(♪♪) [applause] >> thank you, lion dancers. [applause] you know it's a special occasion in san francisco anytime that you see the lion dancers here. and we are certainly celebrating a special occasion today. so it's so wonderful to see everybody. the weather is wonderful. the pre-program with all of the

skaters is wonderful. and it's great to see everybody here today. and you know what we're celebrating, right? [cheers and applause] we are celebrating because this 3.3 mile stretch of road behind me is finally permanently car free [cheers and applause] and it's wonderful to see so many people still behind us just walking and biking and skating. and it's wonderful to see people of all ages enjoying this promenade. my name is carol ann tyler and i'm your m.c. for this long overdue celebration. [applause] i was a news reporter and an anchor at abc 7 for more than 30 years. [applause] thank you.

i covered a lot of the city's challenges, and also successes and this is certainly a major success. [applause] j.f.k. drive is such a massive success that it is resonating all over the country. people are talking about what you have managed to do here. it's hard to believe that this oasis where now we're going to see all sorts of cyclists and pedestrians and walkers and everybody coming out and enjoying it, it's hard to believe that this is once on the high injury network. can you believe it? now it's off permanently. [applause] and that success is thanks to all of you and it is thanks to the bold leadership of our mayor, london breed. [cheers and applause] who has always been a strong advocate

for the city's parks and open spaces. i was hoping that she'd come out here on roller skates, but guess not today. but, please welcome to the stage the honorable london breed. [applause] >> thank you, carolyn. well, i really was going to come out here in roller skates, but then i got a little nervous. i didn't want anyone to catch me falling on video. i will say that i i'm just really happy about what we're doing here today. and i don't know about you, but i'm a big fan of "bridgerton" that is on netflix, and i always wanted to promenade down some sort of walkway, because they always talk about going somewhere to promenade and now we have our own promenade here on j.f.k. it's going from a

drive to a promenade, a place that we can all enjoy. and i remember coming here with my aunt who went to washington high school and i thought that i was a big girl hanging out with all of the high school students this place was always packed with people on roller skates with those radios that we had to use the big batteries with. and a lot of people would roller skate and some bike, and mostly roller skaters back then and david miles will remember that time because i think that he was a grown-up during that time and i was just an itty-bitty kid. and the fact is that, you know, this is an incredible park. and it's a huge park filled with open space, with plenty of opportunities for so many different things. i know that many of you are so happy and grateful for what we were able to do together, not just me but all of you who advocated for this for many years as well as the members of the board of supervisors who are joining us here today. supervisor mandelman and

supervisor mar and supervisor preston. and getting that level of support, because it does take courage and i know that this was not an easy thing to do. but at the end of the day this was the right thing to do for the people of san francisco. that's why i'm so proud to be here and so proud to kick this off. golden gate park is a special place and when i traveled all over the country and all over the world to talk about san francisco, to talk about reasons to come to san francisco to visit, to convention, i talked about golden gate park and the fact that j.f.k. is now car-free and the fact that we have a battery bus opening up. and tunnel top park and san francisco park, and all of these great, wonderful open spaces in san francisco that are available. and i will say that this park was my saving grace during the

global pandemic. i know that many of you felt the same way. because i would come up here on a regular basis in disguise. and i would see the people with their babies in strollers. i would see folks in wheelchairs and i would see people on their bikes and i would see kids rollerskating and i would see them on their scooters and the thing that i saw more than anything else was not just all of the folks who were using this area, but i loved seeing the smiles on people's faces to be able to be out here in this way and to enjoy this incredible open space. so this is a victory for san francisco. this is something that we will be able to treasure, that kids now growing up and going roller skating and hanging out on j.f.k. promenade will be able to share with their children in this city. and i want to really thank so

many of the various mommy groups because, man, when moms get together and they want something to happen, they don't mess around. you better get out of their way and i want to thank all of the parents, the families, the community. i want to thank church on wheels and david miles. [applause] i want to thank the grannies over there too, and all of the great people. this is just really a beautiful day for san francisco. and it means so much and i'm so proud to be here today to sign this legislation, and i want to thank the rec and park director phil ginsburg, and the director of m.p.a., jeff tumlin. and they drove me nuts through this process, but they were fierce advocates for what they knew was right thing to do. the city has changed. people are using various modes of transportation and how we get

around is so perspective. but also -- important. but also how we have open space where we can feel safe. san francisco is one of the densest cities in the country and that's why a space like this being car free is so critical to ensuring that we have the ability to move around, to skate around and to bike around free of vehicles, because this is not a place that should be a highway or a freeway, or a cut-through. it needs to be a place for people to enjoy. and it's a space that you guys are going to enjoy, that you're going to take care of and you're going to continue to be proud of. so i'm excited to sign this legislation, but clearly somebody wanted to have a party today. so i think that i'm going to leo introduce phil or do you want me to bring him up? okay, you want to come on up. but, clearly, somebody wanted to have a party today because it's

a big deal and it is a celebration. and as carolyn has said, you know, people are talking about this all over the country, and really surprised and happy that we were able to make this happen. i think that this is going to be something that can happen for other large parks in the u.s. so i am just glad to be here and i am glad that you are all here and this is your golden gate park, enjoy it. >> thank you, madam mayor. i mean, golden gate park is definitely one of the crown jewels of this city and is known really worldwide and so it's great to have the car free stretch that the mayor is going to sign into law today. as she said, if we learned anything during the pandemic, it was that our parks are not luxuries. they're necessities. mayor breed talked about coming here to golden gate park in

disguise. well, i went to my neighborhood and walked all the time along the marino green and into chrissy field and it really helped during those dark days. these parks are really essential to our mental and physical health. they are some of the highest points during those dark days for us, during the health emergency. and they will continue to be here for us so that we can enjoy. i mean, just look around and it's so beautiful and so amazing. and the beautiful parks in san francisco are maintained by a very hard-working staff at the department of rec and parks. and we would like to give a hand clap to them. [applause] and our next speaker is the general manager of the department, phil ginsburg. [applause] >> hey, let's give it up for carolyn. thank you so much for being here

today to celebrate this. so someone once said that the best way to avoid criticism in life is to do nothing. that's not what we did today. great cities do great things and great leaders, mayor, help cities to do great things. and that takes bold leadership, it takes courage, and we are really grateful to you for your vision and for leaning into this, for steering us. thank you. thank you, thank you. [applause] we also really want to celebrate and to acknowledge the co-chairs of the legislation, assemblyman matt haney and our three board members from the board of supervisors, give it up for them. [applause] so golden gate park has always been the keeper of san

francisco's stories. it housed refugees during the 1906 earthquake, and fire, and it's seen the heartbeat of love. and it has memorial grove and you can see it right here is a place of national reflection for all touched by h.i.v. and aids. and most recently as the mayor noted, golden gate park provided connection and healing during the covid-19 lockdown. and for me one of my greatest personal challenges during the covid-19 lockdown was indeed having a mayor in disguise here every single day. today we're adding a new chapter about the future of our city. this story is one of joy and safety, of people-centered parks and the determination of families. urban planner fred kent who was probably the founder of the modern placemaking movement said, that if you plan cities for cars and traffic, you get --

you get cars and traffic. if you plan for people and places, you get people and places. of course that is easier said than done. and we couldn't have done it all without our partners from sfmta we are incredibly grateful to mta staff for their hard work and jeff tumlin -- where are you? just come on out and take a bow, please. [applause] jeff is our leader. he is a visionary in the pursuit of healthier, safer and more sustainable san francisco. and he's here every day too. i got a handful of difficult customers. anyway, jeff, thank you for leaning into this with your technical expertise, but most importantly, with your heart and empathy for making sure that this park is accessible and

available for everyone. thank you, jeff, so much. i also, as carolyn mentioned, i really want to thank our rec and park team who shepherded this project over two years and served with impassionate debate on all sides and our director of public affairs who worked so hard on this whole project for two years and worked so hard on throwing a great party today, sarah madlin. [applause] but none of this happens without all of you, so we want to thank all of the volunteers who worked tirelessly to secure this space thank you, david miles, thank you, where are you? the hardest working man in skating. the church of eight wheels, walk s.f. and the mayor's office on disability. and san francisco bike coalition and so many other wonderful grassroots organizations, i really want to thank tilley chan, with the transportation

authority and the sfmta board of directors and our very own rec and park commission for leaning in and sitting through some sawflly long hearings. but the last and the most important thank you goes to all of you. more than 10,000 san franciscans engaged with us during this conversation over eight months of outreach. and your input has not only led to a permanently car free j.f.k., but 45 different access improvements to ensure that everyone can enjoy this space. you all made the next chapter of san francisco's story today, you made history. thank you very much. and madam mayor -- we have a little something for you. a sign which we hope that adorns your office. you no longer need to be here in disguise. you are welcome along j.f.k. promenade anytime. [applause]

>> now if we could only find that guy from "bridgerton" to go with you. [laughter] mr. hotness, yes. [laughter]. thank you, phil, for those words. you know, car-free j.f.k. at its heart is all about kids as the mayor mentioned. i grew up in cheyenne, wyoming, and it's big open spaces and i never had to worry about a car running my down when i was trying to learn to ride a bicycle. in a big urban city like this, that's not necessarily the case so when you think about car-free j.f.k., i think about the kids who can learn how to skate, following in the footsteps of david miles, or can learn to ride their bike with their parents. things like that. they can get out in nature. they can play. the fresh air is accessible. those are the things that really

make a difference. and parents as the mayor mentioned played a huge role in advocating for this car-free space. and so we want to recognize one mom but she really encompasses the work of a lot of the moms and dads who have been pushing for the last couple years trying to get this going. so please welcome to the stage now district one mom and advocate, leanne chang. >> thank you. [applause] i am so honored to be here today with madame mayor london breed. i'm leanne chang, one of so many parents who love this space for our families and who got involved to help to make it permanent. almost exactly two years ago, mayor breed created a car-free

space here in golden gate park and mcclaren park so that we could have space for socially distanced recreation. and i want to share a little story with you from the very earliest days of the pandemic when we were sheltering in place. after many days of saying inside of our apartment, the first place that i took my son, he's over there in the pink pants -- jay -- he was three years old at the time and it was golden gate park. and on the way over here, it just felt like a revelation to me to be back in this city, like, back on streets of this city which, like, was so much more beautiful than i remembered. and i know that jay felt it too as we were crossing the street just up there at 8th avenue and we could start to smell the trees and see people walking and sitting on the grass, suddenly jay belted out "i love this town."

i love everything in this town. i love everything and everybody in this town. and that was his song as we made our way to a quiet corner of the park where we reconnected with nature. and from an extremely safe distance we reconnected with other safe san franciscans. and then mayor breed created a safe car-free space here on j.f.k. and suddenly we had a space where we could be not only in the city surrounded by the diversity of people and activities that you can only find in a city and really only in this city of san francisco. and at the same time, be safe from dangerous traffic. so, jay could listen to the music and join the party here at the skating place, and get a snack from a food truck. in fact, riding his bike, and, at the same time to see and meet other kids and adults, learning

and even practicing tricks on theirs. and all of this was so much more carefree for me, you know, not feeling like i had to constantly watch for cars. so i will be forever grateful to you, madame mayor london breed, for seeing that this safe family-friendly, climate-friendly space, could benefit san franciscans for so much more time after the pandemic. for every kid who now gets to grow up with the j.f.k. promenade for generations to come, i thank you. your leadership -- [applause] your leadership in creating the j.f.k. promenade makes me feel the way that i think that my son did when he sang out, i love this town, i love everything in

this town, i love everybody in this town. so, thank you. [applause] >> thank you, leanne. i love this town! [cheers and applause] i love this new promenade. and i'd like to thank everybody who came out today to celebrate so we're going to conclude our speaking portion of the program but we want all of the speakers to gather around because the mayor is now going to make this promenade official. she's at the picnic table. everybody should go over there as she signs the car-free j.f.k. ordinance into the law of the land. [applause] >> all right, are we ready to see this become law? [cheers and applause]

>> there it is. [applause] (♪♪) (♪♪)

when i shoot chinatown, i shoot the architecture that people not just events, i shoot what's going on in daily life

and everything changes. murals, graffiti, store opening. store closing. the bakery. i shoot anything and everything in chinatown. i shoot daily life. i'm a crazy animal. i'm shooting for fun. that's what i love. >> i'm frank jane. i'm a community photographer for the last i think about 20 years. i joined the chinese historical society. it was a way i could practice my society and i can give the

community memories. i've been practicing and get to know everybody and everybody knew me pretty much documenting the history i don't just shoot events. i'm telling a story in whatever photos that i post on facebook, it's just like being there from front to end, i do a good job and i take hundreds and hundreds of photos. and i was specializing in chinese american history. i want to cover what's happening in chinatown. what's happening in my community. i shoot a lot of government officials. i probably have thousands of photos of mayor lee and all the dignitaries. but they treat me like one of the family members because they see me all the time. they appreciate me. even the local cops, the firemen, you know, i feel at

home. i was born in chinese hospital 1954. we grew up dirt poor. our family was lucky to grew up. when i was in junior high, i had a degree in hotel management restaurant. i was working in the restaurant business for probably about 15 years. i started when i was 12 years old. when i got married, my wife had an import business. i figured, the restaurant business, i got tired of it. i said come work for the family business. i said, okay. it's going to be interesting and so interesting i lasted for 30 years. i'm married i have one daughter. she's a registered nurse. she lives in los angeles now. and two grandsons.

we have fun. i got into photography when i was in junior high and high school. shooting cameras. the black and white days, i was able to process my own film. i wasn't really that good because you know color film and processing was expensive and i kind of left it alone for about 30 years. i was doing product photography for advertising. and kind of got back into it. everybody said, oh, digital photography, the year 2000. it was a ghost town in chinatown. i figured it's time to shoot chinatown store front nobody. everybody on grand avenue. there was not a soul out

walking around chinatown. a new asia restaurant, it used to be the biggest restaurant in chinatown. it can hold about a 1,000 people and i had been shooting events there for many years. it turned into a supermarket. and i got in. i shot the supermarket. you know, and its transformation. even the owner of the restaurant the restaurant, it's 50 years old. i said, yeah. it looks awful. history. because i'm shooting history. and it's impressive because it's history because you can't repeat. it's gone it's gone. >> you stick with her, she'll teach you everything.

>> cellphone photography, that's going to be the generation. i think cellphones in the next two, three years, the big cameras are obsolete already. mirrorless camera is going to take over market and the cellphone is going to be better. but nobody's going to archive it. nobody's going to keep good history. everybody's going to take snapshots, but nobody's going to catalog. they don't care. >> i want to see you. >> it's not a keepsake. there's no memories behind it. everybody's sticking in the cloud. they lose it, who cares. but, you know, i care. >> last september of 2020, i

had a minor stroke, and my daughter caught it on zoom. i was having a zoom call for my grand kids. and my daughter and my these little kids said, hey, you sound strange. yeah. i said i'm not able to speak properly. they said what happened. my wife was taking a nap and my daughter, she called home and said he's having a stroke. get him to the hospital. five minutes later, you know, the ambulance came and took me away and i was at i.c.u. for four days. i have hundreds of messages wishing me get well soon. everybody wished that i'm okay and back to normal.

you know, i was up and kicking two weeks after my hospital stay. it was a wake-up call. i needed to get my life in order and try to organize things especially organize my photos. >> probably took two million photos in the last 20 years. i want to donate to an organization that's going to use it. i'm just doing it from the heart. i enjoy doing it to give back to the community. that's the most important. give back to the community. >> it's a lot for the community. >> i was a born hustler. i'm too busy to slow down. i love what i'm doing. i love to be busy. i go nuts when i'm not doing

anything. i'm 67 this year. i figured 70 i'm ready to retire. i'm wishing to train a couple for photographers to take over my place. the younger generation, they have a passion, to document the history because it's going to be forgotten in ten years, 20 years, maybe i will be forgotten when i'm gone in a couple years but i want to be remembered for my work and, you know, photographs will be a

remembrance. i'm frank jane. i'm a community photographer. this is my story. >> when you're not looking, frank's there. he'll snap that and then he'll send me an e-mail or two and they're always the best. >> these are all my p a city like no other, san francisco has been a beacon of hope, and an ally towards lgbtq equal rights. [♪♪]

>> known as the gay capital of america, san francisco has been at the forefront fighting gay civil rights for decades becoming a bedrock for the historical firsts. the first city with the first openly gay bar. the first pride parade. the first city to legalize gay marriage. the first place of the iconic gay pride flag. established to help cancel policy, programses, and initiatives to support trans and lgbtq communities in san

francisco. >> we've created an opportunity to have a seat at the table. where trans can be part of city government and create more civic engagement through our trans advisory committee which advises our office and the mayor's office. we've also worked to really address where there's gaps across services to see where we can address things like housing and homelessness, low income, access to small businesses and employment and education. so we really worked across the board as well as meeting overall policies. >> among the priorities, the office of transgender initiatives also works locally to track lgbtq across the country. >> especially our young trans kids and students. so we do a lot of work to make

sure we're addressing and naming those anti-trans policies and doing what we can to combat them. >> trans communities often have not been included at the policy levels at really any level whether that's local government, state government. we've always had to fend for ourselves and figure out how to care for our own communities. so an office like this can really show and become a model for the country on how to really help make sure that our entire community is served by the city and that we all get opportunities to participate because, in the end, our entire community is stronger. >> the pandemic underscored many of the inequities they experienced on a daily basis. nonetheless, this health crisis also highlighted the strength in the lgbtq and trans community. >> several of our team members were deployed as part of the

work at the covid command center and they did incredit able work there both in terms of navigation and shelter-in-place hotels to other team members who led equity and lgbtq inclusion work to make sure we had pop-up testing and information sites across the city as well as making sure that data collection was happening. we had statewide legislation that required that we collected information on sexual orientation and our team worked so closely with d.p.h. to make sure those questions were included at testing site but also throughout the whole network of care. part of the work i've had a privilege to be apart of was to work with o.t.i. and a community organization to work together to create a coalition that met monthly to make sure we worked together and coordinated as much as we could to lgbtq communities in the city. >> partnering with community

organizations is key to the success of this office ensuring lgbtq and gender nonconforming people have access to a wide range of services and places to go where they will be respected. o.t.i.'s trans advisory committee is committed to being that voice. >> the transgender advisory counsel is a group of amazing community leaders here in san francisco. i think we all come from all walks of life, very diverse, different backgrounds, different expertises, and i think it's just an amazing group of people that have a vision to make san francisco a true liberated city for transgender folks. >> being apart of the grou allows us to provide more

information on the ground. we're allowed to get. and prior to the pandemic, there's always been an issue around language barriers and education access and workforce development. now, of course, the city has been more invested in to make sure our community is thriving and making sure we are mobilizing. >> all of the supervisors along with mayor london breed know that there's still a lot to be done and like i said before, i'm just so happy to live in a city where they see trans folks and recognize us of human beings and know that we deserve to live with dignity and respect just like everybody else. >> being part of the trans initiative has been just a great privilege for me and i feel so lucky to have been able to serve for it for so far over

three years. it's the only office of its kind and i think it's a big opportunity for us to show the country or the world about things we can do when we really put a focus on transgender issues and transgender communities. and when you put transgender people in leadership positions. >> thank you, claire. and i just want to say to claire farly who is the leader of the office of transgender initiatives, she has really taken that role to a whole other level and is currently a grand marshal for this year's s.f. prize. so congratulations, claire. >> my dream is to really look at where we want san francisco to be in the future. how can we have a place where we have transliberation, quality, and inclusion, and equity across san francisco? and so when i look five years from now, ten years from now, i want us to make sure that we're continuing to lead the country in being the best that we can

be. not only are we working to make sure we have jobs and equal opportunity and pathways to education, employment, and advancement, but we're making sure we're taking care of our most impacted communities, our trans communities of color, trans women of color, and black trans women. and we're making sure we're addressing the barriers of the access to health care and mental health services and we're supporting our seniors who've done the work and really be able to age in place and have access to the services and resources they deserve. so there's so much more work to do, but we're really proud of the work that we've done so far.

>> he is a real leader that listens and knows how to bring people together. brought this department together like never before. i am so excited to be swearing in the next chief of the san francisco fire department,

ladies and gentlemen, let's welcome, jeanine nicholson. (applause). >> i grew up total tomboy, athlete. i loved a good crisis, a good challenge. i grew up across the street from the fire station. my dad used to take me there to vote. i never saw any female firefighters because there weren't any in the 1970s. i didn't know i could be a fire fighter. when i moved to san francisco in 1990, some things opened up. i saw women doing things they hadn't been doing when i was growing up.

one thing was firefighting. a woman recruited me at the gay-pride parade in 1991. it was a perfect fit. i liked using my brain, body, working as a team, figuring things out, troubleshooting and coming up with different ways to solve a problem. in terms of coming in after another female chief, i don't think anybody says that about men. you are coming in after another man, chief, what is that like. i understand why it is asked. it is unusual to have a woman in this position. i think san francisco is a trailblazer in that way in terms of showing the world what can happen and what other people who may not look like what you think the fire chief should look like how they can be successful. be asked me about being the first lbgq i have an understands

because there are little queer kids that see me. i worked my way up. i came in january of 1994. i built relationships over the years, and i spent 24 years in the field, as we call it. working out of firehouses. the fire department is a family. we live together, eat together, sleep in the same dorm together, go to crazy calls together, dangerous calls and we have to look out for one another. when i was burned in a fire years ago and i felt responsible, i felt awful. i didn't want to talk to any of my civilian friends. they couldn't understand what i was going through. the firefighters knew, they understood. they had been there. it is a different relationship. we have to rely on one another. in terms of me being the chief

of the department, i am really trying to maintain an open relationship with all of our members in the field so myself and my deputy chiefs, one of the priorities i had was for each of us to go around to different fire stations to make sure we hit all within the first three or four months to start a conversation. that hasn't been there for a while. part of the reason that i am getting along well with the field now is because i was there. i worked there. people know me and because i know what we need. i know what they need to be successful. >> i have known jeanine nicholson since we worked together at station 15. i have always held her in the highest regard. since she is the chief she has infused the department with

optimism. she is easy to approach and is concerned with the firefighters and paramedics. i appreciate that she is concerned with the issues relevant to the fire department today. >> there is a retired captain who started the cancer prevention foundation 10 years ago because he had cancer and he noticed fellow firefighters were getting cancer. he started looking into it. in 2012 i was diagnosed with breast canner, and some of my fellow firefighters noticed there are a lot of women in the san francisco fire department, premenopausal in their 40s getting breast cancer. it was a higher rate than the general population. we were working with workers comp to make it flow more easily for our members so they didn't

have to worry about the paper work when they go through chemo. the turnout gear was covered with suit. it was a badge to have that all over your coat and face and helmet. the dirtier you were the harder you worked. that is a cancer causeser. it -- casser. it is not -- cancer causer. there islassic everywhere. we had to reduce our exposure. we washed our gear more often, we didn't take gear where we were eating or sleeping. we started decontaminating ourselves at the fire scene after the fire was out. going back to the fire station and then taking a shower. i have taught, worked on the

decontamination policy to be sure that gets through. it is not if or when. it is who is the next person. it is like a cancer sniper out there. who is going to get it next. one of the things i love about the fire department. it is always a team effort. you are my family. i love the city and department and i love being of service. i vow to work hard -- to work hard to carry out the vision of the san francisco fire department and to move us forward in a positive way. if i were to give a little advice to women and queer kids, find people to support you. keep putting one foot in front of the other and keep trying.

you never know what door is going to open next. you really don't. [cheers and sdul order the regular meeting of the board of edge of the san franciscouneified school district. for may 24, 2022. now call to order. >> roll call, please. no audio chlt