fists in the air, go. it's so important. this is an amazing project. this is the fifth ground breaking in the mission in what we look at as a year, i guess. it's pretty amazing and every single one of these reflects an incredible amount of hard-fought struggle to make sure that what is happening in the mission is starting to repair the damage of the devastating amounts of eviction that have been occurring here. so thank you, meta, thank you, two of the best community based affordable housing developers. i would say the importance of community-based development and bringing that capacity like olga said, it's so critical that the skills and the capacity are developed within the community.

obviously, meta is not new to this, but they're growing all the time. i know how stressful this is, so thank you to the project managers who have fought their way through all the tough decisions, all the late nights. on this project, you're really pulling together the essence of the mission. we celebrate, offering high quality education for families who are going to be living in this building. and for their neighbors. we celebrate having a home for homeys. and we celebrate creating a permanent home. anchor of the latino cultural district. i'm pleased if you haven't yet come, stop by the district 9 office and see their mind-blowing installation in our

offices. we're so honored to have them there. so casa is today's victory. know that supervisor ronen is committed to working with all of you here today, all of you community partners, so we continue to keep the pressure on, continue to call the attention to the needs of the mission. and to keep an active pipeline for the many years to come. thank you. [applause] >> thank you, amy. as we think about building, i think certainly bricks come to mind and as we are breaking the ground today for the building that is going to be this beautiful, beautiful site to behold of nine stories. you're going to hear nine stories several times, because we want to emphasize that.

this is also what i call the building hearts. the building hearts that started this. that have been part of laying the heart foundation for where we are right now. and so i want to bring up professor richard baynes and dr. baynes up. [applause] if you don't know them, you'll see why i was saying this. so let me tell you about professor baynes, he's a native of california, a founding faculty member of csu and current chair of the music and performing arts department. he's a founding director of education for the san francisco symphony and former director of the san francisco symphony youth orchestra. for the past 24 years, he's been

active in the local monterey bay area community. recently he received the 2017 arts council of monterey champions of the arts award for professional artist. and very appropriate to this occasion, he served for 18 years as president of the board while here in san francisco. [applause] and, of course, dr. baynes. if you don't know her, you should. curator, many titles, artist and educator. and mark mcarthur genius fellow award. she has defined latino esthetic

in the united states and latin america. many things have been written about our amazing brilliant, but one that i really always liked to read is that her work honors women who have broken social barriers. so dr. baynes, please come on up. [applause] >> well, i'll try not to cry. we've been only waiting 48 years, so, that's all. i'm very happy to be here and grateful to share this. and to know that in this historic moment we understand as many have said before, starting early this morning in the blessing and the ground, when

you actually put our little seeds down, that no place is empty when we reach it. there have been spirits that have gone before. and the spirits of this space, as many have said, are first nations, but they're also the spirits of those who have built all of these community organizations. i would be remiss without acknowledging, of course, the founders, the first group included people like the late peter rodriguez. the founder of the museum, rupert garcia and then the late renee ines and ralph, who presented and held down that space for so many years. they were joined by other people, including the artist who was the first curator. we moved on people like maria

pineta were here to run studio 24. after liz, came catalina and then our own. so i liken it to a very long and bumpy relay run, where we've been passing that baton until we got to this unimaginable moment. this time in which we understand that we are beginning. i call it remembering the future. we are here because someone came before us and someone will come after us. and all of that is but one fabric of memory, of justice, of commitment, of resiliency and of art. there are so many artists in this room today. so many people. i can't see you all. but i know you're here. there was a moment in the making of the history that was one of

serious struggle. there was police harassment. what is ironic, that many of the things we talked about then are present now. i have a favorite writer, walter benjamin and he says to articulate the past historically does not mean to recognize the way it really was. it means to seize hold of a memory as it flashes up in a moment of danger. and that is what we have been experiencing for decades, but most truly in these last years of gentrification. what we see in the national picture is phobia of anti-latino sentiment. we know that the housing crisis we're experiencing across the country is profound here in san francisco. so all the things that it has stood for, the artists that have performed, the artwork shop, the concert efforts, the building of

the regeneration projects so that young people could come. those were all the makings of a common path and the resiliency of a sign of promise for the future. and that promise and their future has arrived. so i say today, we are here, because those who came before us and those who come ahead, they are right here now, young people, out there. they'll be the next. and they'll take that baton and they'll move it forward. and i think it is totally fitting that it should be in a home place with teen, youth, and with babies and children. because that is the full circle of life. and that is what we are as cultural workers and as artists. so i hope that we will look back on this day when this building is built and the nine stories are there, and the 143 families are there, and our artists are there, and we'll see is that

this next generation with all of the complexity of lgbtq, of all of the complexity of global identity, of all the border struggle we've been through, will be a home place for those who dream of the next future, who remember the next future. [speaking spanish] [applause] [cheers and applause] >> thank you so much. very inspiring and just powerful words to remind us what we're doing here. and one of the organizations that is going to bring the babies into the picture, and the children, is a longstanding community based institute, the felton institute that will be

providing the preschool and after-school programs here. and we're very pleased and honored to have the president and c.e.o. of the felton institute, al gilbert. please join us. [applause] >> good afternoon and welcome to this glorious celebration. we had a blessing of the ground earlier today. and it was extraordinarily touching, because it remind me of the deep -- reminded me of my ancestral relationship. and the other part of my family, you might have guessed, comes from africa. and i had the opportunity to go back to montgomery, alabama, two months ago to visit the lynching memorial. at the memorial i was able to visit the memorial for two of my

family members who had been lynched in the 1900s which wasn't that long ago. one of which was lynched in my lifetime. it brings me back to the importance of building a community like this, where we're going to support both our babies, young families, and create safe communities for us to live in. it also reminds me that whenever we think we're working hard, we're not working hard compared to those who have come before us. who have given their blood. to make it so that we can sit here and make this kind of magic come together. i want to thank the community members who pushed hard to make sure that the politicians recognize the importance of this sacred space. i want to thank the builders as well as the community agencies

that participate in this community along with us. i'm reminded about mission creek that runs under this land and keeps this land fertile and it reminds me of my attachment to water. felton celebrates 130 years anniversary this year. previously known as family service agency of san francisco. so that is how you probably recognize our name. [applause] joanne and delores, please stand up, because these are the individuals who work with our babies and work with our divisions and make our work so successful. thank you for your continued support of this project. anything that we can do to make this a safe and nourishing community, we're committed to doing that, thank you so much. [applause] >> you know, as we went to some

of the planning commission meetings advocating, it became such a family affair, particularly having the son of thomas, who testified at the commission. and i think he was the deciding voice. [applause] so, thank you for being part of the struggle. and speaking part of the struggle, i love this -- the acronyms, homeys organizing the mission to empower youth. how many clearer could that be? [applause] -- how much clearer could that be? homeys have dedicated the mission to work with young adults. they do it by empowering the youth and delivering their programs with hope, with

empowerme empowerment, leadership, culture and most importantly with love. i want to turn this over to the director of homey, roberto. turn it over to you, right? [applause] sp [speaking spanish] we ain't going nowhere. we ain't going nowhere. how many 100% affordable housing developments is this? five. five. against impossible odds. against impossible odds. our community has stood up. people have said it's impossible

to build in san francisco, it's too expensive. they said, why your community is being displaced, there is no latinos left in the mission. they said all kinds of things to our community. 143 new units are going up right here. three organizations, 15,000 square feet of community space that are going to be owned, assets to this community. we're not done yet. we're not done yet. there is still work to do. there is still work to do. we have -- we stopped to build this building and we need everybody here's support to build this up. elected officials, foundations,

we need everyone. and i hope, and i pray that in two years' time that we come back and we celebrate the grand opening. felton institute and homeys organizing the mission to empower youth. we ain't going nowhere. when i was a young boy, born and raised in this neighborhood, i used to come to this bakery right here with my dad. he used to buy it for me in the morning time. i told my dad the other day, i said, pop, we're going to build it. he said, where? i said that place you used to buy me -- and he was excited, excited we're doing this. old time mission.

owner paco's tacos. right? back in the day. we're here with the young people. that's our future, man. we've got to fight for them. they're here representing. i hope that you represent for them because there is things to do still. there is more housing to be built. there is homeless people that we know that are part of our families that are suffering right now. and i take that seriously and so should you. there is a lot to do. so i want to take this time, this opportunity, this moment, to bring up one of our precious elders in our community. she is the former executive director of institute. and she's a precious treasure in our community. she has put in many decades of

work and i am most honored to introduce her to have her say some words. she was here this morning blessing the ground, so i've been putting her to work this morning. so sorry. she decided to stay because she wanted to say words. she caught the feeling. right? and i hope all of you do, too. lastly, i want to say, you know, meta, tndc, all our city family, i want to send you some love and some thanks for doing this. because this is not just for me, this is for our community, it's for our people. and these institutions, creating these buildings, they're going to be the hubs for our community. they're going to be the places

where people come and get services and celebrate weddings and have a beautiful time, and all the beautiful things in life. these buildings are go to help us thrive. we don't want our community just to survive, just to get a survival program, we want them to thrive. we want them to be the next leaders, the next tech executives. all the things that we dream for them, they're going to happen in these buildings. so i thank you all for making it possible. i thank the community organizations here that are struggling hard, fighting hard every day with the people, right? struggling. it's a struggle right now, man. it's a struggle. so we're going to continue. don't let anyone tell you it's impossible to dream, that it's impossible to make it happen, [speaking spanish] -- come on!

what was that? [speaking spanish] >> can you hear me? [speaking spanish]

we are one. this hand, these singers, all the different communities together as one. we can move the mountain. we can move many mountains. this morning i was here and remembering that there were many who have walked here. our ancestors, the first nations people, who were dispossessed by whoever came by. spaniards, mexicans. everybody dispossessed them. so it is good they're involved in this process. and we must not forget them because they are only 1% of san francisco. they are an important 1%.

they carry our ancestral history for us. and so it is such a good day. you know, sometimes people say it's a good day to day. i say it's a good day to be alive today. >> hear, hear! >> and i would challenge all of you, as we all struggle to be present at that struggle. you know, there are people that don't want us. that's the truth. we hear it all the time. go back where you came from. and i said, well, i came from st. mary's hospital, right? [laughter] because they're ignorant. but we have to remain in that struggle. and i want to see all of you there when we need you. because it's powerful. numbers are powerful.

politicians want to be elected, so they check out the numbers. they check out who's there. and then they often claim that they've done it themselves. but we know who has done it, we have done it together. and brought them in to join us. that's one way to be fully empowered. now i'm in the health field. and to me health means that you're also healthy not only physically, mentally, spiritually, but also economically. we must have a roof over our heads. you cannot have a good family life or a quality of life if you don't have a roof over your head, or stability, knowing that you can remain there. so if we want to have a healthy community, this is part of health. it's not separate from health.

so let's continue. it's good to see so many young people that i have known. she is young, because i taught her in high school. [laughter] you know, i'm old. >> you were a very young teacher! >> very young teacher. thank you, all. thank you, meta, for moving yourself in a direction that has made this possible. and i'm so happy that we're finding a home. i remember them on 24th street, now they'll be in a different place. and of course, homeys. i want to mention that homeys also has an ancestor. some of you may remember the real alternatives program, rap. that is the ancestor of homey. so you know, something dies or

we think it dies, something else grows. that is what has happened and homey is here. very present. i see all of my homey cohorts. you know, it's a wonderful time for me to be an elder, because everybody looks after me. you know? do you want this, do you need this? i have to say no, i can do it, but it's a wonderful feeling. that's what we want in this community. that the children learn that tradition. that they carry it on so that no elder can ever be homeless again. right? that's something to -- no homeless children. no homeless elders or anyone in between. and this is a beginning. and we did it. this community did it. i'm sure the struggle will continue. it will continue. so be us in that struggle. and thank you.

[applause] no worry. we have time. [speaking spanish] hi, everyone. i'm the executive director. thank you. it's an honor to be here. and i want to start off by

saying happy mother's day. it is mother's day in latin america. [speaking spanish] and what a momentous time to be here honoring and blessing mother earth today and putting our intentions forward for what we see in our future. it's an honor to be working with all of the agencies, meta, tndc, homey, and felton. and today, i really wanted to make sure that elders were heard. this is a project that i said earlier has been happening for almost like 50 years. it's a continuation of movement that came before us. i want to offer a little bit of the magic that got to happen today here. we showcase exhibitions, the monthly literary events, one of the only bilingual event that happens in the bay area, under the moon, honoring our traditions.

and i want to call some of the artists that were nurtured in that corner on 24th and bryant that started their careers there. that gave us their [speaking spanish] to heal. it didn't matter what day of the week it was, when prince passed, when all the major like awful things were happening, it was always a place we got to share magic. i don't know why i just named prince. i guess i was thinking about him. [laughter] i'm thinking purple. i want to focus on bringing the artists, who are the people for us that have given us, made a perfect world out of an imperfect situation. that is what olga said, i want to bring those words up and start out by inviting -- yes.

she is an interdisciplinary artist and author of too much girl. she is the recipient of four san francisco arts commissions artist grants and has lived and made art in the mission district of san francisco for over two decades. she's a longtime educator and community worker and teaches at san francisco state university. but more than anything, she gave -- it wasn't -- she brought the magic and we got to see so many important first-time works where there was literary performance. and she's part of the regeneration program, if i'm not mistaken, which was started to create a platform for artists to be cultivated, nurtured and have elders. we needed to have the words. i wanted to acknowledge two more little people.

i want you two to hear these voice, these words and have it in your heart, this is your truth, too. you can speak your truth. this space is not just for us. we look to you little guys to come up and continue making this magic, okay. so listen. [applause] >> it's such an honor to have -- to be able to share this with you. [ ♪ ] [singing in spanish]

[singing] [cheers and applause] [speaking spanish] the tropical beach.

memory blurry in the rearview. entangled. with her golden shadow holding the compass. our lives full bloom. each mural rendered in a palace that shows our fist in the air. pen the anthems to make our feet move. [speaking spanish] talking to them in rhymes we can't reason. know how to see in the dark. [speaking spanish]

[cheers and applause] again, i'm honored to share my palm song and my attitude with you this afternoon. and we break the ground with our action. we are accustomed to excavation, to ripping up and unearth silence and harvest truth. to throw it up into the sky for everyone to see, like a colorful piece of graffiti. we are here. we live here. we are still here. we have the right to stay, just not the millions. our community, our children, our artists deserve better. and this is on the way to better. this is an international beacon that welcomes and displays the

complexity of us and our accomplices. that's a good word. i am among many who wouldn't know where i would be without -- [ ♪ ] i conjured up a song for the bilingual monthly poetry. while our poetry lives in the streets and other community hubs, we ultimately always end up here, which is our sanctuary where we preserve ours.

i have lived longer in this body than anywhere else in my life. i stepped into leadership, become a mother, developed as an artist and it has been part of every step of that, giving me space, opportunities, joy, refuge. i was there when prince passed. we cried together. we did. always on my mind, too. like so many others of you, my husband and i are family came to set roots here, contribute, build community, build that family we crave and bear the fruit of that in place with an important central american legacy of art and activism. this is the meeting place. the living room where we gather. it's our sanctuary. there we convene with our elders. celebrate our children. experience each other's creation. honor those who have passed.

as we mark this moment, i hope you'll join me in telling that everyone will stand and the mission community remains. [cheers and applause] i know that my neighbor still walks down the block as always. and i know that he's watching over us and that he is going to watch over this corner. and i know that you will, too. applause

>> that was beautiful. that was a beautiful reminder of why we're here today. these projects take a lot of effort and there are a lot of different folks that are part of this work, so it should go without saying that we owe a huge debt of gratitude to all of the consultants, all of the attorneys, all the folks that help us. and so i want to start by -- before introducing a very

important person, by acknowledging the support that we've received from the mayor's office of housing and community development. the support from bearings, u.s. bank, from the california tax credit allocation committee. [laughter] from the california debt limit allocation committee. our architects, ryan jang and richard stacy. our contractors. general contractors. i want to close by acknowledging that in the city of san francisco we've had a very special financial partner that believes in us and has believed in us for quite some time, so much so, they have helped the city transform a portfolio of its old housing into opportunities of hope through its funding of the rental

assistance demonstration project. and here specifically they've helped us realize this project. and i'm talking about bank of america. and here today on behalf of bank of america is liz minute, who for the last 15 years has been an integral part of their leadership team. we'd like to invite her and acknowledge our gratitude to bank of america for their support of this project. [applause] >> thank you so much. and good afternoon, everyone. what an amazing way to end a week in this beautiful, beautiful day here in the mission. as was just said, bank of america has a long history in san francisco since our founding here in 1904 to getting people back in hair homes after the -- their homes after the earthquake, to building and financing both of our large bridges here. and with reference to our $2.2

billion commitment to the san francisco rental assistant development as well. we're so very, very thrilled and honored to have the partnership that we do with the tndc and meta and to be able to provide over $92 million in financing commitments for what is going to be this amazing property and the ground-breaking that we're here for today. we'd like to continue to thank all the teams that made this possible. our bank of america team that made this possible. our partners within the mayor's housing group. some of whom i see today, to our partners within the supervisor's office. please send our thanks and then to our mayor, the honorable mayor london breed and everything she has and continues to do for affordable housing in the city. mayor breed. [applause] >> thank you. i feel like me and liz are a tag team, because we've been all

over the city doing amazing work together on projects just like this. and i'm so excited to be here in the mission once again for another 100% affordable housing project! [cheers and applause] and i think the -- there is one special group of people to thank that made this all possible. and that is the mission community. we know as someone who is a native san franciscan and someone who has seen and lived through a lot of the changes in the western community, i understand the challenges that this community has and continues to face with displacement and watching as your neighbors, who you once knew when you were growing up, the people that -- and the businesses that you were familiar with, all of a sudden, are no longer there. to look around and not really

recognize your community, is something sadly that i know the mission community has been experiencing for the past several years. a couple of years ago, when mayor lee was here with us, there was a lot of advocacy. i was on the board of supervisors. and there was a commitment made in the general obligation bond and a commitment that we would not only continue to work with this community, but we would invest that previous bond an additional $50 million specifically in the mission community. we know that is not enough. but here's the good news. we're finally realizing the fruits of your labor. four affordable housing projects that are under way, under construction as we speak, with 459 units. and when you add this project with 143 units, you get over

600. and we know that there has been a lot of organizing so that we can get to 2500 units. with the additional windfall money that we received at the city, we're committed to purchasing two more properties in the mission. we are committed to investing the dollars if you will help us get this next bond in november passed, so that we can get more affordable housing units built. and then on top of that, what will happen in this community that should have happened in the western edition, with our neighborhood preference legislation, this community will be prioritized for access when these units are built. [cheers and applause] >> mayor breed: that is so significant. because i got to it will you, when -- tell you, when i looked around and wonder why when we built affordable housing in the western addition, why i couldn't get access at the time, and so

many of my neighbors and friends and the lottery system and the challenges with the lottery system, i was frustrated. i didn't want the city to continue down that path, so that when we build these units and we say they're for the community, we have to mean it. so with 40% of these units being prioritized with this community, that's a good step in the right direction. and i am so excited, because in addition to investing in housing, this property will have a child care facility. this property will be home to homey. this property will celebrate and support the organizations that make this community so special. and we will take it even a step further, because we know that there has to be outreach. we have to make sure that people in this community know that they qualify for these units and that they apply, apply, apply. we have to make sure that the applications get in. so we're going to be working and

investing the resources to outreach to the community so we can get as many folks as were born and raised in this community into these units when they're completed. that is my goal. i know that you believe in that goal as well. and so as we break ground today, and as we celebrate on this beautiful day with the sun shining and, yes, the wind blowing, typical san francisco weather, we remember those people who really fought for our ability to exist. our ability to exist and be a part of such an amazing place like san francisco. so many people like my grandmother, ms. brown and mama fay and mary rogers and so many people who fought against the injustices of redevelopment so i could even stand here in an amazing position to help make the kind of change that will really make the difference in

communities like the mission. i am so honored to serve as your mayor. and i am so excited about the future and what we're going to do together with more affordable housing projects in this community and all over san francisco. thank you, all, for being such an amazing partner. thank you to meta, tndc, for continuing to be housing champions for affordable housing throughout san francisco. let's break this ground. let's get these units built. and let's get folks moved into their new homes. thank you all so much. [cheers and applause] >> apparently i'm leading the toast now. this is all improv now. i'm going to do it latino-american style.

for those who don't speak spanish, bear with us and just follow. so in honoring all of our ancestors, honoring all of you here and the future generations moving forward -- [speaking spanish] >> all right! 5, 4, 3, 2, 1! woo! here we go.

>> i came to san francisco in 1969. i fell in love with this city and and this is where i raised my family at. my name is bobbie cochran. i've been a holly court resident for 32 years. i wouldn't give up this neighborhood for nothing. i moved into this apartment one year ago. my favorite thing is my kitchen. i love these clean walls. before the remodeling came along, the condition of these apartments had gotten pretty bad, you know, with all the mildew, the repairs. i mean you haven't seen the apartment for the program come

along. you wouldn't have believed it. so i appreciate everything they did. i was here at one point. i was. because i didn't know what the outcome of holly court was going to be. you know, it really got -- was it going to get to the point where we have to be displaced because they would have to demolish this place? if they had, we wouldn't have been brought back. we wouldn't have been able to live in burn. by the program coming along, i welcome it. they had to hire a company and they came in and cleaned up all the walls. they didn't paint the whole apartment, they just cleaned up the mildew part, cleaned up and straighted it and primed it. that is impressive. i was a house painter. i used to go and paint other people's apartments and then come back home to mine and i would say why couldn't i live in

a place like that. and now i do.

>> 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