>> good morning everyone. i am the c.e.o. of a housing and community development organization serving the entire city of san francisco. really prioritizing children and families for the future of our success. what an honor and joy to be with

you today celebrating this amazing community. fantastic visuals on this beautiful day. it is an honor to have with us speaker pelosi. madam speaker. we are here today to celebrate 143 families that live in this community. also to really celebrate what we can do when we work in partnership, stay focused and create quality projects to house our community. 2828 16th street is more than an opportunity. a long-standing commitment by p nbc, mayor's office local communities to build a healthier

future for the current and next generation of san franciscans. [applause]. i will clap for myself. yes. i am proud to build this community and support and prioritizing community health, individual growth for families and children. tndc will support by on site social work and property management, residents will have fresh produce. from the rooftop garden. the urban agricultural team. we will also have free fiber internet. thanks to the city's fiber housing program. that is really important. let's hear from the families of this community.

[applause]. it takes an entire city, more than a village. i would like to thank our long standing partner, speaker pelosi, mayor breed, mayor's office of housing. century housing corporation, multi-family capital and massachusetts mutual. brothers general contractors, architects, non-profit partners. lastly, the mission neighborhood and community.

residents, the board, staff and count less others that have really combined and helped us make today possible. we built this community. we can build more. i would now like to introduce supervisor ronan. >> supervisor ronen: can we give a hand for themeta team that made this possible. [applause]. >> supervisor ronen: there is no better days than the days to celebrate new affordable housing in district nine and the mission and our community. there is no greater need in this city than truly affordable housing. can we just take a moment to think today we accomplished

something amazing. that doesn't happen every day. today it is happening. congratulations again. [applause]. so often when we build affordable housing because we need it so badly. we stuff as many units as possible in. a lot of times it is studios. not every day we celebrate family housing. housing where kids have enough space to breathe, to do homework, to feel at home. we still have kids in the city living in sro rooms where their development, they were homeless. they can't move around and have the space we all deserve as a human right to grow up with dignity. it is these kinds of buildings

that are the solution to that. thank you everyone who is part of this effort. you are all amazing. let's do it again and again until every child and every family has a safe, affordable home to live in to grow up with dignity and can succeed. congratulations. [applause] i would like to introduce the managing director of the san francisco east bay market executive of bank of america. [applause] >> thank you so much, supervisor ronan. what an amazing day and honortosh with you today. bank of america was founded in san francisco 1904 and is

steadfast to the city. financing the bridges to the wonderful affordable housing developments we partner within san francisco. we cannot be more honored. i will thank our long standing partnersmeta, mayor's office of housing and community development, supervisor ronan, nancy pelosi and the family and century housing corporation and big thank you to bank of america teams that made this possible as well. thank you so much. >> now, i would like to introduce from meta. >> good afternoon, everyone. i want to share gratitude to everyone who contributed to make this project reality. we could not have had a better

partner. i am so glad to celebrate with you. i want to recognize you whose work was second to none. supervisor ronan to build affordable housing we have hundreds of units. mayor breed i am not sure if she is here yet. she and her administration have sheath pardoned this project to the finish line. the related note i want the policies and her focus has resulted in the san francisco latinos with the highest vaccination rate of any latino community in the nation. that is her legacy. we thank her for that. speaker pelosi, you are responsible for bringing federal

resources to the san francisco latino community and other communities of color throughout the nation. i think you stood up to the last administration. you visited ukraine to give support to those great people. thank you. also, our meta team. you come to work every day. thank you very much. i especially want to thank carol today. [indiscernable]

six years ago whenmeta when i look at the site. what if we could build homes? what if we can ensure the non-profits had a stable place to be? what if we could trade learning opportunities for the children to the mission promise neighborhood? here we are celebrating the communities with those goals with 140 affordable homes. 16,000 square feet of commercial space. building the showcase is what big governments can accomplish. this is our collective win, effort. thank you to everyone. as a community we know the focus on housing, housing, housing. we advocated this was for 100% affordable housing. it is unusual. we have not often competed with

the private sector. $15 million to the mission from affordable housing in 2015. it is those funds that made this project a reality. we thank everyone for advocacy and focus on affordable housing. i have to mention mr. are other entities to make this happen. meta is a contributor. cnbc, century housing corporation. we all contributed our open money to make this happen. we know that creating affordable housing is transformational for the city and neighborhood. this is what makes the mission special. it is a place. it is where you go to sleep and

where you live and play and work. this is part of that effort. this is why it offers long time spaces. it is very important for the community. . [indiscernable] this is a priority for the neighborhood. the city office of work force development extended the program with $1.2 million -- $1.3 million for this property. is covid-19 crisis showed more than ever how critical stable housing is for most vulnerable community members. health is housing. housing is health.

today's event celebrates this community for decades to come. with that said with it being san francisco affordable housing week it is my honor to invite speaker of the house nancy pelosi to the podium. for decades she has been a supporter of affordable housing. to keep this a welcoming place for everyone. just this year she chaired $2 million for mission place keepers. that funding will support the build out from san francisco, the mission. thank you for working on that. this is also national.

[indiscernable] pandemic relief. help the latino businesses weather the storm. they are to thrive not just survive. speaker, pelosi your long-term commitment is unparalleled. thank you very much. >> thank you for your kind be words, great leadership, for the opportunity to be here with you, to be here with supervisor ronan, supervisor safai joined us now. congratulations.

alga ander ma. you will hear from them as they tell their story. all of the tenants of the building. i know tyrone. this place is about respect, respect for the tenants. 100% affordable housing is such a remarkable thing. it is about dignity and how lovely it is for the at thenants. i salute president biden for putting money to local government and to recognize jason, the official administrator for hud. because when covid hit, we photo get resources for the state but also for the cities and counties

to meet the needs. the healthcare providers are -- it is also public education week. so many things to celebrate and observe. again, the president saw all of this as one. he saw it also as public private non-profit partnership. we have fought a long time for low income housing tax credits. it was formed many years ago. it was the bank. the italians started it. [indiscernable] as we celebrate ethnicity and itis important to note it is public private nonpartner

partnerships that may being this possible and the mayor's office of housing is essential to bringing it altogether. let us be very grateful for mayor london breed for her great leadership in all of this. this mission has the latino identity. we have everything here. that is a wonderful thing. now we want the mission to become. it is unaffordable. we can't have that. personal stories. last year the house democrats passed $24 billion for housing vouchers the largest expansion in decades. $228,000 affordable -- 228,000

affordable housing in california. president biden's leadership. i will tell you a story. when i was a little girl growing up. my mother first lady her focus was affordable housing. she said. [indiscernable] all of our children be and families affordable housing. i was so proud when she died many years later obituary. this is so important. to see the community and the

tenants take the responsibility for the housing they would like to see all of this happen, that makes it better. it is coming down from on high, it is from the community. let us thank louise and others to make this possible. thank you for your leadership in terms of the tenderloin neighborhood development is going to do to help with the services here. it is quite exciting. reason to celebrate. what a perfect way to celebrate. i want to acknowledge the great work of our president joe by don and great mayor london breed for

prioritizing and again allocating resources to make all of this possible. thank you very much for what you did to make it possible. [applause]. >> i want to pay my respects and appreciation. she said she would introduce herself. i yield the floor to caroline. [applause] >> good morning. i am directtor of community real estate and honored to be a mission resident. today would not be possible without the mission community

coming together to fight for this. you connect us to our history and our future. i made our voices heard to create equity. you are our future. thank you for sharing your stories. 2828 becomes part of the new mission community. i now welcome to the stage two community members. (applause). >> thank you, caroline. i was asked to speak today as a long-time member of the community if you wonder about my title. a friend said you know we are going to be there for the fight.

i am honored to be here. let me share a few words on behalf of the community. the history has been told in unconventional ways not always through the history books or archives of established institutions. it is from the organizations that provide direct services to our youth, to our children and families, and by creating foundational space for artists. the three community-based organizations that will now have permanent space. permanent space. you know how many of us have been displaced. certainly a lot of people that i know. the organizations displaced.

they have been around the mission until now. we know that they have a space here. it is the visionary. the three community-based organizations will now have permanent space complete the new model of buildings with affordable housing in community service providing organizations. as speaker pelosi said public private and government and community investment. the visionary collaborative work of cnbc and meta recommended in responding to the neats of family housing and community services. those are the needs of the community. with this building being an example of that along with buildings around us. to know there are buildings

around us housing good am and they are elevating all communities in the mission. it was made possible with crucial san francisco city funding and federal support to build out the organizations here and it would be for the support of mayor breed apspeaker pelosi. importantly this has come about because of reslept less advocacy and organizing of the affordable housing champions in our community. it could not have happened without them and could not have happened without the support i mentioned. that is how we need to build things. yes. more, more, more and again and again, yes.

>> i have been part of this community since the early 1970s. twenty-fourth and brian was transformative for so many of us. the struggle to survive and thrives in system to take away humanity. those were given voice, dimension by the artist through the paintings, murals and films and music and poetry that kept us strong to continue organizing on behalf of our communities. that is why i was strengthened to continue fighting and advocating. we went to washington, d.c. this past weekend to advocate for reunification of children that are separated.

that is part of what we kin to do. th is community support and arts that give us that break. >> did i say life saving? i mean it generally. when i was held a political prisoner in argentina in 1974-76. it was a community that rallied that gained my release. it was the artist who created posters and flyers to help to mobilize people. it was the poet and musician who gave strength to my family and friends until i was released and able to come home in 1976. from that historic corner to this powerful new buildings all families of 143 locations that

are here to welcome families and residents. they cannot calm this home. pat last we are home. [applause]. >> good morning. i would like to thank everyone for coming today to the grand opening. 2828 15th street. i have been living here with my two daughters five months. i will share my experience here. for the past four years in san francisco. in this building i feel safe and at home. the community feels much better, neighbors are kind. the staff are like property managers.

are friendly. we are like one big family here. i love it. where we live before in san francisco it caused a lot of stress. in this building we don't have to worry about it. it makes a big difference. in the every day for health and energy and volunteering to give back to my neighboreds. the building i volunteered doing bingo and working on the rooftop garden and helped teach english and spanish classes. now that my family is safe and secure i feel like my daughters can leave their dreams. they both graduate high school next year and i want them to go to college. [applause]. one wants to become a nurse the

other wants to work with kids with disabilities. i am proud of them and this has felt like a real family. thank you for making this building possible. [applause] >> now our very own mayor london breed. >> mayor breed: i can't tell you how good it feels to be here today. it is even more incredible to be here to share this amazing moment with our speaker, man see pelosi, who, let me tell you. what it comes to taking carry of not just the city of san francisco but this entire country there is no more fearless leader than nancy pelosi and she is a daughter of

this amazing city. [applause]. we probably wouldn't be able to do this project and so many other things in this city were it not for her work and advocacy with the federal government. we wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for the advocacy of the people of this community. i remember when i served on the board of supervisors and supervisor ronan was ad to the previous supervisor. this community we saw a significant decline in residents. 2000 and 2019 a loss of 9,000 latinos? the community. people had the conversation and i couldn't help think about the filmore, what happened to the loss of african-american population, and the need for us as a city to do more.

may other ed lee put $50,000 in the budget to see more homes built in this community. this in addition to eight other properties are part of that legacy. not enough to build housing. one of the things that would happen when we would build housing in these neighborhoods. people who lived here had to go through extensive lottery process with thousands of applicants. when i announced my plans to fly to dc after they told us no and with support of our leader and this community we stood in front to announce what people in this community we were going to fight for neighborhood preference. now 157 units here, 143 units. the work this community has done

has led to 700 units so far and almost 500 units to come. we are well on the way to finally realizing the dream of the people who make the fabric of the mission community and are critical to what makes san francisco special. i am honored to cut this ribbon today. it feels so good and rewarding and exciting. child care center and resources. i am excited that home is an organization that i work with as the executive director of african-american art and culture complex. i had a last comment request they would meet the deadline. thank you homey for being there. so many amazing people. this is a dream realized. i want be to say how grateful i

am that this community said yes to supporting our residents in public housing in sunnydale and potrero hill. there were units set aside because of remodel of hope sf projects. people needed a safe place to call home as we began that process. we didn't want families displaced from san francisco. this is part of the fabric what makes san francisco so special. i cannot wait to continue to cut the ribbons, purchase properties to get homes built so san francisco is a place for all. thank you so much for being here today. [applause]. >> i will split the other program. i just want to thank mayor breed for being here today and for her

leadership in this issue and other issues. thank you very, very much. gratitude to everyone who made this map. when you see the layers of government from the board of supervisors to the mayor's office to the speaker of the house, this is what good government can accomplish. as non-profits like homey. we made it happen. we made it happen. i am hoping that your role in this project. as you walk by the project in years to come you are full of pride in what you accomplish and what we accomplished together. i want to build another 10 buildings like there in the next five years. thank you very much.

>> mayor breed: count together. five, four, three, two, one. [cheers and applause.] >> restaurants will be open for take out only, but nonessential stores, like bars and gyms,

will close effective midnight tonight. [♪♪♪] >> my name is sharky laguana. i am a small business owner. i own a company called vandigo van rentals. it rents vans to the music industry. i am also a member of the small business commission as appointed by mayor breed in 2019. i am a musician and have worked as a professional musician and recording artist in the 90s. [♪♪♪] >> we came up in san francisco,

so i've played at most of the live venues as a performer, and, of course, i've seen hundreds of shows over the years, and i care very, very deeply about live entertainment. in fact, when i joined the commission, i said that i was going to make a particular effort to pay attention to the arts and entertainment and make sure that those small businesses receive the level of attention that i think they deserve. >> this is a constantly and rapidly changing situation, and we are working hard to be aggressive to flatten the curve to disrupt the spread of covid-19. >> when the pandemic hit, it was crystal clear to me that this was devastating to the music industry because live venues had to completely

shutdown. there was no way for them to open for even a single day or in limited capacity. that hit me emotionally as an artist and hit me professionally, as well as a small business that caters to artists, so i was very deeply concerned about what the city could do to help the entertainment committee. we knew we needed somebody to introduce some kind of legislation to get the ball rolling, and so we just started texting supervisor haney, just harassing him, saying we need to do something, we need to do something. he said i know we need to do something, but what do we do? we eventually settled on this idea that there would be an independent venue recovery fund. >> clerk: there are 11 ayes. >> president walton: thank you. without objection, this resolution is passed unanimously. >> and we were concerned for

these small mom-and-pop businesses that contribute so much to our arts community. >> we are an extremely small venue that has the capacity to do extremely small shows. most of our staff has been working for us for over ten years. there's very little turnover in the staff, so it felt like family. sharky with the small business commission was crucial in pestering supervisor haney and others to really keep our industry top of mind. we closed down on march 13 of 2020 when we heard that there was an order to do so by the mayor, and we had to call that

show in the middle of the night. they were in the middle of their sound check, and i had to call the venue and say, we need to cancel the show tonight. >> the fund is for our live music and entertainment venues, and in its first round, it will offer grants of at least $10,000 to qualifying venues. these are venues that offer a signature amount of live entertainment programming before the pandemic and are committed to reopening and offering live entertainment spaces after the pandemic. >> it's going to, you know, just stave off the bleeding for a moment. it's the city contributing to helping make sure these venues are around, to continue to be part of the economic recovery for our city. >> when you think about the venues for events in the city,

we're talking about all of them. some have been able to come back adaptively over the last year and have been able to be shape shifters in this pandemic, and that's exciting to see, but i'm really looking forward to the day when events and venues can reopen and help drive the recovery here in san francisco. >> they have done a study that says for every dollar of ticket sales done in this city, $12 goes to neighboring businesses. from all of our vendors to the restaurants that are next to our ven sues and just so many other things that you can think of, all of which have been so negatively affected by covid. for this industry to fail is unthinkable on so many levels. it's unheard of, like, san francisco without its music scene would be a terribly

dismal place. >> i don't know that this needs to be arrest -- that there needs to be art welfare for artists. we just need to live and pay for our food, and things will take care of themselves. i think that that's not the given situation. what san francisco could do that they don't seem to do very much is really do something to support these clubs and venues that have all of these different artists performing in them. actually, i think precovid, it was, you know, don't have a warehouse party and don't do a gig. don't go outside, and don't do this. there was a lot of don't, don't, don't, and after the pandemic, they realized we're a big industry, and we bring a lot of money into this city, so they need to encourage and hope these venues. and then, you know, as far as people like me, it would be

nice if you didn't only get encouraged for only singing opera or playing violin. [♪♪♪] >> entertainment is a huge part of what is going to make this city bounce back, and we're going to need to have live music coming back, and comedy, and drag shows and everything under the sun that is fun and creative in order to get smiles back on our faces and in order to get the city moving again. [♪♪♪] >> venues serve a really vital function in society. there aren't many places where people from any walk of life, race, religion, sexuality can come together in the same room and experience joy, right?

experience love, experience anything that what makes us human, community, our connective tissues between different souls. if we were to lose this, lose this situation, you're going to lose this very vital piece of society, and just coming out of the pandemic, you know, it's going to help us recover socially? well, yeah, because we need to be in the same room with a bunch of people, and then help people across the country recover financially. >> san francisco art recovery fund, amazing. it opened yesterday on april 21. applications are open through may 5. we're encouraging everyone in the coalition to apply. there's very clear information on what's eligible, but that's basically been what our coalition has been advocating for from the beginning. you know, everyone's been supportive, and they've all been hugely integral to this program getting off the ground.

you know, we found our champion with supervisor matt haney from district six who introduced this legislation and pushed this into law. mayor breed dedicated $1.5 million this fund, and then supervisor haney matched that, so there's $3 million in this fund. this is a huge moment for our coalition. it's what we've been fighting for all along. >> one of the challenges of our business is staying on top of all the opportunities as they come back. at the office of oewd, office of economic and workforce development, if you need to speak to somebody, you can find people who can help you navigate any of the available programs and resources. >> a lot of blind optimism has kept us afloat, you know, and there's been a lot of reason for despair, but this is what

keeps me in the business, and this is what keeps me fighting, you know, and continuing to advocate, is that we need this and this is part of our life's blood as much as oxygen and food is. don't lose heart. look at there for all the various grants that are available to you. some of them might be very slow to unrao, and it might seem like too -- unroll, and it might seem like it's too late, but people are going to fight to keep their beloved venues open, and as a band, you're going to be okay.

>> i went through a lot of struggles in my life, and i am blessed to be part of this. i am familiar with what people are going through to relate and empathy and compassion to their struggle so they can see i came out of the struggle, it gives them hope to come up and do something positive. ♪ ♪ i am a community ambassador.

we work a lot with homeless, visitors, a lot of people in the area. >> what i like doing is posting up at hotspots to let people see visibility. they ask you questions, ask you directions, they might have a question about what services are available. checking in, you guys. >> wellness check. we walk by to see any individual, you know may be sitting on the sidewalk, we make sure they are okay, alive. you never know. somebody might walk by and they are laying there for hours. you never know if they are alive. we let them know we are in the area and we are here to promote

safety, and if they have somebody that is, you know, hanging around that they don't want to call the police on, they don't have to call the police. they can call us. we can direct them to the services they might need. >> we do the three one one to keep the city neighborhoods clean. there are people dumping, waste on the ground and needles on the ground. it is unsafe for children and adults to commute through the streets. when we see them we take a picture dispatch to 311. they give us a tracking number and they come later on to pick it up. we take pride. when we come back later in the day and we see the loose trash or debris is picked up it makes you feel good about what you are doing. >> it makes you feel did about escorting kids and having them

feel safe walking to the play area and back. the stuff we do as ambassadors makes us feel proud to help keep the city clean, helping the residents. >> you can see the community ambassadors. i used to be on the streets. i didn't think i could become a community ambassador. it was too far out there for me to grab, you know. doing this job makes me feel good. because i came from where a lot of them are, homeless and on the street, i feel like i can give them hope because i was once there. i am not afraid to tell them i used to be here. i used to be like this, you know. i have compassion for people that are on the streets like the homeless and people that are caught up with their addiction

because now, i feel like i can give them hope. it reminds you every day of where i used to be and where i where i used to be and where i

>> chinatown battleground is something i have always wanted to do because we have never had

the chinese americans in the military. our history goes back all the way to 1861 to afghanistan. the exhibition is two-parts. one is a visual history which is told through the banners. then basically what i wanted to do was make sure that people understood that every one of these objects tell a story. for example, my uncle was one of two chinese american pilots during world war ii. they come planed they were giving baggy men's coveralls to wear. we have a veteran of the war. now what is notable is that he is the first and only chinese

american prisoner of war. we have the met kit. that was the only thing he has for water, rice and soup. he carried for over four and a half years in captivity as prisoner of war. this exhibition is a first base undertaking. also important and i want to take away the big picture that the chinese americans have been involved in united states military since the civil war, over 150 years. we have given service to the country, blood, sweat, tears and sacrifice for a long time. our story of chinese americans are part of the mainstream. chinese american history is american history that is the

take away i want to come off with, especially the younger generation. there's so much involved with becoming a firefighter. and as a component of being a woman in the field, it takes a lot of perception. it takes belief in yourself. it takes asking the right questions of people who already have the job so that you have the confidence to build it and it takes someone telling you that this job is a possibility for you. my job has given me 25 years of satisfaction. the primary thing is that i grew up here in san francisco and i'm serving in the city where i grew up. i transitioned to community training and i was able to

build disaster resilient padre of volunteers and bringing us all the latest information so that we can be ready for a disaster. pride and loyalty are the heart of a firefighter. it's in the way we do our job from the very smallest thing from our everyday checks we do of our equipment. from the way that we treat each other and the community we come in contact with every day. and loyalty is to our own families is to the pride we have in this department. it's to the other members when we're out in a dangerous situation keeping each other safe. it goes throughout every aspect of being a firefighter. i'm really proud of the way our department approaches diversity, equity, and inclusion. i was hired in a class that had 45 people and 17 women. it was an accomplishment at the time, but there were many women that came before me that laid the ground work and i had to see it to be it. someone had to recruit me into this job. i didn't know it was a possibility for myself. and so the importance of young women seeing what it takes to

be a firefighter, seeing themselves when they look at me. it really brings myself a lot of pride and joy in this work. >> everything is done in-house. i think it is done.

i have always been passionate about gelato. every single slaver has its own recipe. we have our own -- we move on from there. so you have every time a unique experience because that slaver is the flavored we want to make. union street is unique because of the neighbors and the location itself. the people that live around here i love to see when the street is full of people. it is a little bit of italy that is happening around you can walk around and enjoy shopping with gelato in your hand. this is the move we are happy to provide to the people. i always love union street because it's not like another commercial street where you have big chains. here you have the neighbors. there is a lot of stories and

the neighborhoods are essential. people have -- they enjoy having their daily or weekly gelato. i love this street itself. >> we created a move of an area where we will be visiting. we want to make sure that the area has the gelato that you like. what we give back as a shop owner is creating an ambient lifestyle. if you do it in your area and if you like it, then you can do it on the streets you like.

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