we want a laguna honda. other communities across this country and even in the world do not have a public hospital devoted to rehabilitation and skilled nursing care. we do. and when we talk about putting that bond

we want a laguna honda. other communities across this country and even in the world do not have a public hospital devoted to rehabilitation and skilled nursing care. we do. and when we talk about putting that bond issue, that great big bond issue -- there were people who said i do not think we can do it. but i always knew we could. and the secret weapon was always the families of those for whom at laguna honda has cared for for so long over the years with the great quality of care that we have. and the voters did vote overwhelmingly to rebuild laguna honda. so for those naysayers in other parts of the country who say, "maybe san francisco once knew how to do it," i say we still do. we have still got the passion, the dedication, the vision, and the team work to get the job done. and we have done it today. [applause] and it is my great pleasure now to actually call a man from speaker policies office. -- speaker pelosi's office. i got calls from her and from congresswoman feinstein. they have asked me to say th

we want a laguna honda. other communities across this country and even in the world do not have a public hospital devoted to rehabilitation and skilled nursing care. we do. and when we talk about putting that bond issue, that great big bond issue -- there were people who said i do not think we can do it. but i always knew we could.

we want a laguna honda. other communities across this country and even in the world do not have a public hospital devoted to ab

we would need over 10 laguna honda's. we are not going to let arnold schwarzenegger have his way so that people can have the option of dignity. thank you all for joining us today. [applause] >> san francisco has a great elected city family. i want to acknowledge the president of the board of supervisors, president david chu, supervisor maxwell, subp-- superviser chiu, jose cisneros, the former mayor -- we are all proud to have you here. thank you. we have a special supervisor because he represents this district and has been looking out for laguna honda since he was elected. we are very grateful to him for that and for all he did to make today house -- to the possible. police help -- please help me recognize supervisor elsbernd. >> good afternoon, and welcome to beautiful and sunny san francisco. i would also like to single out and think my friend and colleague and recent father, supervisors mirkarimi, who is over there with his son, for all he has done. there are a few more things that i would like to offer. we are going

thank you for spending your saturday afternoon at laguna honda. at the new laguna honda. san francisco has much to be proud of. laguna honda has been providing compassionate care for san francisco hit safety net for over 150 years. we will continue this tradition for the next 150 years to come. second, the new laguna honda, as the most modern rehab and skilled nursing facility in the first certified leed hospital in california, we will deliver on being a model for other facilities around the country and the world in long-term care and rehabilitation care. and most importantly, laguna honda is a community for healing and wellness. you will see this for yourselves as you speak to our staff. thank you, mayor knew some, -- may newsom, mayor brown, jackie speare, the former president of the health commission when prop. 8 past, the health commission, turner construction, derek miller, the arts commission, the staff of laguna honda, our labor partners, and the entire san francisco community for your support in ensuring laguna honda has a bright future. [applause] i will end with

we would need over 10 laguna honda's. we are not going to let arnold schwarzenegger have his way so that people can have the option of dignity. thank you all for joining us today. [applause] >> san francisco has a

and it will come out of laguna honda. all of us should be proud. all of us should be grateful that we have had a small piece of that particular history. because that history helps me bear a lot of responsibility, to be a husband, to be a father. this institution will always be part of my life. you have taught me how to be that better person. thank you very much and god bless all of you. [applause] >> we are so blessed in our elected leaders in san francisco. senator mark leno has helped us on a bill to make sure that people who need help in a community and want to stay in the community can do so. we are very proud of this new building. at the same time, we want to make sure that people who want to stay in their homes will be able to do so. and so the senator has carried a bill that will enable us, if someone has medicaid, to use those medicaid dollars to increase the number of in-home hours that person has so that we can use those federal dollars instead of hospitalization, instead of long-term care here, in the home. our goal is that the person al

laguna honda. and in our day we were great participants in all of the city life. difficult circumstances, sometimes crushingly difficult, have brought many of us here at last to laguna honda. not at last for some of us. despite all differences, we need the healing that laguna honda is famous for. some people who come will be rehabilitated and will leave sunday. others will need 24-hour care for the rest of their lives, and so they will look forward to spending time in the spending -- in this building for years to come. it is exciting to have a new building. it is even more exciting to receive a new model of care, care that is resident centered, care that honors each person as an individual instead of a body in a bed. care that involves talking to us, and more important, listening to us, hearing our voices. so many have worked so hard, has you have been told -- as you have been told, to bring the state to pass. and now we have a dazzling new setting to present to you. when you leave today, you will be going home. but laguna honda residents will not be leaving. this

they are all partnered with laguna honda. to the volunteers. to the foundation. thank you for your commitment. thank you for your support. finally, and this was a long winded point i wanted to make, it to the residence. the dignity that you deserve. the facilities that you have long before -- you have longed for. to those we have lost along the way, supervisors elsbernd and i had great friends that wanted to be here today that were hoping they could make it through. this is for them. but this is for all of you, for your families. it is difficult for families to make the decision to send their loved ones to a facility like this. it is challenging. sometimes, you are left with a tremendous amount of guilt and anxiety, where you just cannot do it all yourself. i am actually convinced, and i mean this, what this facility will do is bring families back together. there is every reason for a family member to feel proud about the care they are receiving here, but now more than ever they will feel not only pride but they will feel a sense of exhilaration every time they c

they want the green flight good and help laguna honda resident.y are part of our community but he we don't know, we don't have any green light. no communication whatsoever. >>reporter: despite the problems lorraine is still hoping people will find a which to donate to the patient. she thinks all the attention will keep things going in the right direction. >> not a lot of people i think that have visitors at all and so they don't have a support system and so lacking that the gift fund would take care of their needs. >> san francisco controller is now conducting fleet audit of the patient gift fund that was to take 6 weeks it is now up to 10. by the way mitch is moving to los angeles for new job and the cf o in charge of overseeing the patient gift fund is also getting a new job at muni. if you have a tip for our next investigation e-mail us through abc 7 news.com. >>> for the i team, abc 7 news. >>> unlicensed welders being blamed for high-rise apartment fire that has killed at least 53 people in shanghai, china. more than 70 others are hospitalize

he suffered massive brain injuries and spent a year in laguna honda.>> there is a lot of patients there spend days pan handling and they don't have money to buy themselves a treat or a soda. >> that is why the gift fund comes in. supposed to provide small pleasures, fair favorite food or small tv or a bus trip. and our investigation found how some administrators spent tens of thousands on gourmet meals, gifts and barbecues for staff instead of patients. >> gorgeous-looking food. really a lot of food. >> and this is when she decided to take her husband to the party. >> the guy told us amove along. just for staff only. and they didn't want us looking at it when the money started to run dry, the hospital forced to make cuts to patient benefits. and the state stepped in. the california department of public health cited the hospital for failing to meet the recreational needs for patients. this is not easy to figure out how the money is going but there is still a lot of it moving around. documents show administrators diverted $100,000 of interest from the gi

as proud as we are of laguna honda, not everybody needs to be ad -- at laguna honda. we need to provide alternatives to skilled nursing services, but we had no funding and no framework. now, five years in a row, $3 million a year, we have been putting into this community living fund to allow people to transition back into the community or to stay in the community to live in dignity and live in place. i want to thank all of you for that community living fund. it is a national model today. [applause] people forget emergency planning. susan never did. i remember we updated all our emergency operations plans. we have not met in eight years, and the emergency operations plan have not been updated in eight years, but there she was saying is great to update it, but make sure it is accessible. at the time, only three of them were accessible. that is a challenge. today, we have more than 75 accessible emergency disaster shelters, and 37 of them can be adapted and made acceptable. that is real progress. we had only one audible alert system. today, we now have an audible and vis

as proud as we are of laguna honda, not everybody needs to be ad -- at laguna honda. need to provide alternatives to skilled nursing services, but we had no funding and no framework. now, five years in a row, $3 million a year, we have been putting into this community living fund to allow people to transition back into the community or to stay in the community to live in dignity and live in place. i want to thank all of you for that community living fund. it is a national model today. [applause]

it is a direct homage to the historical murals in the original laguna honda building.atures to large tile walls. by observing residents, the gardens created a public artwork in the form of the handrail. in one of the outdoor courtyards, the circular grouping of -- with a smooth finish. this features ten unique button sculptures with different pastel colors that function not only as a place to sit, but also as a touchstone to something recognizable, familiar, and comforting. another key component included an art project that responded directly to the hospital's rich history. using archival images and artifacts, had designed 16 intricately woven tapestries that are inviting of significant events that shaped the hospital and the community over time. a >> it attracts a lot of visitors, and they are all and all - -in aw -- in awe over the variety of mediums used. >> i think we have given the city of san francisco and the residents an incredible art collection. >> welcome to "culture wire." today we're headed to smpling f. camera works, a premiere venue for artists working i

the rebuilding of our public hospital laguna honda this is on going work with the same contract ors that move successful apprentices from one project to another and keep them working for several years. the construction workers of the future to be the superintendents the construction owners. that's the perfect thing there. that's success.

and when i started, the very first crisis i had to deal with is what shall we do about the laguna honda hospital. it has always been known for the incredible care, the loving nurses, the fantastic physicians, the energetic volunteers, the courage of our residents, for all of the things that made the care great. but we had a problem. and the problem was the building. we were in a building that had long outlived its usefulness as a place for residents to live. it was no longer consistent with any medicare or medicaid rules. we were the only facility left in the country running open wards. we were told we would not be allowed any longer by both the federal and state authorities. it was a place where, while the care was wonderful, the building did not fit any modern earthquake standards. where privacy was insufficient to support human dignity. where people did not have a place to store their stuff. where people did not have a window to look out on. where we had to have wards that had closing doors because there was not that easy access to the outside. here we had a vibrant set of people --

and cons of the program and i know that doctors [unintelligible] are attempting to rectify the laguna honda hospital once and for all. supervisor chu: thank you. any other members of the public that would wish to speak on item number three? seeing no one, public comment is closed. there is a motion to refer this item to the historic preservation committee and continue to the call of the chair. without objection. all right, item number five. >> item #5, ordinance amending the san francisco public works code by amending sections 184.2, 184.6, 184.8, and 184.12 thereof, relating to newsracks, to provide for: (1) the use of electronic mail for notices of violations; (2) removal of abandoned newsracks or newsracks maintained in violation of the public works code within 7 calendar days of notice of violation sent by electronic mail; (3) imposition of administrative fines for violations resulting in newsrack seizures; (4) consolidation and/or reduction in size of fixed pedestal newsracks at under-used locations; (5) allocation of space in newsrack boxes on a first-come-first- served basis under ce

the rebuilding of our public hospital laguna honda this is on going work with the same contract ors that move successful apprentices from one project to another and keep them working for several years. the construction workers of the future to be the superintendents the construction owners. that's the perfect thing there. that's success. >> many people af this building was built in 1936. as a board to preserve the history and make the students aware of that history. the partnering between sfmoma and the arts commission means they will be more aware of the artwork that we have here, the artists that painted a, and the history behind this itself. >> students came from george washington, and it was wonderful to have them on a panel. people from the school board, those who have been painting for years, some conservative errors from the getty. to have them tell us about the works of their school was important. it represents african-american artists to during the 20's and 30's used an incredible body of work. it is one of the most incredible works of art in the city, bar none. it is a huge mur