accessibility to the yung people of this area to demonstrate what is inside of them in terms of the arts. that unleashes them with who they are to be who they are and not to be judged by who they are not. so many moms in bayview and hunters point and all over, when i go places, they say police support the arts for our children. it is a place where they gain confidence and enjoy work and learn they can do other things, where they find their creative spirit. that contribution is so important. this place is not only physically accessible, but spiritially accessibility as well. i'm very proud of [inaudible] the mayor put $5 million and we put in the first

$200 thousand and barbara told me without the floor nothing else [inaudible] some of us were together 10 years goy when we celebrated [inaudible] i can say to my colleagues in wash ington it wasn't just about transportation but economic growth of the community and now the spiritially and intellectual and cultural life of the community. this is really a cause for great celebration. it is a recognition the arts are central to who we are as a country. [inaudible] over and over again, but more importantly and more personally to everyone here, lets the art sing to the community. [inaudible] every time we come here, one of the [inaudible] always say our community has

the word unity in it. it brings us together. a person who works very very hard to bring us all together newly wed supervisor [inaudible] she is a champion for bayview hunters point and housing and fairness and safety in the community, the list goes on and on. [inaudible] how beautifully she spoke about the opera house inside and we'll hear that now. it gives me great pleasure to take the opportunity to recognize the leadership of your supervisor, malia cohen. [applause] >> well, by god, if you take a

moment and take it all in,-- [applause] you think about what [inaudible] it is more than just a day of celebration that we are recognizing in san francisco. for those that grew up here, you know what the opera house means. [applause] the opera house was a safe space for people when they were rioting. the opera house was a safe space for school kids to

come here. the opera house was a safe space for seniors to come and congregate. you know what the beautiful thing is about today? is that it bayview opera house will remain all of this. this is tremendous. you see the people on the stage before you? this is our gift to all of you. when i look out here you know what i see? generation upon generations of people that raised their families, that have been champions fighting [inaudible] i want to take a moment and pay the respect to the [inaudible] to the

beautiful namly family of ruth williams, thank you very much. [applause] [inaudible] given us more than just a name to put on a historic building, she gave us a vision and she gave us a place where we can continue to teach and pass down our culture and pass on that vision. i want to recognize mary booker who kept [inaudible] alive and strong. [applause]. taught people how to act and how to project their voice and have stage presence and having stage presence is more than just being center stage. when you walk into a room you walk with your head held high and that is what mary booker taught us. [inaudible] that was right there with her. when i look in the audience i see so many

service providers people who dedicated their lives whether working through the bayview hunters point foundation or [inaudible] or ministry on the plaza. [inaudible] everyone has a continued role making bayview hunters point more than a point on the map. this is a destination and home and community with real culture and traditions we will pass on from one generation to another. we are here to celebrate a wonderful day and historic absolute beautiful building and want to recognize the many talented people who made this come to fruition. it is always important to respond and respect and acknowledge those people who contributed beyond cht we need to recognize carla johnson who is still giving from the grave. she passed in

the completion of the project and donated a sizable portion to the opera house. she was a city employee. [applause] [inaudible] bar people with disabilities to having access to this building and so this building is so center-center piece of the entire community. when you think about the construction we facilitated here in this building. ang leak thompson, belva davis are in the audience and facilitate being healthy. there are tremendous amount of people that deserve to be recognized. i want to recognize sister linda harrison who is

[inaudible] [applause]. it is absolutely important we connect the dots of once people have left a [inaudible] it is how [inaudible] we are connecting the dots and make sure bayview hunter point get a piece of that action. we will build a program to connect [inaudible] right here to this building so we have our own state of the arts arts exhibit right here. you already heard recognition from barba occul and bayview opera house board of directors but you know who else was pushed to the way side? i know you know him? how many know [inaudible] i don't know

where he is but this is the man who opens up the building and closes the building and walks you to your car and cleans up what is left behind. this is a true gentlemen that had our back in this community. he is a unsung hero and asks for very little recognition. [inaudible] [applause] this opera house has been a place where people have come together to advocate for issues, important issues impacting our communities and that is what this opera house will symbolize from now for the next hundred years moving forward. we will be stronger and blessed by this and our responsibility to keep it in the community and keep it for us. thank you. [inaudible] supervisor of district 10. [applause]

>> thank you supervisor. i want to acknowledge supervisor cohen fl her ongoing support. she committed a number of [inaudible] for the operation. third on third and continuing to make sure the programs here thrive. thank you so much. [applause]. next is great pleasure to introduce a city partner we could not have done this without who works in all the cultural centers to make sure they are up to code and community ready and that is director of public works, mohammed nuru. [applause]. >> i am very excited and proud to be part of this project as public works director and long time resident of bayview. this is where i raised my children and where i start my day, this is where i end my day. i'm right up the street

here so i'm very happy this project has come to fruition of many years of work we have all been putting together to get to this stage. the bayview opera house is a community gem in our community. this is our neighborhood [inaudible] if you can feel the excitement i have, [inaudible] when we talk about san francisco, those from bayview this is our spot right here! [applause]. the work we have done here in san francisco will continue to make this building serve many more generations to come. as our neighborhoods evolve, it is important to preserve buildings like this to remind us of our history. at this time [inaudible] from our team, one of our partners with sfmta,

director riscon, [inaudible] they were very instrumental helping bringing this project to fruition. please give them a hann. from public works, city architect, [inaudible] lopez [inaudible] who is on site every day. [applause]. janet [inaudible] they were all part of so many people coming together to make this project. please give them a hand. a couple things about the project. while we sit out here and enjoy the garden and stage and all the other places, there a lot of details and work that went into it preserving the building. an the other side

from the ground level to the top was rebuilt while trying to keep the building together. the building is no very accessible and has 3 bathrooms, all of them are accessible. the stage is has a ramp that you can go in and someone in a wheelchair can actually be on stage and many many of the [inaudible] garden and hear a lot about the guard squn what the design of the garden is and how it came about. you all know, behind every successful project team there is architects and electricians, fire marshal and all kinds of people, so today [inaudible] i want to send all these people, so many of them for all the great work and contributions they have done to make this preservation possible. at this time, i t is also my pleasure

to introduce a board member vise president of bayview opera house. she was born and raised in bayview and served on many city commissions and volunteer groups and serves as director of public affairs for our own golden state warriors, please welcome [inaudible] [applause and cheers] >> thank you. i was expecting [inaudible] good evening. this is great. i woke up this morning and was thinking about what i would say and they said i have two minutes and i was going to come up and say it is about time and walk off stage. many of you have seen this building transform, many have seen the neighborhood

transform, but i'm excited because i can officially welcome to the bayview opera house, ruth williams memorial theater. [applause]. i want to particularly thank members of the community because this is your facility as much as it is ours on stage. as malia mentioned this is gift to bayview hunters point and the rest of the city of san francisco and i'm proud to be a part of that process. so, there has been a lot of build up to this event and as i was reflecting on this i tried to think of my earliest memory of the bayview opera house. when you talk about history and preservation, one person that comes to mind is my grandfather who raised me. he migrated from the south, punchsed a property on third and [inaudible]-you remember? and he put all his family in the

property. the one vivid memory i have is he would walk [inaudible] pick me up from the opera house and save me from ballet class and [inaudible] it is those moments that shape me. if you look where we are standing to my left you have [inaudible] you have joseph lee jim, 3 strong institutions, cultural institutions, educational institutions in the physical fitness recreation center. 3 vital things i think the community needs and 3 vital

things that shape the community and 3 things that we need to thrive. all that to say, that we all have-we take the personal responsibility to make sure that there is arts and culture in the facility and not only preserve the long standing history of many folks who come before me but also welcoming the new folks moving to a neighborhood and embracing bayview hunters point as their home. this journey will officially begin-i will say this date, september 17th. you can hold us accountable. [applause]. [inaudible] if you are on the board of directors for the opera house, please raise your hand. [applause] [inaudible] who works tirelessly for this moment and will continue to work

tirelessly for the program and for this community. judy [inaudible] who is not here today. she is for the past 10 years has made this her top priority. supervisor cohen, when she speaks, when she says she is for the community, she means it. she walks the walk each and every day and we appreciate that. mayor lee, continuing on the promises that he addressed and i appreciate that and [inaudible] leader pelosi, you are absolutely right it started with 200 thousand$200 thousand investment and built this from the ground up and appreciate that. how many people with a show of hands are ateneded event or taken a class or participated in a program?

keep your hands up because i have another question. this is not the end, this is just the beginning of something special and we need your commitment and need you to volunteer your time. hands are going down-[laughter]. we need donations. we need board members and staff. this is the beginning and hope all you can come on this journey with us and i appreciate it so much. [applause] before i leave, i need to introduce walter hood. walter came to had bayview opera house about two years ago? three years ago and i remember the first meeting. it was chair and microphone. a meeting with chairs and micro phone in the bayview is unpredictable to say the least, but walter listened and carried

the vision out that was for the community and you don't get that all the time. walter, you appreciate you and we thank you. [applause] >> good afternoon everyone. don't hold it against me, i'm from oakland [inaudible] [applause] the next thing i like to say, [inaudible] do fantastic things. i just saw a young man on a scooter come up the stairs and come along the ramp and he came [inaudible] all of our kids should be able to experience all these landscapes. hopefully in his mind this is not something

[inaudible] i like to thank [inaudible] [applause] [inaudible] this takes a village to make these projects. we only have 5 or 6 good projects [inaudible] you think 5 projects in 30 years and i loick like to say it will be great to have this project [inaudible] i want to come back and [inaudible] i want to see performances out here. [inaudible] the building does not [inaudible] thank you for

giving us that mission and allowing us [inaudible] [applause] >> just one step away from the big moment of the ribbon cutting. i want to show a couple acknowledges. supervisor wiener has joined us. [applause]. and i believe [inaudible] give a big round of applause for all [inaudible] thank you so much for your leadership. i want to do two things, there will be tours available for [inaudible] are going to give tours. if you are interested after the ribbon cutting [inaudible] there will

be tours for community members and get information about the accessibility features. the new bathrooms on the downstairs level will allow young people to go to the restroom without going all the way around. this is a [inaudible] at the bayview opera house. i like to invite some the neighborhood young people that are here today to come on stage to join us for the ribbon cutting. can we get some the young people here? come on stage. [applause and cheers]. this >> if you are a bayview opera house board member please join us. our elected officials hydra mendoza and [inaudible] join us up on stage, please. i need you to help us count down from 10. are we all ready? alright. please join me counting back. 10, 9, 8, 7, 6,

5, 4, 3, 2, 1. [applause and cheers] please stay and enjoy refreshments. >> feel like it really is a community. they are not the same thing, but it really does feel like there's

that kind of a five. everybody is there to enjoy a literary reading. >> the best lit in san francisco. friendly, free, and you might get fed. ♪ [applause] >> this san francisco ryther created the radar reading series in 2003. she was inspired when she first moved to this city in the early 1990's and discover the wild west atmosphere of open mi it's ic in the mission. >> although there were these open mics every night of the week, they were super macho. people writing poems about being jerks. beatty their chest onstage. >> she was energized by the scene and proved up with other girls who wanted their voices to

be heard. touring the country and sharing gen-x 7 as a. her mainstream reputation grew with her novel. theses san francisco public library took notice and asked her if she would begin carrying a monthly reading series based on her community. >> a lot of the raiders that i work with our like underground writers. they're just coming at publishing and at being a writer from this underground way. coming in to the library is awesome. very good for the library to show this writing community that they are welcome. at first, people were like, you want me to read at the library, really? things like that.

>> as a documentary, there are interviews -- [inaudible] >> radar readings are focused on clear culture. strayed all others might write about gay authors. gay authors might write about universal experiences. the host creates a welcoming environment for everybody. there is no cultural barrier to entry. >> the demographic of people who come will match the demographic of the reader. it is very simple. if we want more people of color, you book more people of color. you want more women, your book more women. kind of like that. it gets mixed up a little bit. in general, we kind of have a core group of people who come every month. their ages and very.

we definitely have some folks who are straight. >> the loyal audience has allowed michelle to take more chances with the monthly lineup. established authors bring in an older audience. younker authors bring in their friends from the community who might be bringing in an older author. >> raider has provided a stage for more than 400 writers. it ranges from fiction to academics stories to academic stories this service the underground of queer fell, history, or culture. >> and there are so many different literary circles in san francisco. i have been programming this reading series for nine years. and i still have a huge list on my computer of people i need to

carry into this. >> the supportive audience has allowed michele to try new experiment this year, the radar book club. a deep explorationer of a single work. after the talk, she bounces on stage to jump-start the q&a. less charlie rose and more carson daly. >> san francisco is consistently ranked as one of the most literate cities in the united states. multiple reading events are happening every night of the year, competing against a big names like city arts and lectures. radar was voted the winner of these san francisco contest. after two decades of working for free, michelle is able to make radar her full-time job. >> i am a right to myself, but i

feel like my work in this world is eagerly to bring writers together and to produce literary events. if i was only doing my own work, i would not be happy. it is, like throwing a party or a dinner party. i can match that person with that person. it is really fun for me. it is nerve wracking during the actual readings. i hope everyone is good. i hope the audience likes them. i hope everybody shows up. but everything works out. at the end of the reading, everyone is happy. ♪