>> all right, hello, everybody! >> hello! >> you know, there are days like this when being mayor is absolutely amazing. this is exactly why myself and our aseptemberably man phil tang, this is why we do this work, to make a difference in the lives of people who need us

to make sure that we make the right investments. thank you all for being here. i'm glad to be here to announce the grand opening of the division circle navigation center. clear cheer [applause] [cheering] this navigation center will help so many people transition off the streets into this place, into permanent housing. the opening today is a result of a collaborative effort between the city, the state partners like our assembly member phil tang and cal trans. we are working together to help address this homeless crisis. many of you know my top priority as mayor is to make sure that we're moving our homeless population out of tents, off the streets and into permanent housing.

navigation centers go beyond the traditional shelters by allowing individuals to bring their partners, their pets, their belongings with them, which are often barriers to getting into our shelters. once they are there, the centers provide the care and services that people need. health care. services around social workers and possibly, hopefully permanent housing. this particular navigation center will serve up to 125 individuals at a time. the opening today is the result, as i said, of a collaborative effort and there are a number of difference people who made this possible. and it is a reflection of what we can accomplish when we work together for a common goal. phil tang helped to secure $10 million last year in the state budget to help with two

navigation centers in san francisco. [applause] [cheering] and that is not all he did. his legislation, aba-57, allows the city to lease underutilized property that is owned by cal trans at a very reduced rate. we wouldn't be able to national -- to make this happen without his leadership and we're so grateful for what he has done to lead the charge in just a minute toe. -- in sacramento. cal trans worked in partnership with our state and local representatives to involve the hurdles in leasing the land and i want to thank laura berman from the cal trans director here today. ams want to thank the departments of public works who helped move this project forward quickly. jeff kaczynski from the department of homelessness and the city real estate division, countless other folks who made

it possible and especially our homeless outreach team who consistently are out there on the front lines trying to identify folks who are in need and bring them into our navigation centers to get them the help and the support that we know they need. i'm commited to addressing this humanitarian crises that we see in san francisco and all over our state. it is going to take a consistent and sane effort to open navigation centers like this one all over our city. together, we know we can bring noticeable changes. i have met some of the people personally who have been in our navigation centers, who are now permanently housed. but i also met people who have been in our navigation centers and who have come back time and time and time again. what i appreciate about the work of so many of the city employees and nonprofit agencis that work to help folks who are struggling on our streets that we have not given up on folks. and we won't give up on the

people that we know need support and services the most. that is why navigation centers like thiss are critical. they change and they save lives. and that is what we're committed to doing. one person at a time. and with that, i'd like the introduce our leader in this effort, assembliman phil tang. [applause] >> thank you so much, mayor breed, for your leadership on this issue of homelessness. i know that we had an opportunity to work together when you were president of the board and i have no doubt that you're going to be working on this issue every single day as mayor. i also wanted to thank supervisor hillary ronen who had approached my early on to talk about how we can fund navigation centers in her district and also in san francisco. and i would be remissed not to

thank late mayor ed lee who brought me aba-57. it was really a team effort where the citied that idea of we need to work together to solve this problem. this is a state-wide problem. we have 134,000 homeless people in the state. it is a state of crisis. we have 7500 people here in san francisco. but these people aren't numbers. they're lives. they're lives that missed different paths, that have taken very challenging directions. but we as a city have not given up on them. we as a state have not given up on them and only by working together and solving this problem together can we really move this issue forward. cal trans has been great because cal trans told me they spent, i believe, almost $10 million last year or the year before to just move homeless people off their property.

homeless encampments up and down the state were under freeways. everywhere. i would drive under the 101 and the chavez interchange and drop off my daughter at school every day and you would see a line of tents. so, cal trans said, hey, instead of us using all this money to move people off, figure out another way to be part of the solution. it doesn't help when you move people off the lot and they come back three days later and we have to move them off. it doesn't get them any closer to housing. by cal trans, myself and the legislature, appropriating $10 million for two navigation centers, working together with mayor breed, with mayor lee, with supervisor ronen and the city family to really solve this issue, we have moved one step closer. and other people are taking notice. because navigation centers aren't just happening here in san francisco. they're happening in santa rosa. they're happening in seattle and happening in austin. because it is not about housing. it's about people.

it's about making sure that people are getting help with their addictions. with their mental health. s with helping with their job training. it's all about how we are assisting each individual, each one of those 7500 people that have families. they come from somewhere. they are going somewhere. and this city and this state is not going to let them fail. so w that, again, i want to thank mayor breed for her leadership on this issue. so excited to see this navigation center up and running. i want to thanks, again, supervisor ronen, late mayor ed lee and it is my pleasure to bring up the new director of cal trans, larry berman. because their agency played a critical role at making sure that this happened by working with me on aba-57, cal trans has worked out a deal with the city and county of san francisco to lease up to 10 properties at far below market rate. this being one of them. and they again have stepped up to the plate. not being part of the problem, being part of the solution.

so thank you, laurie and thank you to cal trans. [applause] >> thank you. good morning. i want to start by saying congratulationss to our new mayor of san francisco. mayor london breed. [applause] >> yeah! >> i am really honored for this opportunity to speak on behalf of the california department of transportation. to express our appreciation for the collaboration with the city of san francisco, with homeless advocates, with private donors and community members to address one of the greatest crises of our day and that is homelessness. cal trans and the city of san francisco share a commitment to public sthafs predates all of us here today. but it is good when we can continue to work together to solve big problems. we are really proud to work with the city of san francisco for today's ribbon cutting of the division circlele, navigation center which is also dedicated to the memory of homeless advocate brian quinn who passed away in april.

we are proud of our commitment to develop sustainable transportation solutions in san francisco and we appreciate our great partnership with the city of san francisco to sustain vibrant communities. in the next few year, cal trans has many repaving jobs that will be delivered through dedicated transportation funds from senate bill 1, the road repair and accountable act of 2017 and this year, senate bill 1 is paying for projects that are revamp several bridges and overcrossings along highway 101, including wider six-inch striping to increase visibility and safety. the department of transportation is planning for the growths of california's population, economy and emerging technologies that will be used on the state highway system to transport people, goods and services. we are also working with our local partners throughout california to help address an issue facing many californians and that is homelessness. this project, the san francisco navigation center, along with the site at 5th and bryants,

represents a step in the right direction. the van nuys center is an innovative approach to help address the homelessness crisis. this project required commitment from local and state governments, private donor, grassroots organizations and countless volunteers. we must all think outside the box to address california's homeless epidemic and that is exactly what this project has delivered -- a fresh approach. we are commited to helping in every way that we can and we are proud of what we have achieved with today's project and i want to particularly thank the innovative thinkers in the city of san francisco and cal trans who worked together to address the challenges of delivering this project on state right-of-way. and i also want to really thank cal tran staff who worked very hard on this project. this is not what cal trans normally does with our right-of-way. but i wanted to especially

thank our senior right-of-way agent who was our point person on this project. and thank you to the staff at san francisco department of housing and public works and san francisco's department of homelessness and supportive housing. i look forward to our quonlted -- continued partnership with the city of san francisco to xraet a transportation system that enhances california's economy while also working with communities throughout our state to make every california city a better place to live. working together, we can solve big problems. thank you. [applause] >> good morning. i'm the executive director of st. vincent depaul. we have been a long-standing, nonprofit in the city and county of san francisco since 1860. our mission is to offer hope and service on a direct person-to-person basis, working to the break the cycles of homelessness and domestic violence. we want to thank our partners today for the beautiful

navigation center and what we are able to accomplish with 125 clients that are with us. at this time, i want to introduce representative ronen's representative from her office, carolina morales, considered a bridge builder and political organizer, advancing domestic si. she has over a decade of experience in community health, services and community organizing nicker tiffs. she has built and managed programs, wrote and managed grants and restructured an organization. she has been our key person from the supervisor ronen's office. [applause] >> hi, everybody. good morning. i'm catalina morales with hillary ronen. so, six years ago, when the district nine office began our work to build this first ever navigation center in san

francisco, we immediately recognized the division circle site as a perfect place for another navigation center. last year, when the supervisor took office, and our tent encampment crisis was at its worst, we have about 250 tents concentrated in the mission as ground zero for our crisis, we knew that we had to do a lot more. we started work with the neighbors to ensure that we could open a navigation center. we worked with ed lee very closely to ensure that all of the partners were really working together. and in that partnership, another very important department was the san francisco police department. our chief, chief scott, our commander lazhar, and our captain have been important partners in ensuring that those homeless residents and house residents feel safe as we share

spaceing to and make sure that everybody gets dignify housing. so i want to repeat the words that mayor breed and assembly member tang have repeated. this has been unprecedented collaboration that has been very, very effective. we think supervisor tang for partnering with us and granting us this massive amount of money to ensure that we are serving our most vulnerable people in the mission in ground zero for the tent encampment crisis and with that, i want to once again honor the memory of ed lee and his commitment to building more navigation center, those in the mission and in our city. this is our way forward. this is the way that we will solve the tent encampment cry theys we? -- that we have in san francisco and make even california. thank you for your time. [applause] >> so, we've had many successful stories from those who have visited with us at the

navigation center. so, i'd like the introduce you to anna. she has been a long-time member, resident of san francisco. and due to her life experiences, she recently became homeless and we just worked with her and she is now housed. [cheering] [applause] >> good morning, everyone. and thank you all for coming out here. i want to thank the navigation center and mayor ed lee and now our present mayor. thank you to staff. i -- i'm an ex-postal employee and i never thought i'd become homeless. it's sad, but thanks to the navigation center, i'm now housed and i'm living at 6th street. i'm very happy. i was there 35 years ago.

and so i feel that i've made a complete circle. i'm back and it is a good feeling because i know that i'm where i'm supposed to be. thank you all. [applause] >> are you going to do the robin? >> and now we'll cut the rick bonn. -- ribbon. >> ok. now we're going to cut the ribbon. afterwards, if anyone is interested in a tour, let me know and we'll do a nice quick little tour through the navigation center. >> here we go! five, four, three, two, one!

>> third thursdays at the commons is a monthly event series to really activate krisk centkrisk -- civic center, fulton mall, and other locations through social operation. >> in 2016, an initiative called the civic center progress initiative was

launched, it was launched by a bunch of city agencies and community partners, so they really had to figure out how to program these places on a more frequent basis. i'm with the civic center community benefit district, and i'm program manager for the civic center commons. also, third thursdays will have music. that was really important in the planning of these events. >> we wanted to have an artist that appeals to a wide range of tastes. >> i'm the venue manager. good music, good music systems, and real bands with guitar players and drummers. >> we turned uc center and fulton street into a place

where people want to be to meet, to laugh, and it's just an amazing place to be. there's a number of different exhibits. there's food, wine, cocktails, and the idea, again, is to give people an opportunity to enjoy what really is, you know, one of the great civic faces in america. when you look from the polk street steps, and you look all the way down the plaza, down market street, daniel burns' design, this was meant to be this way. it's really special. >> the city approached us off the grid to provide food and beverages at the event as kind of the core anchor to encourage people who leave a reason to stay. >> it's really vibrant. it's really great, just people walking around having a good time. >> this formula is great food,

interesting music, and then, we wanted to have something a little more, so we partnered with noise pop, and they brought in some really fun games. we have skeeball, we also have roller skating lessons, and we've got a roller skating rink. >> if you're a passion jail skeeball player like me, and you're deciding whether you're just going to roll the ball up the middle or take a bank shot. >> our goal is to come out and have fun with their neighbors, but our goal is to really see in the comments that it's a place where people want to hold their own public event. >> i think this is a perfect example of all these people working together. everybody's kind of come

together to provide this support and services that they can to activate this area. >> there's no one agency or organization that really can make this space come alive on its own, and it's really through the collective will, not just of the public sector, but both the public and our business partnerships, our nonprofits partnerships, you know, neighborhood activists. >> i really like it. it's, like, a great way to get people to find out about local things, cuisine, like, it's really great. >> it's a really good environment, really welcoming. like, we're having a great time. >> we want to inspire other people to do this, just using a part of the plaza, and it's also a good way to introduce people if they're having a

large scale event or small scale event, we'll direct you to the right people at the commons so you can get your event planned. >> being a san francisco based company, it was really important to connect and engage with san franciscans. >> how great is it to come out from city hall and enjoy great music, and be able to enjoy a comtail, maybe throw a bocci ball or skee ball. i find third thursdays to be really reinrig rat reinriggating for me. >> whether you're in the city hall or financial district or

anywhere, just come on down on third thursdays and enjoy the music, enjoy an adult beverage, enjoy the skee ball; enjoy an adult playground, if you >> greetings, everyone. thank you for being here for grand opening of the minna lee. this is 50 new units of permanent supportive housing of the 1300 units that we have in our pipeline. [applause] i want to thank the mayor for her leadership in ensuring that we have a robust housing pipeline, permanent supportive housing pipeline for people experiencing homelessness. as i said, we have 1300 more units that we'll be opening in the coming years and before we officially get started and hear from the mayor, i just want to say a few thank yous. thank you to the owners of the

building who worked with us so hard to master lease the site. [applause] and folks from the departments of real estate for their work in making the lease happen. thank you all very much. [applause] and, of course, staff from the department of homelessness and supportive housing, i want to thank nina and her staff for making this building happen and all the other staff and grace and margo for helping the tenants rent up. by the way, there is a 50-unit building and even though today is our grand opening, we have 48 residents living here. that will be fully rented out next week. [applause] and i just want to also a special shout-out to nina because many people tried to make this happen. i wanted to rename is building the nina lee but she gets mad when i say that. [laughter] and i wanded to see her make that face. of course, ours nonprofit partners, dish and e.c.s. for operating the building. [applause]

and most of all, our new residents. the new members of our community who are living in this building, who will be part of this community and part of this neighborhood and will help make both the building and the neighborhood a better place to live. thank you all to the residents who are here today. let's hear it for the residents again. [applause] ok. and without further ado, it is my great honor to introduce mayor london breed. thank you. >> wow. 50 new, affordable housing units in san francisco. this is going to mean a lot for 50 residents. [applause] people who, sadly, have been struggling with homelessness right here on our streets in this city. and we know that although this is amazing for the 48 people who have already moved in to

minna lee, we know that there are still more work to do for so many more people who need housing. today is a celebration. it is an opportunity to just shine a light on the fact that it takes a village. it takes a village to create an opportunity like this. to make sure that we not only renovated this building, that we find the funding to do so, but more importantly, that we make this place a home for the people who are moving in. and making sure that they have the support, and many of your programs, to be successful. al sex here today and i know you will be hearing from him, one of the new residents of this complex. alex had a lot of challenges. he will tell us a little bit about what those challenges were. sadly living on our streets, feeling hopeless, feeling like no one cared.

and here he is, one of the residents at, many inna lee who is going to come before us and tell us his story. let's give alex a hand. [applause] many of you know that my top priority as mayor is addressing this homeless crises. grew up in the city. i grew up in public housing. and the conditions of where i lived were not very comfortable. the busted pipes. the violence. the challenges in the neighborhood. the feeling that nobody cared was just normal life for me. but i had a roof over my head. i had a grandmother who raised me and who cared about me. i had her support and it meant everything for my success. and that is what housing has to be about. not just providing a place for people to stay and to be housed, but opening the door to

opportunity so that not only can they get the housing that they need, but they can be successful and hold on to that housing. one person at a time. making sure that we make the right kinds of investments in places like minna lee for the purposes of supporting our community who needs it the most. this is a new way of doing housing here in san francisco. we have actually, in our inventory, have over 7500 units of supportive housing and we have 1300 units in the pipeline. that is to, again, help people get housed and keep them housed and make sure they have the housing they need to be successful. i want to take this opportunity because it does take a village to make sure that this happens

and a fierce champion with a homeless outreach team and who deals with several text messages a day from me asking for help who i know need help. the department of homelessness -- [applause] you know what i love about jeff is every time i text him about somebody i want him to help, he actually, in most cases, he knows their names. he knows theirs stories. he knows whats going on with the situation and why something so difficult. and that is exactly what we need to address each of these unique situations that some people are struggling with. so i'm really grateful for his service and the work that he's done. of course i want to thank the department of real estate. i want to thank the department of building inspection for moving faster than they typically do to get this project done. the department of public works. the city attorney's office and everyone, the nonprofit

partners who have assisted the episcopal community services, which is operating this facility. and delivering innovative, supportive housing, which is managing the property. thank you to dish and others who are going to be a part of making sure that this property is successful and the residents who live here. so thank you all so much. and we know that the solutions to addressing our crises is making sure that we build more housing and provide opportunity, we provide the support and we work together to deliver projects sooner rather than later like minna lee. congratulations on this major accomplishment and thank you all so much for being here today. [applause] >> thank you very much, madame mayor. now it is my honor to bring up beth stokes, the executive director of the episcopal community services.

[applause] >> thank you, jeff. and thank you, mayor breed, for your leadership and continued focus. on solutions to ending chronic homelessness such as the minna lee. i want to echo something that the mayor just said, that this today is a celebration. it reallile is a celebration of ms. folks coming together and i'm going to be brief and thank a few folks. the minna lee is a celebration of 50 more solutions. in our collective effort toward ending chronic homelessness in san francisco. and that is something to celebrate for sure. i'd like to thank our partners, s.h.s. and to echo everything that the mayor just said about a team coming together, a true partnership and that was h.s.h. and dish. specifically, again, i would like to thank jeff for his leadership and his drive to really kind of open every door

and really tackle every issue, like kicking down the door to make things happen. it takes courage. and i really want to thank you, jeff, for your continued coverage and our efforts together. thank you. i want to thank terry abbott. i know she was new on to the scene. i want to thank her for her leadership. i want to thank margo ancanetti who has always been there in the supportive housing realm and has guided us and has been a true partner. and, of course, there is the dish tale. i really want to thank you guys. special thank you to lauren and to doug. and their leadership of dish who never lost sight of what the minna lee could be. you guys always hung on to this building and always saw what you guys see before you today. and there is -- i just want to say an incredible amount of effort was taken on by dish over the years to have the vision to see what you see today, which is 50 new homes. and that is incredible. i'd also like the thank u.c.f.

staff and that is tracy, scott, travis and in deep cooperation with anna. anna, raise your hand. [applause] anna has been instrumenttal in launching e.c.s. services both at this site and right down the street at the auburn, which was opened i believe january and february. with that, enough about e.c.s. and us. i want to introduce you to alex who now calls the minna lee home. welcome. >> hello. >> hi, alex. >> it's a nice neighborhood. thank you. that's all i'm going to say. [laughter] [applause]

>> thank you very much, alex, for sharing. and alex and i met when he with standing in an encampment out on the streets and ended up in the nav center and now is living here, which is exactly the way the system is supposed to work. so let's close it out with the people who do the work on the front lines work really hard. they are amazing people. they're angels that walk among us and we're blessed and honored to have denise rigens, the general manager of this building that will share a few words with us. [applause] >> all right! so, god, this feels like a really -- just a beautiful day. and i just can't wait to now build community and bringing our tenants home, safety, caring and love. especially during these times.

and so i'm just truly humbled by that. and that i get to be a part of that. so i'd like to thank you, mayor breed, for being here with us. and supervisor kim and also h.s.h. for the opportunity and support for this amazing project. we're still working on the finishing touches because really what our first priority was to make sure that we provided people a home. we want to thank our e.c.s. coordinated entry team and e.c.s. as well and support services team for the fabulous coordination and partnership and shout-out to the whole dish team. you guys are remarkable and i'm so proud to be a part and work alongside of you. and we also like to thank our dish advisory board and ties for keeping us on track. [laughter] so this project demonstrate our collective capacity and to end con kick homelessness and in partnership with e.c.s. and n.s.h. we have paved the

pathway home by removing barriers to housing. ours tenants moved in the day they came in for their intake appointment -- [applause] and basically avoided the traditional hurdle that can keep many of our tenants who are vulnerable on the street. so with that, i'd like to thank everyone for being here today. thank you.

>> hello, i'm the deputy assistant manage and project manager for the control system bureau i consider any department as my extend family i know every member of my department the folks are that that talented and skilled and have their credentials since the people in the site are coming to before they're put in operation it's a good place to visit we share information and support each other the water system is a program we got 26 national level with regards because of the dedication of any team the

people are professional about their work but their folks they care about their community and the project i did this is a great organization with plenty of associations in you work hard and if you really do your job not only do you enjoy it but the sky is the limit we had a great job

>> this is one place you can always count on to give you what you had before and remind you of what your san francisco history used to be. >> we hear that all the time, people bring their kids here and their grandparents brought them here and down the line. >> even though people move away, whenever they come back to the city, they make it here. and they tell us that. >> you're going to get something made fresh, made by hand and made with quality products and something that's very, very good. ♪ >> the legacy bars and restaurants was something that was begun by san francisco simply to recognize and draw attention to the establishments. it really provides for san francisco's unique character. ♪ >> and that morphed into a request that we work with the

city to develop a legacy business registration. >> i'm michael cirocco and the owner of an area bakery. ♪ the bakery started in 191. my grandfather came over from italy and opened it up then. it is a small operation. it's not big. so everything is kind of quality that way. so i see every piece and cut every piece that comes in and out of that oven. >> i'm leslie cirocco-mitchell, a fourth generation baker here with my family. ♪ so we get up pretty early in the morning. i usually start baking around 5:00. and then you just start doing rounds of dough.

loaves. >> my mom and sister basically handle the front and then i have my nephew james helps and then my two daughters and my wife come in and we actually do the baking. after that, my mom and my sister stay and sell the product, retail it. ♪ you know, i don't really think about it. but then when i -- sometimes when i go places and i look and see places put up, oh this is our 50th anniversary and everything and we've been over 100 and that is when it kind of hits me. you know, that geez, we've been here a long time. [applause] ♪ >> a lot of people might ask why our legacy business is important. we all have our own stories to tell about our ancestry. our lineage and i'll use one example of tommy's joint.

tommy's joint is a place that my husband went to as a child and he's a fourth generation san franciscan. it's a place we can still go to today with our children or grandchildren and share the stories of what was san francisco like back in the 1950s. >> i'm the general manager at tommy's joint. people mostly recognize tommy's joint for its murals on the outside of the building. very bright blue. you drive down and see what it is. they know the building. tommy's is a san francisco hoffa, which is a german-style presenting food. we have five different carved meats and we carve it by hand at the station. you prefer it to be carved whether you like your brisket fatty or want it lean. you want your pastrami to be

very lean. you can say i want that piece of corn beef and want it cut, you know, very thick and i want it with some sauerkraut. tell the guys how you want to prepare it and they will do it right in front of you. san francisco's a place that's changing restaurants, except for tommy's joint. tommy's joint has been the same since it opened and that is important. san francisco in general that we don't lose a grip of what san francisco's came from. tommy's is a place that you'll always recognize whenever you lock in the door. you'll see the same staff, the same bartender and have the same meal and that is great. that's important. ♪

>> the service that san francisco heritage offers to the legacy businesses is to help them with that application process, to make sure that they really recognize about them what it is that makes them so special here in san francisco. ♪ so we'll help them with that application process if, in fact, the board of supervisors does recognize them as a legacy business, then that does entitle them to certain financial benefits from the city of san francisco. but i say really, more importantly, it really brings them public recognition that this is a business in san francisco that has history and that is unique to san francisco. >> it started in june of 1953. ♪

and we make everything from scratch. everything. we started a you -- we started a off with 12 flavors and mango fruits from the philippines and then started trying them one by one and the family had a whole new clientele. the business really boomed after that. >> i think that the flavors we make reflect the diversity of san francisco. we were really surprised about the legacy project but we were thrilled to be a part of it. businesses come and go in the city. pretty tough for businesss to stay here because it is so expensive and there's so much competition. so for us who have been here all these years and still be popular and to be recognized by

the city has been really a huge honor. >> we got a phone call from a woman who was 91 and she wanted to know if the mitchells still owned it and she was so happy that we were still involved, still the owners. she was our customer in 1953. and she still comes in. but she was just making sure that we were still around and it just makes us feel, you know, very proud that we're carrying on our father's legacy. and that we mean so much to so many people. ♪ >> it provides a perspective. and i think if you only looked at it in the here and now, you're missing the context. for me, legacy businesses, legacy bars and restaurants are really about setting the context for how we come to be

where we are today. >> i just think it's part of san francisco. people like to see familiar stuff. at least i know i do. >> in the 1950s, you could see a picture of tommy's joint and looks exactly the same. we haven't change add thing. >> i remember one lady saying, you know, i've been eating this ice cream since before i was born. and i thought, wow! we have, too. ♪