely. >> the other thing that i've noticed from your handout, quite an interesting handout, a to what other cities are doing. london is quite proactive about, about the protection. and as -- on page 3 of your handout, the community right to bid program places a six-month moratorium on any proposed sales of assets of community value. >> yes. >> now, is that something that was discussed with the city

attorney a to whether these moratoriums could be placed? >> we have not discussed that and i don't believe that the supervisor's office has discussed that either. our recommendation in the report is an incentives based approach rather than restrictions or moratoria. so, we included that example as well as -- an even more extreme example in pares where the city actually purchases the real estate and then leases it back to these businesses he to ensure their longevity and the diversity of uses he. so, we just included the full spectrum of what's out there. i do think there's -- you know, the london program is innovative and certainly the recent case of marcus brooks, something similar actually happened there where there wasn't an agreement to allow time for the community to come up with the funding to purchase the building. that was ultimately, of course, not successful.

but -- >> and the community arts [speaker not understood] trust is specifically to secure space for art organizations, correct? >> art, arts and nonprofit space. [multiple voices] >> and the mid-market? >> in mid-market, although caft is i understand looking at expanding its geographic boundaries. so, an example of a legacy business that might benefit from a caft type approach would be the rocksy theater which operates as a business is run by a nonprofit, is certainly a cornerstone of the mission that, you know, that is facing a lease renewal next year. where assistance with purchasing the building from a land trust and a combination of other types of [speaker not understood] might make a difference to making that transaction work. the cast is really a great

innovative model we have here in san francisco and that's why we highlighted it. >> it's a good tool. >> yes. >> that's why you put it [speaker not understood]. >> [speaker not understood]. 1968. i don't see any dates prior to 1968, any of these locations. and that's just -- [multiple voices] >> no, i think it's -- the date that we started the cut off -- we didn't include any businesses that were with after 1984. >> okay. but the oldest location start date, as far as i can tell, is 1968 and i know that some of these businesseses here [multiple voices] >> oh, that is because the tax and treasurer's office has, in term of their record keeping ~. >> just curious. >> their systems, i think that's when they transferred over to their current system. so, we made -- >> is the 30-year cut off, is that something that's been

widely used elsewhere? what's the magic around 30 years? >> no, it's not. i think laura can illuminate this a little more as well. in the stakeholder meeting we par participated in in craft thing legislation, i know in concert with the geller center, 30 years is obviously shorter than our 40 year for san francisco heritage's own criteria, is identified as an important kind of time when there is generational transfer from the first generation business founder to the next generation and it's often a time when these businesses face the most acute challenges. >> we operate on internet time now, so, 30 years is a long, long time. [laughter] >> and he said something that was i thought very key. these business he are thriving. they're doing great, but something comes up ~ where they're being forced to relocate and that business can go away. i've seen that in my own

neighborhood and i just feel it's very important that we do something to maintain these businesses. so, i really, really like the work that you do. so, thank you. >> all right, well, thank you very much for your consideration. >> and then, commissioners, in your binder before you get to the list of businesses -- laura, did you have something you wanted to add? >> i wanted to add on the 30-year issue as kind of the stakeholders looking at different things along the way. the change of, like, okay, how are we going to do [speaker not understood]? there were advocates for a little bit more than 30 years, or advocates for those that were less than 30 years. and, so, 30 years we felt was kind of at that transitional stage a little bit beyond the transition generally between the first generation business and the second generation business. but long enough to really color the feel of the neighborhood. there's no magic to this

number, but we believed it what long enough -- business longevity to make an impact into really color the neighborhood. >> great. monica hudson, did you want to come up to say anything? >> yes. >> come on up. >> i'd like to have dr. hudson kind of walk through the program that we're going to -- that she's outlined with her students to help our office create some of the criteria to dot research and analysis. >> the geller foundation, again, does fantastic work. so, thank you for everything that you do. >> thank you. good afternoon, chairs and fellow commissioners. i just wanted to briefly walk you through a proposal that we have made to the office of small business to really assist in moving forward with the implementation adoption modifications to the legislation. just very quickly, if you're not familiar with the university of san francisco's

geller family business resource center, we were established in 1994. we are the oldest, as far as we know, university-based family business center. we primarily work with family business he in three areas. similar to what you just heard from san francisco heritage, we promote family businesses he, really try and recognize them and heighten the profile of the impact of family business has on a community. two, we provide resources to family businesses, specifically around issues of succession and wealth management. and finally, we are very engaged in training the next generation of family business leaders. in our family business classes, we tend to find that between 80 and 90% of the students actually are children are family businesses. so, very high involvement of family business in our school's management program. what we have proposed after

having consultation with supervisor campos's office and with the office of small business are five projects which we believe will allow for further refinement of the legislation and/or information that ultimately has to come back to the commission in the end. so, let me just briefly talk to you about those projects. the first is a information campaign, and specifically it's the development of an info graphic once the legislation is put together. one of the things we know with the advent of info graphics is it is a very easy way to communicate to individuals information that otherwise we'd have to take a lot of words in some other mode to transmit. so, we are looking at trying to have a base info graphic together for you by december 9th where it will at least hit the key points of the

legislation, talking about the benefits of the legislation. that info graphic we should have where there are language pieces or words translated into mandarin and spanish for you. the second item that we are looking at is something that you just discussed, and that's this whole refinement of the numbers of businesses that categorize the way it is catalogued. we are specifically looking at having a student teamwork with the office of small business on the refinement of the information, the matrix. we have received the work that has already been done by the intern that is there. we're looking at additional information regarding gross receipts, generation of ownership, as well as other facilitate i have numbers, [speaker not understood] codes, et cetera, so there is a comprehensive index put together. the third project relates to

legacy history information. and toward that end i'm going to be joined by a colleague who is a business historian who will be working with teams, hopefully two teams, who will be looking at having and collecting some stories from some of the legacy family businesses. not just the family business owners, but also neighborhood residents and adjacent businesses, in essence, trying to assist in defining what you have said, what makes this legacy business so critical to a community. the first project we're looking at is what we call a legacy best practice project and it specifically is picking up on some of the work that is done -- was already done by san francisco heritage, but trying to expand that out in term of identification of international best practices. but we have a small twist in this particular category,

looking at since we know that acquisition of a building is often something that triggers the need for a legacy business to move. working with sba, utilizing and gathering information through their 504 acquisition program to actually see how that model coupled with maybe the land trust models, cast, and other models might be used to assist these businesses in being able to stay, perhaps because they own their facility. and then the last piece that we are interested in doing is furthering the analysis which was done by the legislative analyst, looking at commercial rents and putting together an inventory there that may be of informational assistance to the commission. so, those are the five projects that we worked through with the office. we are hopeful that we will have some progress on this by

december 9th and you may wonder why that date is so important. it's the end of the college semester for the fall. but we are looking at knowing that there are some thing that we can actually accomplish by december 9, but other thing which will actually need to occur and continue into the spring. and because we have a family business course that is what we call the practicum where students are actually out doing things, we believe that, in essence, at least three of these projects will be able to continue into the spring past whatever was accomplished by december 9th. so, that concludes the information that i wanted to very quickly share with you. i'm happy to respond to any questions you might have. >> commissioner dooley. >> i just wanted to add my great thanks also for getting this going. i'm seeing in my