is that so? i still see the same trees i appreciated 20 years ago. >> they're dying, buddy,. we need trees that can last for a long period of time and not just look pretty for two weeks. >> how much is urban forestry responsible for planning our can pi canopy for the future. >> we were literally, we reviewed that plan at every stage, it was urban forestry council -- this council, friends of urban forest and the planning department and dpw all got together. we are deeply committed to not only working on the first phase but trying to jump start the second and third phase also which is really critical to the canopy. >> i live in a district where we're losing trees. we're

putting in a lot of trees and with the work of your department, we are putting in hundreds of trees but what are your thoughts how we can move forward on preserving our trees, expanding our trees in the face of what our current policy is? >> one of the things ironically i spent the last two days, six hours worth of focus groups that we at friends of the urban forested and paid for. one of the things the public is interested in and are they concerned about the tree canopy and trees and expanding the canopy and we also spoke a great deal about the urban forest plan. what we discovered in the process we had home owners with

trees, home owners without trees and renters. we were surprised at how the renters really weren't that interested in trees. but they are very interested in the damage that trees do to sidewalks. and so one of the recommendations from the urban forest plan is that we have a dedicated funding source for the care and maintenance of street trees that also means the city would take back the liability for damage to a sidewalk done by a tree. we realize that is a huge issue for the public and i think that that's going to be one of the things if we are successful in running a campaign in 2016 or 2017 for dedicated funding source, ie, parcel tax of between $16 and $40 for a condominium or average home, most people were saying they would go ahead with that. we actually got 10 to 1 in one group, about 6 to 4 in another group and the other group they were kind of split down the middle.

so i think one of the talking points we're going to have forward we want to push green issues and make the city as green as possible but we also want to make it accessible and the fact that people don't feel our sidewalks are accessible, by taking back all the responsibility of all the sidewalks, there's 6,000 sidewalks that have to be repaired that were the city's responsibility but are a backlog and that's why the parcel tax is as expensive as it is. i think that's a good thin. we need to spend the money. this is again another opportunity for us to pay attention to deferred maintenance. >> that's great. i think one thing we talked about before in our discussions about the type of program that can support the trees is job creation as well. now we're able to fund maintenance of the trees is make sure there's local access

for people into these green jobs. >> i think about 10 years ago the budget for the bureau of urban forestry was 7.5 million dollars. i think it got as low as 1.7 million dollars. that's all personnel. the number of arborists went way down. >> it was around 14 before, 15 about 10 years ago. >> yeah, and now it's way down. it's cut more in half. so hiring more people and also be using contractors also. >> i know we're a little bit astray, but not too far astray. what is the norm for other cities in terms of responsibility for sidewalks? >> the best practice in the united states is you have a municipal system that takes care of the trees, the city takes care of them. also what's really -- what the supervisors should be very concerned about is because of that cut in the budget we're now, the average pruning of a tree, street tree, is between 12 and 15 years and best

practice is 3 and 5 years. and so that's why you are getting the damage. so not only do you have limbs coming down, you also have the sidewalk damage. that's two areas that can be attenuated by having the right people doing the right thing and planting the right tree in the right place. >> supervisor tang. >> i think supervisor avalos actually hit on a lot of the issues i want to hit on. maintenance is very important. we can plant all we want but if we don't maintain it we are going to see loss of trees. i would urge everything we can do to make sure we have a very proactive plan going forward and for the record i would like to urge the city to stop planting myer plums. >> i had 12 in front of my house. good luck. just for supervisor cohen's, had he interest, we planted 5400 trees in her district in the last 30 years and we just planted 400. we planted a lot

more than 400 in yours. in one day --. >> i know, it was great. >> we'll be back. thanks very much. >> okay let's see. kevin johnson has withdrawn for consideration, mclowden has already presented, sandy sherman was doubtful whether she would be able to make it today. rose hillson -- is rose -- here she is. >> good afternoon, supervisors, i brought my public comment letters with me. i didn't want to kill trees but then i provided a package to you, at least the things that i got. you may have gotten electronic emails other than what i have. so those are all my letters and emails.

i'd like to say that i was originally recommended, i'm trying to reapply here, originally recommended for the community seat on the urban forestry council by supervisor mar to serve out another member's term and subsequently supervisor farrell, my district supervisor, recommended me. i've been the chair of the landmark tree committee since 2012 and i worked on firming up language in the legislation for landmark trees to ensure that the most worthy tree specimen makes it becoming landmark tree. to assist with staff i also created a matrix as an aid for not only the landmark tree committee but the full council and also for the public to readily see the application of the criteria for public works code chapter 16 for landmark trees. i enjoy reading legislation, believe it or not, and most of my free time is reading all kinds of things that the city has in the community field.

my community seat it's important for ensuring that a representative that is about san francisco residents and visitors. i itemized some of my community service. i've been a neighborhood activist for over 20 years i'm a product of the public schools and i volunteered at many san francisco unified school district schools k through 12. i participate in san francisco police department community meetings and i was under police department richmond community advisory board. i worked on the j town community and this led to the crafting and adoption of the city planning policy document called j town cultural heritage economic sustainability strategy document. currently providing communities a jtf, japan town task force future development towns, worked on urban forestry council table on arbor day, which is this saturday. member of the advisory committee for

the traffic calming project, analyzed and commented to changes to the recreation open space element, aka rose. city's general plan as part of a working group, evaluated and comment ode changes to chapter 31 of san francisco admin code deals with ceqa california environmental quality act, and had the opportunity to meet many community organizers. i worked on community clean up at laurel hill playground, with rec and park staff, san francisco state university, many volunteers from nonprofit organizations helping youth get ja*up job skills such as one brick. these young adults have been wonderful to work with and come from a diversity of ethnic and associate yes economic backgrounds. there are also students from various public school backgrounds and usf students who have helped with clean up. i look forward to this activity and sliding in the mud on rainy days.

i am the proud oupber of a landmark tree, which is what distinguishes me from every other member on the council. important to the local native american culture and botanical history of the city. in 2010 i received a coalition for san francisco neighborhood award for working on a myriad of neighborhood issues. in 2014 your colleague, supervisor mark farrell, gave me the honor of doing asian pacific american heritage month, a commendation for 15 years of service to san francisco and i think it's critical that neighbors' voices are heard on matters relating to our urban forest and to be inclusive of different viewpoints based on the unique flavors and circumstances of neighborhoods. the diversity, ecological reasons and actually the people's concerns balancing all these things to naik al and desirable community to live in. and it is important to value and have cooperative dialogue not only with the public but with all the city agencies. residents have many concerns and supervisor avalos

you mentioned that in your district there are trees being, not as many trees there, there are neighbors who are concerned with street tree relinquishment, i think it's important to get this before the urban forestry council so it doesn't bubble up before the board of supervisors and maybe we can help with some comments from the urban forestry council to help along the way. also i would deeply ask for your support in keeping me on the council. i have a list of landmark trees if you so desire. i give that to your administrator personnel here. thank you. >> thank you very much. any comments, questions? >> thank you. >> that was our last person seeking appointment and so we can go on to public comment for these appointments and i think people learned the drill for

public comment . first speaker please come forward. >> my name is jeanie qwak and i have lived and voted in san francisco for more than 30 years. i sent a letter supporting rose hillson for seat 7 of the urban forestry council. i am here to expand on my letter. >> rose has an outstanding character. she searches diligently for facts, follows through completely and keeps her word. rose would be a unique asset to the urban forestry council because she understands the striepkt and issues of san francisco. she believes in the strength of san francisco and citizen participation. she has thoroughly followed the issues in city planning, housing, water public transportation and parks. she understands and supports nature in san francisco. she is also a great teacher. in my first attempt to change proposed legislation i succeeded in changing a word and this is because i followed

rose's advice and teachings. she told me to be very familiar with the existing code and the proposed legislation and she told me to focus and be succinct apkd that is what she does and my following it helps me. i want to close by saying, as i said in my letter, rose is passionate about the health of people and so it follows that she is passionate about san francisco trees and a healthy urban forest. thank you. >> thank you. next speaker please. >> good afternoon, supervisors, my name is karen kai and i'm here to support the reappointment of rose hillson. i've worked with rose for the last several years on the japan town cultural heritage economic sustainability strategy. rose has made unique contributions, not just in terms of her work

on the land use and public spaces segments of that document. she really has put in a lot of time as a community member and i think that's one of the key things she does. she takes a broad view she integrates, she directs, she makes people pay attention to important issues. she's tenacious, she's dedicate the and was really an asset in those regards. i recently worked with rose with regard to the rose parks tree, which is one of the trees along the van ness brt plan. and rose was looking forward and this is another thing that i think is very important. there is a possibility that that rosa parks tree that was dedicated by mayor newsom may have to be uprooted and be relocated. and she reached

out on her community connections to try to find a possible location and hearing about it, i went to the principal of rosa parks elementary school and that set into motion a whole new set of wheels on sfusd, which can take a long time to navigate, and we have now reached a point where, should it become necessary for that rosa parks tree to be relocated, we have a point in the fillmore, with the principal's support and that's because of rose's hard work. thank you. >> thank you very much. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon. my name is paul weber, i am from telegraph hill and i am here in support of rose. i first met rose working on behalf of taylor hill dwellers on a number of projects on

which rose was working either for her association or for the coalition of san francisco neighborhoods. and is what impressed me so much about her was, this has been said by others, but her dedication, her hard work, her thoroughness and amazingly she has no personal agenda unless you call the good of the city an agenda. she is just that, namely, one who thinks of the best for the city, not for what might advance some particular individual cause. she also gets along well with people and works well in a group setting. she has been i know, a member and i think she should be continued for another term so she can continue the work on behalf of the city and

i certainly hope you will reappoint her. thank you. >> thank you very much. next speaker, please. . >> yes, good afternoon, my name is hiroshito miss guda, i am the chair of the housing and transportation committee. rose became very active in san francisco cultural neighborhoods, gee, i guess the last 5 or 6, 7 years ago. and i also brought, introduced her to the japan town community. very surprising is in a very short period of time she's gained the respect of people in the coalition and also in the japan town community. i believe it's because of her at tenaciousness and thoroughness. she doesn't give up. once she

gets her front end into something, sort of like a pit bull, she bites, doesn't let go until the issue is resolved. and i think the council would be very well served. she's probably very modest in her accomplishments and i think, you know, she's probably the mvp of the council. so please retain her for another term. thank you. >> thank you very much. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon, supervisors, my name is charles, i'm on the tar bell station pcab and i've come to know rose through years of working with her on the coalition for san francisco neighborhoods. i've worked with her at the level of the

executive committee where i'm the recording secretary of the government committee, of which i am the chair, and i don't think you can find, as previous people have said, a harder worker, someone who is more tenacious, disciplined, tireless, a self-starter. she is a great researcher and writer. and so i come cap in hand to ask you to reappoint her and one of the great things here, too, is that she is experienced, this is a reappointment and so you don't have to have somebody come in and learn on the job. thank you. >> thank you very much. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon, supervisors, catherine howard, landscape architect. i do have some experience with tree issues in san francisco, having worked with friends of the music concourse to protect the historic hundred-year-old trees in front of the band shell when the garage project threatened

them. i've known miss hillson and her work for many years. i am on the open space coalition. in our monthly meetings we sit through a lot of meetings, many of them extremely complex. rose is one of the go-to people for a clear understanding of policy and planning issues. she will be vital as a bridge between the other members who may have technical expertise but may not have the depth of background on planning and policy issues. she is dedicated to the community and to serving the neighborhoods on community issues. i encourage you to reappoint her to the council. thank you. >> thank you very much. next speaker, please. >> supervisors, i'm here to support rose hillson, i'm not going to say a lot because everyone else is. i'm just going to say since i've known

her she is incredibly helpful any time you need help. she is exacting like everyone says and i encourage you to reappoint her. >> thank you very much. >> mr. chair, honorable members of the committee, judy berkowitz, president, san francisco neighborhoods. i know rose mostly through the coalition for san francisco neighborhoods. she has been vice president for 3 years. that position entails making public the policies that we have adopted at our general assembly meetings. at this point in public comment is feels more appropriate to just say ditto because so many people have sung rose's

praises. it is truly amazing that she does not have an agenda in her work and what she does when she advocates for all sorts of different causes. she does it for the love of the city and she does it because she understands how proposals will play out in the long run. she has the ability to look down the road and see what one proposal and another proposal, if they are adopted by let's say the board of supervisors, if they come up through the committee to the board, if the two proposed pieces of legislation are both adopted, what this means and how it will play out in the long run. in closing, i'd just like to say that she has actually gotten praise from one of the

people that is very very difficult to get any sort of praise from and it was done in all caps, shouting, email and that's sue hester who seems to have praised rose publicly. >> thank you very much. next speaker, please. >> thank you, good afternoon, supervisors, i am kathy devonchenzy, chairman of the heights association. miss hillson has a long and distinguished history of representing the community in myriad activities and she has received awards that have acknowledged her community service. in 2014 in honor of the asian pacific american heritage month at the recommendation of supervisor mark farrell, the board of supervisors gave a commendation to rose hillson for 15 years of service to the city. and we

submitted a letter but i came down here personally today to tell you what a good representative of the community she is. as you have heard from the prior speakers, mrs. hillson is extremely thorough and observant of detail. she carefully reviews and researches matters and she prepares very carefully considered analyses and written comments on the issues that she deals with. and because of this she has credibility due to her thorough researching and analytical abilities and she would continue to provide the type of representation on the urban forestry council that members of the community would trust and respect. and i think that's been evidenced by the accolades of the 8 prior speakers who are representatives of the community who are often very involved in these matters. so i would urge you to reappoint this very excellent representative of the community. thank you. >> thank you very much.

and seeing no other member of the public come forward we will close public comment and this is live before us. i think there is a lot of support for miss hillson, it seems. and she presented very well, of course. i think the biggest thing for me is to assure that we have some geographic representation for the city and i did engage in some discussion with mr. flannigan about conditions in district 11 that are really key that we do put trees there but we also lose trees. in fact, there is a pretty significant tree, i'm not sure if it was actually an official significant tree, on rec and park land that was taken out delano and geneva avenue as part of the gardens being bit. it was a redwood tree that was

taken out. i heard about it after it was taken out and i don't think it's possible to get another one in there. i do want to make sure district 11 is represented on the council so i am going to be supporting sandy sherwin going forward. she had some health issues last year but is now back so i want to put her name forward. we have six applicants, 7 applicants and 6 seats so i know we have to drop someone who could be a current member. i just want to initiate conversation that way and see what we can do concerning conditions for the rest. everyone here is very well qualified, the newcomer is miss loman and she would need a residency waiver as well. though she has support, has a great deal of expertise given

she is doing the work on the rain forest at the academy of sciences but she would need a residency requirement. i could possibly, you know, given that she is already well participating in supporting trees in san francisco she would probably be one that i would be able to let go of but if colleagues want to put her name forward with a residency requirement i could go along with that as well. supervisor tang. >> thank you all for being here and waiting till the last item. obviously this is an issue that's important to all of us in the different districts. i would support moving forward all of the exiting members. however, for seat 5 only because i know dr. loman a bit more than i know miss sherwin would i recommend dr. loman for seat 5. her work is incredibly important and even if she is not appointed i know she will

continue to do amazing things around the world. i do recommend dr. loman but i am okay with keeping all the incumbents. >> i, too, would like to show my support for dr. loman for seat 5. >> so i would like to make sure that we have, we keep a district 11 resident on the commission and i do believe in terms of geographic spread of where commissioners come from, there are very -- she would be the only one from the southern part of san francisco. i think from close to the southeast part of san francisco i don't think there's anyone from the southeast part of san francisco on the commission, so we'd like to be able to keep her on there

-- sandy sherman, she is a district 11 resident. >> may i speak on -- i'm a little concerned about supporting sandy sherman she did miss several meetings and not reaching out to the office. you heard me ad nauseam about this. it is easier for me to support dr. meg loman >> i did mention last year she had some health issues and that has now passed, but she -- that was the reason for her absences. i can't speak about her outreaching to offices but generally there's a lot of applicants and our offices could be engaged in meeting with people over and over again and not get any other work done if we were to do that, but i know it's really important we connect with people who are coming forward. i take it both

ways, meet people here in the hallway, on the street or in my office, whatever way we do it. let's go down and just check the seats we have. we have all but six, i think. one, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7. one, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7. that's six seats. i made this matrix, this piece of paper i can't seem to find but hillen is only up for one. i would -- we only have 4 and 5. my recommendation is that we go with hillen for 1, sherwin is only going to be