preservation officer, tim fry, left for a new position, the position was not filled. it was turned over to the regionals and i think that shows an indifference to it. as i've worked on a lot of these projects and mostly through my engagements with victorian alliance, where i was past president, i've seen a focus on not helping average people do good restoration, but instead, how many road blocks can we set up, how expensive, how difficult can we make this? that has to change if we're going to embrace and accept all the newness in the city, one way is to respect and have it married with our historic history. i'd like to see the next one really embrace and encourage restoration. we're too quick to say, it's deteriorated, it's altered,

therefore, it has no merit as opposed to see the potential for good restoration. i think this is a critical piece. when people talk about we're losing san francisco, they're talking about not that we don't want anything new, but they see too much of the beautiful things that define our character being lost. we can marry both. this is an important priority. and it needs to be a priority of our next director. thank you very much. >> president melgar: thank you, commissioner. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon, commissioners and, thank you, president melgar, for allowing us to come and speak to the commission about this item. i'm anastasia, i'm a tenant and housing advocate. in my view, a new director has to recognize and respect san francisco's history,

architecture and its people and acknowledge that our city is not for sale. a new director must not be cow towed by big money. the arena numbers show too much market-rate housing as opposed to too little new housing for low-income residents is being built. a new director must agree to bring 100% affordable housing projects to the front of the queue and devote more resources to training planning staff on rent control and tenants' rights to protect tenants who are rapidly being displaced from the city. the next director must prioritize housing for very low low-income seniors and disabled, since plenty of housing that is market rate and unaffordable to them has been built.

we need a wise director who is willing to direct funds to get our historic resources evaluated and preserved. and who will devise plans that integrate housing with new infrastructure, including plans for transportation, water, sewage, schools and parks, to accommodate a growing metropolis we can all enjoy. thank you. >> president melgar: thank you. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon, commissioners. i work with -- as a permit consultant with some of the smallest property owners in san francisco. and small business people, small entertainment venues, are the people whose problems i help solve. and there is a broad feeling in the city that 4/5 of the city

doesn't get the attention at the planning department that it deserves. there is a lot of focus on broad plans and not the focus on implementation that i think is deserved by the community that the planning department serves. i want to echo many of the comments made by the previous speakers. they were all broad and suggesting value judgments and i hope that the new director agrees with me on most of those things. that said, i would like to nominate rich hillis to be the next director of the department of city planning. i believe he must have resigned to put his name in that ring. in all sincerity, i appreciate the work and the candor he brought to this position as a commissioner. and i think his perspective is one that the new director would benefit from. he was a very practical

commissioner. and understood the functioning of a vital city. and that's what we need. thank you. >> president melgar: thank you. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon, president melgar, members of the commission, mike buehler president and c.e.o. of san francisco his or her teenage. just -- heritage. just over 2% is part ott landmarks. as legislation is passed on the local and state level to increase production of housing such as sb330. is it more important than ever for the city to understand what is significant and worth protecting in the city's built environment. to this end, i'm going to focus on three priorities of the preservation community i hope any candidate will share. first, we urge you to hire a director who will prioritize and expedite completion of the city-wide historic resources survey. this is a tough recommendation made by spur in 2014, in a joint

policy paper on historic preservation. while cities los angeles have already completed their survey, we don't know what is significant about the city's historic neighborhoods and built environment. as a component of the city-wide survey, it should identify eligible historic districts for future designation. second, we urge completion of the historic. this has languished for 10 years and will help the commission and the new planning director balance priorities such as the need to increase housing production and other planning goals with the need to protect our historic resources. third, we urge this director to rehire and fill the historic preservation officer position recently vacated by tim fry. from our perspective, this is essential to have leadership

within the department who can be an advocate from within for the policy initiatives just described, among others. currently, the responsibilities among the preservation team within the department are diffuse and unclear from the outside and it has made it difficult to discern how to advocate for these policies within the department. finally, i urge any new planning director to build on the innovative work completed by this commission and the department in developing new tools focused on wholistic solutions for preserving communities, such as cultural districts and the business legacy program. san francisco is viewed as a national model and we need to find ways to stabilize and sustain our communities. and finally, we request that the department include representative of the historic preservation commission on the search and selection committee. thank you.

>> president melgar: thank you. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon, commissioners and thank you for the opportunity to address this important issue. my name is bruce bowen. land use coalition. in addition to the excellent comments, i'd like to focus on two. the director should lead the department and the city into the future, but also should be able to lead in what i would call a manner of planning in the present tense. recently a group of neighbors was meeting with a planner about the unnecessary demolition of a house in order to replace it with a wildly unaffordable box. the planner told us that the department recognized that it couldn't resist the pressure of maximizing the potential economic value of that lot. and so the project would be approved, which it was. this considering value only with a places economic worth pervades

real estate capital where the city is seen as only a generator of return on capital investment that leads to the city we know now, the city of displacement and destruction of communities. instead, we need a director that understands that the neighborhoods and communities and families and the value of a place derives from being useful to people now in the present as well as in the future. it houses them. gives them a sense of community, a place to work and sense of identity. without an understanding of the present use value of the city, we're condemned to live in a city as a growth machine, a city that houses only those that can do without the institution that rely on every day, public transit included. and that can float above the effects of gentrification. the second threat, no less dangerous than global capital, is the threat from sacramento. we can't stop legislators from going to the capital and deciding they'll make their name

by using the money bomb that is rendering the city uninhabitable. and we need a director who will ensure they provide this in a timely fashion. i believe the planning department is well positioned to provide analysis and impact on san francisco and it should be a priority. there is so much more to these things. you've heard many of them. director, we need a director who balances use value against exchange value. that is needs of people today are something to be protected even as we build for the future. and we need to keep ourselves armed to deal with sacramento. thank you. >> president melgar: thank you very much next speaker, please. >> i have a handout. my name is jerry with the san

francisco land use coalition. a leadership change provides opportunity for operational changes. i have five procedural suggestions. one that the department should be required to include a reasoned paragraph explaining why it recommends approval or denial of a project, and the paragraph should be signed by a member of senior management. two, the planning department should reject commonly flawed documents. one architectural plans that lack existing and proposed square footage table. two, unsigned environmental evaluation applications. three, documents that don't include a copy in electronic format. and four, new construction projects that lack a survey of record. point number three, improved citizen access to information by ensuring the following six

documents listed below are available one week before the project's scheduled hearing date. [please stand by]

>> good afternoon commissioners. i'm an architectural historian and preservation planner in private practice. in response to your call for a qualifications, i am really focusing on my comments very narrowly. i have to say i really appreciate the breadth of the comments of the speakers that have come before me, and the thoughtfulness. this is impressive that we have dedicated san francisco residents. i'm focusing my wish list for a new director on an individual who would prioritize, my wish list is historic preservation related. a director who would prioritize reestablishing an autonomous historic preservation sector within the planning department that can effectively promote the goals of the has developed, over

decades. build on the existing framework. preservation framework and other planning documents for frameworks by specifically prioritizing one citywide survey , of historic resources, with an emphasis on districts. also, the draft preservation element for the city in 2,009 for review. you've probably heard me say this before, i was the author of the draft preservation element, i would happily volunteer my services pro bono to help you, guide you to move that along anyway i can. another priority, number three, would be training for junior planters that focuses past the planning efforts, which are sometimes forgotten, overlooked, or shelved. libraries get dismantled. training should also focus on the city's history. really be specific to san

francisco. especially for new people who arrive in the department from other cities in are unfamiliar with so much about what san francisco is. number four, i would love to see prioritized a reliable online tool which is the property information map and database. it used to be better. it has somehow changed over time. there is less information now than there used to be. that is so helpful to people all over, in the department and out. i believe that the steps listed above would result in well-balanced, well-informed, well-managed growth citywide that integrates preservation, and environmental sustainability. finally, whether the new director comes from the resulting of an international search or someone local, i don't think it is so important. really i want to emphasize that they understand what the unique

qualities of san francisco are. unique to san francisco is the pattern of small parcels that make walking in the city interesting, not alienating. the fine nature of the city should be respected. quickly i would just like to say that the ideal individual will prioritize communities and not luxury housing. thank you. >> thank you. next speaker, please. >> kathleen courtenay russian hill community association. commissioners, we appreciate the invitation to make comments about the critical issue of the new planning director. we really urge you to look at an applicant who has the commitment to process and procedures.

the prior speaker laid out issues of process, the community relies on a consistent process so that we can inform all of our members, and work with the planning department. you can't change process on us without any heads up. without the understanding, appreciation, and implementation of a process, which the community and public entities have developed over decades. the foundation of good planning system deteriorates. community organizations also rely on a planning department of planners who understand procedures which frame the process. there is no procedural manual in the planning department as i believe, and commission secretary correct me, but the commission secretary, years ago put together some training notes

for a inexperienced planners. there was a note to my knowledge, that is the only thing, thank you very much, jonas, for doing that. there is no procedural manual that tells people to look at the general plan, or the residential guidelines. most of the people in this audience were mentored by an extraordinary woman, mary gallagher. she was a planner, she was with the san mateo planning department, she was a consultant she was one who really knew the code and understood the planning process. the notorious 60 russell street, who some of you said were the parameters for matching light rails -- it took mary gallagher to come in and clarify the guidelines for the planners in the community. we have a similar situation right now, on union street, and another one in the marina.

a new planner, using google earth, and a developers comments made an error in judgment. the judgment has been changed. we are not able to catch every error in the process. you've got an overworked zoning administrator who cannot mentor the group. you really need somebody who has a commitment to process and procedures. thank you very much. >> thank you. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon commissioners, peter papadopoulos with the mission agency. i want to pick up on some comments from a number of folks, and add some more, in terms of the qualifications and commitment, and hands-on experience we like to sea one a candidate. we would hope that they are experienced and knowledgeable in

the area of equitable development. we think is the number one priority going forward. at this.because, we would like to see more inclusion of the ideas of how do we actively offset gentrification impacts. someone who has a real understanding, and evaluation of true community engagement. someone who will come in ready and committed to build on our existing neighborhood community stabilization programs that are already active right now. committed to building on the planning department's growing race and equity frameworks that they are just recently, and we'll sort of move that forward towards both internally, and externally. a true equity first lands. we want to see this department move in a direction of always asking the question first. does this project go forward or not go forward, whatever it is on an area plan or whatever,

based on what those impacts might be on her most vulnerable residents. moving away from ideas of mitigation. in that way we hope we are working closely with the new office of an equity, in the area where we do think the order of timing and everything happens is a lot. that can often get overlooked. when do we create new area plans and why? when do we not move forward in a given area. someone who is going to be willing to see creative new solutions that may be have to move us into the front. let's invent a few more zonings, that creates downward price pressure. micro- area instead of upward price pressure like we know some zoning areas are. can we prioritize with new zoning areas, community serving, community stabilizing ideas. someone committed to resourcing,

our own perhaps studies where they are needed, we have done a little bit of that. if not, if there is not the resources to. someone who is going to work closely with other departments, because things do not happen in silos, the whole north mission, the lower mission, has a series of unrelated projects in different department's going on right now. >> thank you. next speaker, please. >> good after -- good afternoon commissioners. as you mentioned earlier, president melger, times have

changed. we find ourselves in the midst most apparently, someone who truly understands the nexus between planning, community, and equity. someone with a proven track record for working with both the city agencies, and the communities that we engage in planning with. someone who knows that when cities and communities engage in meaningful collaborations on projects and on plans, we not only get a better project, we get a healthier outcome. we find ourselves at a critical juncture right now. this housing crisis that we face is immense. it threatens to displace communities, and divide ourselves within the city. we need a unifier. i would say, this moment, we need somebody just like the planning department's very own claudia florez. if she has submitted an

application i would recommend taking a look at that application. if she hasn't it would be incredibly proven of you to speak with her. i believe she represents those qualities that would lead the planning department forward, and create a bridge to meaning full collaboration with communities. thank you. >> thank you. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon commissioners. i am with a counselor community housing organizations area first of all having just gone through a whole set of research about the planning to part and has done recently. i want to commend director and the kind of research that has been produced by this department. that being said, i think when we look forward, we need to be looking for somebody who has the qualities of being both humble and the gutsy visionary. by humble, i mean, somebody who truly understands participatory planning. who, as a leader, trains their staff on issues, gentrification,

displacement, racial equity, and social economic impacts in all of the work that they do. more portly, by participatory planning, i mean, someone who trained staff to build trust with their communities. by gutsy, i mean, somebody who is willing to take on the challenges of the city to expand the geographies where we build, whether that is in the sunset, the rich men, whether that's about, but keeping those primary key issues at hand. where is the affordability. where is the access that low income folks will have two transit, housing? purchase and coeducation are key , which means the staff learning from the community. the impact that our city is placing today, job growth and income inequality. this is not just the inability of so many workers to find

housing in our city today, but also how the income inequality that we have created in the city , is affecting every decision that we make. we keep acting as though the housing crisis is entirely separate from the growth of income inequality. going back to that research that the directors team produce. in 1990, folks that made over $200,000 made up 9% of the city residents. today they make over 27% of city residents, adjusted for inflation. that is a dramatic change that affects how housing crisis are affected. it affects displacement, it affects land costs, a city that sees land costs going up by 23% every year. that is where i would put my money. it affects the rate of construction. right now, we build for that top 27%.

we built actually for the top 10% earn more than $200,000. when that limit is reached, if you look at all of the newspaper articles right now, building slows down. until we address that, we are not going to solve this problem. that is the kind of leader that we need who will be addressing these life-changing issues. thank you. >> thank you. next speaker, please. >> my name is mary lynne durand, i am a people organizer. hi i'm also born and raised san franciscan. this will be an interesting dating profile you guys are going to have to create for this planning director. there is a lot to think about. some of the things i want to bring forward, a lot of our community members do not have the technical knowledge. i appreciate a lot of folks presenting that, even i don't know about. some things that are important to them is being heard, being a no space where they are open to

collaboration. we need a planning director that can collaborate with our community members. someone who can understand what is happening in the affordable housing crisis today. a lot of our community members are low income, members of color, who have not seen an opportunity to shine in the city. tenants who are living,, homeless houses, people in the streets, who really want someone who is looking out for them. that is what i'm here to talk about today. we feel like we have been able to move forward with our current planning director to have some open collaboration, to be able to learn and talk about how we can continue to put forward the needs of tenants, the needs of those who are really struggling in san francisco. what we are looking for in the future, as we want someone who supports organizing low income communities. it's not easy to come here and talk to you all about the issues they are facing every day.

we get really vulnerable and personal. we want to planning director that listens to that. we want one who embraces diversity and culture. i don't know how many times you have to come and talk about how communities of color we are fighting white supremacy, in san francisco. we want to make sure a director is looking out for our culture and community. we want one that values people over profit. we don't want somebody that talks about supporting construction workers, we want somebody to support community members -- repercussions that the planning director has currently put forward. i will be here 60-70 years in the future to see what the next planning director puts forward and hopefully that is something i can be proud of, that our community can be proud of and i can live, and afford. >> thank you. next speaker, please. >> hi. hi everyone. jordan davis area i think i just have two words for the next

planning director. just two words for two very important words, equity lends. >> thank you. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon. i think the new planning director needs to consider a number of things about the planning department. many reports have been created that show many issues around san francisco. a lot of those have been asked for by the members of the planning commission. not offered by the planning department. a lot of the times, from the neighborhood perspective, the planning department does not plan. it addresses façades, layouts, number of rooms, number of units. it is a joke when we talk about community stabilization. it is a joke when we talk about the housing.

san francisco should have neighborhood planners. san francisco planning department should be funded by the general budget, not developer fees. i would like to see a planning director that would take on these kinds of challenges. increasing property values manners mainly to investors, not to us who live here. you know, we are living here, our house is not primarily an investment. proposals that the planning department looks at should be evaluated on their value to san francisco, not their value to investors. i would like to see a planning director that would implement those kinds of things, really the quality of life, we need to stop exporting san francisco residents. people should be able to live here and live here all their lives. workers, people who make lower incomes should be able to live here, too, because we cannot run the city without janitors,

baristas, people who fix our cars. schoolteachers do not earn that much either. people are doing it to work here. so, neighborhood planners, i would like to request that. from time to time it has been raised. people that get to know the neighborhood, et cetera, and know our issues. let's make san francisco not a place where you can get more streamlined housing permits, for houses and units that aren't even getting built. let's instead, prioritize get things getting built for people of middle income and low incomes. thank you.

>> thank you. next speaker, please. >> hello. my name is kevin ortiz i am with the san francisco latino club. i'm a san francisco native. i was fresh out of the city when i was ten years old. you know, i have lived these experiences of being displaced. i just want to first off take time to thank the commissioners. i know the work that you do is thankless. at the same time, i want to thank the years of service that john ramm has put forward for the city and county of san francisco. thankful for the innovative policies including the map 2020 process. we have to recognize the changes that have hit the city. with a record number of residents, the mission, bayview, fillmore. we need a champion with a vision for housing.

we need a director that is going to speak for san francisco and not implement top-down state policies for sacramento. those are impacting us viciously. gentrification is ethnic cleansing and we need to make sure we are protecting these residents and we need a planning director that is going to make sure that they are going to hold developers accountable, make sure that they are predicting, preserving us and not just a produce, produce, produce model. thank you so much for your time. >> thank you. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon, commissioners. i am the chair of the san francisco local revolution grew. i want to thank you for holding this very important hearing. this is the future of our city. i wanted to talk to you about a lot of the challenges.

you may note that the top 1% of income earners make 44% more than the bottom 19%. we have several billionaires. there are deep concerns about income inequality in our city. a lot of the way the city has been approaching planning, construction has been catering to that top 1% and not exactly catering to the rest of us in the bottom. i grew up in public housing, section eight housing, it is important that we are building a city that belongs to all of us, not just a playground for the wealthy and the rich. i am hoping while you consider the next head of the planning department, that you really -- or we really take in mind how to get someone who really addresses a bottom up model and helps us to move away from a top-down model of housing construction. the latest data shows $3,690 for a one-bedroom bedroom apartment, which is pretty insane. it makes me think that we need to move away for the -- from the

for-profit housing on moving to a nonprofit housing structure. vienna is a great example of how social housing can prioritize folks. i also would love to see changes in areas we develop, if you look at things especially treasure island. you know, we have three wonderful golf courses that are not environmentally friendly, too. maybe having the head of the planning department who tackle some of that underutilized would be ideal. thank you so much for holding this hearing. i really want to stress how important it is that we address income inequality in our city. >> thank you. next speaker, please. >> hello everyone. i am larry martin, i am a south

market residents in a college student. i just want to say, i think it is important that the next director be not biased, you know what i'm saying? have an open heart to the low income residents of san francisco. it seems like the politicians, and the people that are in position of power, it seems like they cater to the wealthy all the time. i think it is important, and would be in the best interest of you guys to select someone who is going to be open-minded, and fair, to everyone. not just the wealthy, the developers, and the people that have all the money, you know what i'm saying? i think it is important that you guys select someone, it would be better for not only the low income people, it would be better for you guys also, you know, to select someone that is going to be fair to everyone, not just the rich.

thank you. >> thank you. next speaker, please. >> no? okay. [laughter] any other public comment on this item? okay. thank you very much. commissioners, anybody have comments? commissioner richards? >> it is hard here straddling this whole. -- this pole. for a city that prides itself on looking forward in being innovative, san francisco is always trying to catch up. it is an embarrassment to me, it really is. the director that we will select a serves the pleasure of this commission we forwarded our nominees to the mayor, and the mayor picks one, the mayor may reject them, we go back and

forth until this actually works. the director is the ceo of the planning department, and we are the board of directors. i came from private industries, this is how it works. whatever we do, i really want to make sure that we have somebody that is collaborative both up and down the organization and the commission with the board of supervisors, mayor, as well as all of the community people, white brown, yellow, purple, everybody. i think the director has done a great job with the map 2020 plan. i think there is a lot of good things he has done. the city is now at an inflection point. where do we go from here? because the director works for the commission, i want to make sure that we set goals for him that a realistic and reflect our values. we have yearly performance

evaluations, in private, with him or her. i keep saying him. them, they. i want to make sure that the director sets the tone for the organization as well. we are all in this together. we are all trying to make the best city possible. we have to be responsive to the residence. city planning, i don't mean the department of city planning, i mean, planning itself in general generic terms has failed why? we never saw uber at lyft coming. we never saw the rise of airbnb, we never saw -- plan for these additional residents. we keep approving buildings, we do this ten year capital plan. the world is moving fast, and we are standing still. that is not the kind of director

i want to hire. i want 70 who is a visionary and who can understand and appreciate that planning is for the future, not to with the present. i think the new director needs to have a different philosophy, especially around enforcement. i am honestly getting very sick and tired of sitting up here and watching people break the law, committed fraud, lie to us, as long as you are abating the ship that you pole, you get off scott free which creates the lack of trust in the building inspection commission, the planning commission that there is two sets of rules in the city. those that have money, and those that do not. i do not want a techno cracked. someone that knows the planning code, and good at urban design, that is not what we need.

we need 70 that's going to lead this city into the future. who knows a lot, but also. lastly we need to director that's going to come out swinging at sacramento. sacramento is pulling ship on us, because they say we are not doing things that palo alto, or some other city is, and we are like the little kids that have to stay after school because so-and-so passed a note and it was not us, but we are going to be penalized. i want a director that stands up for san francisco. >> thank you, commissioner. commissioner koppel? >> i will try to follow that. good speech, commissioner richards. first and foremost i would like to see a director that can very clearly relate to the past, the present on the future of san francisco. we do have a definite past that is dwindling away from us.

also, the same time i would like to see us focus a lot more on our current residence as opposed to our potential future residents. a lot of my friends and people i know, and the public come to me with the same comments week after week. another large concern of mine and ours is what we're doing doing about climate change. i think an emergency is a very understated word, one that could come to something being this catastrophe oriented. i think more planning on more foresight is definitely a need. just so we can all feel safe about where we live, and work. that will entail a lot of other work, within the city, the word is decarbonization. were going to look at making our transit fleets, and our downtown buildings more efficient. those are the highest producers of these greenhouse gases. what is it going to take, it's not going to be an easy

undertaking for all of these downtown office buildings to get rid of their natural gas, electrifies much as possible. put more car chargers in the parking lots and whatnot. that needs to be steered in the right direction to give us the most effective outcome. also, i want a new director to prioritize displacement and displacement of all income levels, all of us are potentially facing displacement. if you live in the city, and if you work in the city, i don't want you to leave the city. i want you to stay here, keep working here, keep spending your money here. that goes for all income levels. we still haven't really seen any movements on middle income housing. i understand it is not subsidized. we've got to get creative and make something happen. we've got items on here later today, that has to do with, you know, creating less displacement for people, with jobs. that is the thing that is

heading in the right direction addressing our massive middle-class displacement. also something i think all of us might mention is better coordination between the other departments. even having joint hearings with certain departments, we are not walking out of here feeling like we got a lot accomplished sometimes. if one or two people could make it a lot easier for us to communicate better, and get more results, we will be happier and you guys will. >> thank you. commissioner trent 24? >> -- fung? >> i would stress that we move as soon as possible. having gone through this process in terms of hiring a department head. before we know it, february will be here. as an example, we looked at a rough schedule between now and february. were probably looking at a month

to take care of finalizing the qualifications. another month just to be able to send it out to those of interest, whether it is professional associations or individuals. another month or to hold, then a month to do the negotiations. by that time were already in february. i recommend perhaps as a starting.-- starting point, we ask of the assistance of a to provide us with two things. one is the current job qualification statement on file. secondly to develop a more detailed schedule for when things need to be done by this commission. and then go through either a participatory process as we develop the qualifications and

the schedules, but to be able to move on it expeditiously. time will be short. >> thank you, commissioner. commissioner moore? >> what do we look for in the future planning director? may acknowledge everything you said. i could restate everything and say yes, yes, yes, thank you for using inspiring words and compassion to be here and having prepared profound statements which i think is important to what we are looking at. i'm going to pick up on a couple because they strongly resonate with me. what is extremely important to me is something, somebody, who has -- who is creative and a visionary. we need somebody who is secured with his stand in the profession, the basic understanding of what is required here. we do not want this to be a training for a resume of the future, a legacy project on its

own for new plans and ideas are being thrown around to make something bigger, without really understanding, starting where we start and where we stand. i've got to say that, because that is the very beginning. the next thing they are looking for is indeed a leader. somebody secure about himself, who is humbling. who is trustworthy, and who understands a participatory process. participatory in the city means a lot of things. that means being engaged with the communities and the voices of the neighborhood which are the essence of good planning in the city. being in sync with the historic preservation community. something this commission has asked for again, and again. there are only so many hours where many of the things that this commission holds hi have just not been attended to in the past few years.

we want somebody who understands urban design and historic preservation and who understands the issue of equity and let me just say the issue of equity. overall, i think, someone who is fully rounded and in my own personal list of priorities, i would like to say i would look for a woman director, and preferably somebody of minority background. >> thank you, commissioner. i heard several themes in the presentation, of the public. i want to thank everyone for taking the time, and the energy to come and engage in this process. to my fellow commissioners for being so thoughtful, and

carrying about this process. one of the over arching themes that i heard was about personal qualities, of the director that we are looking for. i heard folks say that they wanted her to have great love for san francisco. i'm going to underscore that. i would personally like someone who knows where little hollywood is, where jordan park is, and, you know, who is the head of the block club there. that is really important. also a love of racial justice, someone who is a futurist, who understands the moment we are at. and then i also heard the theme of the knowledge, that this person needs to have. i heard folks talk about historic preservation, and architecture, in the sense of the fabric of our city, and how

we need to preserve it. also the interaction that planning has with other departments, particularly the department of building inspection. while i heard folks talk about not wanting a techno-crat, consistently i heard folks say that they wanted somebody who could work within the framework and know what moves what we do. lastly, i also heard folks talk about efficiency, transparency, process. and the access of the public to the process. to me that spells out somebody who has good leadership, and management skills to make sure that the staff of the department has the tools that they need to support the community, and what we do. i think those were the overarching themes. i did take a lot of notes, which

i will be putting together. commissioner fung, to your comments, we have been working with hr department on i had promised the hr department that we would move forward with a lot of these comments to them, before that job is posted. we will work rapidly, director john ramm is exiting in february, we would like there to be a little bit of an overlap. commissioner fung, did you have further comments? >> yeah, i would like to have us confirm some of the points have gone over in terms of the schedule. i think rather than to belabor this, every week, and not have milestones things gets us in trouble. i would like to see a schedule from hr, detailed schedule.

if they have preliminary thoughts on where they would put notice of this out too, that would just help us as we look at this process. >> just to clarify, our city attorney did send a memo last week, which i think we all have read about what the charge is of this commission. i believe it is the other way around. it is not hr that will be leading, it will be us. >> i wasn't referring to that. let me restate it. hr is just a resource for us. they have a lot of experience, we utilize their capabilities tremendously. it is not my intent to let them run with us, they can be a resource for us. >> yes. we will be the body that will be

selecting the candidates, interviewing the candidates, and forwarding the top three to the mayor. that is what is stipulated in the charter. it will be up to us, in closed session, to do that. we will schedule it. we are not going to do that right this second, but we will do it in the next couple of weeks. any other commissioner comments? it is not an action item. thank you everybody who came and gave their comments. >> very good commissioners. we can move onto department matters, item seven, directors announcements. >> good afternoon, downside cider with staff sitting in today, at this hearing for director ram. just a very briefly about something that we touched on earlier in the hearing. a different change, that of

commissioner hillis. i want to acknowledge his service. acknowledge his support for staff. his respect for the professional planning products that we produce at the department, and wish him luck. thank you. >> item eight, review of past events of the board of supervisors, board of appeals in the historic preservation commission. >> good afternoon commissioners, aaron starr, manager of legislative affairs. we held a hearing on the state of the restaurant industry in san francisco. it was called by supervisor fewer. representatives from the golden gate restaurant association, the treasurer's office, and planning all gave presentations on what has been done to improve the restaurant permitting process and recommendations for further

improvements. planning's part, we talked about the tran11 restaurant rationalization ordinance, approved web-based tools, elimination of neighborhood notifications and a dedicated liaison between planning and o ew d. removing notification mr neighborhoods to shorten the approval process. issues raised by the restaurant businesses, at the hearing, included long and costly permitting process, homeless and drug activity, street cleanliness and affordable housing for the workforce. the hearing concluded with a supervisor dedicating themselves to continuing the conversation in order to look at ways to reduce the barriers for the restaurants and to find new ways to help existing restaurants same business. the hearing was continued to the call of the chair. at the full board, there was one

item, which is the long-term parking and overnight camping in vehicles, on san jose avenue, and that passed its first read. that is all they have for you today. >> thank you, sir. >> the board of appeals did meet, but nothing to report from there. the historic preservation commission did meet yesterday, there's nothing to report from there. the exception that the mayor has submitted two names to replace historic preservation commissioners, before the rules committee last week and were the full board agenda, this past tuesday. however, those nominations will continue to next week. that will place us under general public comment. at this time, members of the public may address the commission on items of interest to the public that are within the subject matter jurisdiction of the commission, except agenda

items. with respect to the agenda items, your opportunity to address the commission will be afforded when the item is reached in the meeting. each member of the public may address the commission for up to three minutes. we just have one speaker card. >> anyone else that wishes to come up for public comment, please do so. >> hello. i want to talk about 1433 diamond, which i mentioned in a 2015 memo of projects that i felt were definitions, but they were alterations. it is our h: zoning. here is the price history, going to give it to you. it started, they've asked below a million, they got 1 million for it, they did the work, it was three-point something. there were no demo calculations. i look at the building department records, there were no demo calculations. this was 2013-2014, at that time

the department had trouble, i have been told, having demo calculations. let me show you the photo real quick. if you go online you can see the house is pretty nice, and did not really need to much. at least by my standards. by most people's standards. there it is. some got underway. these are all from google earth. there it is. here is a photo that i took, which first alerted me to it. i took that in early 2014. here it is when it was done, and sulfur for three-point something. and it was recently sold for four-point something. what is my point? my point is, it is rh-1. hypothetically, someone can come tear this down without administrative approval. i think the value for the rh-1 needs to be done away with.

i gave a commissioner richards and president melger were not here. here's a copy for you to have. i also think that there needs to be an adjustment in the values of the demo calculations. i would just leave it at that. here some background on it, on that property. thank you very much. >> heuer time is running. >> i'm sorry. good afternoon, i am carolyn kennedy. i'm here to comment on sb-330