of the commission, to show support to mr. lee's appointment as city administrator. he has shown his honesty, integrity, and leadership, and also has been very that is why we believe he is the right person for this position for the next five years. thank you. supervisor campos: thank you, commissioner. next speaker please. >> i am the director of the san francisco arts program. i am here to voice my support for edwin lee as city administrator. i can attest to how he is in close of -- inclusive of issues and voice. there was a particular meeting

that i can point to in which edwin lee, several other staff members from his office for their. they were talking about day laborers. i remember how conclusive ed lee was about what was mentioned by day laborers, and also of his ideas, it almost crafted the plan of action that we were making. the community should be pressed in those conversations. we know that he is going to be the right person as the city administrator. supervisor campos: thank you. is there any other member of the public that would like to speak? seeing none, public comment is closed. supervisor alioto-pier? supervisor alioto-pier: i think it is the most important thing to say right now to you, mr.

lee, for wanting to continue to want to servserve the city and n francisco. i would be happy to move this forward with recommendations. supervisor campos: without objection. congratulations. [applause] please call item no. 5. >> item 5. motion approving the mayor's appointment of rodney fong to the planning commission term ending july 1, 2014. supervisor campos: we have the commissioner -- >> would you like me to read item 6, too?

>> item 6. motion rejecting the mayor's appointment of rodney fong to the planning commission term ending july 1, 2014. supervisor campos: i would like to ask commissioner fong to come forward before we give you the floor. thank you for reaching out to my office. it has been pretty crazy, so we have not been able to connect, so i want to thank you for making yourself available, and with that, this is the opportunity to address the rules committee as to why this appointment. >> i will take the opportunity to thank you for all your great work for the city. i appreciate the opportunity, having served on the port commission for the last four and a half years. i find it a little bit ironic that my grandparents were detainee's here, my grand mother

was born here in 1989, and now to serve as the port of san francisco, where many of these immigrants came through, that is great. my family grew up as farmers in the delta and took the sacramento king and queen into the city to deliver their goods. a graduate of the city college, hotel and restaurant college. i am interested in serving on the planning commission for various reasons. as you know, the planning commission catches a lot of things, whether it is housing related, transit related, even marijuana dispensaries. it is sort of a catch all. going back to my family roots, i do not think they would have ever believed that their grandson would have the chance

to shape san francisco for the future. certainly in their time, san francisco is not what it is today, and certainly will not be what it is going to be for my kids. the opportunity to shape that is a special one. supervisor campos: thank you, commissioner. i have a number of question but i also want to give supervisor alioto-pier an opportunity. ok. thank you. probably the first question that comes up for me -- as you know, the board of supervisors confirm your appointment to the port commission in june 2010. so a recent appointment to the commission. it is not typical that someone gets appointed to a commission and then a few months later, their name comes forward for a

different commission. i am trying to understand why the change and why not simply remain on the port commission, which as you know, in your experience, including serving as the president of that commission, it is an important commission that plays an important role in the life of the city. >> it is unique timing. i wanted to have the opportunity to serve on both. i grew up on the san francisco waterfront. i feel my experience from the port commission would carry over naturally into the planning department citywide. i am interested in seeing all things grow in severance cisco, whether it is housing, at transit, job creation. it is by coincidence the opportunity came up just after i was confirmed for a second term with the port. i think it is a matter of timing

and opportunity. supervisor campos: the reason i ask, i am impressed with a presentation and i am inclined to vote for the appointment, but connected to that is we have a lot of things happening at the port of san francisco, an itch yoissue certainly in the forefrt is the america's cup. it is something that the mayor has indicated is a priority for them. many of us are excited about the prospect. given the importance of that, why not remain on the port commission? >> good question. i am hopeful that we can get the america's cup, but as you know, some of the larger items that occur on property end up before

the planning commission, or in conjunction with. it is possible some of the larger developments, appears 70, other developments, will be studied by the planning commission. the planning commission did review seawall lot 351. i think they are less disconnected than one might think, but i understand your point. it is very difficult to walk away from the port of san francisco, which in my experience, over the last four years has really started to blossom. supervisor campos: my concern is there is something to be said about continuity. you are someone who has provided a great service on that commission. you currently serves as the president of the commission. i do have that concern of lack of continuity, especially as the

port of san francisco embarks on this very significant project. >> you bring up a good point. by two other colleagues have combined 22 years of experience on the port. there is some continuity on the port commission. i think the potential people coming on board have an understanding of the importance of the america's cup and see that the exploratorium is billed out a way that it was intended. supervisor campos: a lot of these commissions come down to finding the right fit. clearly, you are a talented individual. if you could say a bit about your background around planning issues and why that would make

this a good fit. >> my background is in real- estate development. most recently, i had done work with the fisherman's wharf with the planning department to create the fisherman's wharf public realm plant. it was a community driven process. working with the planning department along with stakeholders and merchants, senior groups in the areak, to get to some -- area, to get to some fare level ground. that plan was approved a year ago and is working its way through the planning department for implementation. we are looking for capital dollars to execute it. the difficult thing is getting all of fisherman's wharf to agree. sometimes in these gray areas of san francisco, we have well entrenched histories there. i take great pride in leading the group and different folks,

letting them express their been -- opinions and concerns move forward. with my background in real estate, community service, understanding the port, how the different agencies operate, i feel i would be a good fit for the planning commission. supervisor campos: have you attended planning commission meetings, have you appeared before them? >> yes, but i have not sat through an entire one because they are so long. supervisor campos: i think you are not alone in that. a lot of the projects that come before the commission, a lot of time is devoted to considering additions to existing homes, residential neighborhoods, you have a conditional use requests. part of that requires some knowledge, familiarity of residential guidelines. i wonder if you could say a little bit about your

experience? >> i have sort of grown up building and constructing, renovating buildings in san francisco, los angeles as well. my background of architecture in construction is probably greater than most. i think you bring up an interesting perspective about the diverse san francisco, listening to different folks. the system we have now where there is a discretionary review process requires just that, discretion. it does a case by case scenario. supervisor campos: how about your knowledge, experience with the general planning code, ceqa? >> i have some familiarity with that working with the port,

ceqa, environmental stuff. i am familiar with the better streets plan, very familiar of the bike plan, supporter of that. i follow the proposed changes in transit. all of those things, i think, come together into the puzzle that i think needs to be put together. you emphasize too much on one item, it does not work. if you neglect any one of those aspects, it does not work. all of them need to be put together for the city to be successful. supervisor campos: just a couple more questions. something that all public officials have to deal with is the issue of conflict of interest laws with respect to planning items, items that come before the planning commission. there is an assumption that anything within a 500 feet radius where you might have a

personal financial interest in any property, you would be precluded from being involved in those decisions. i wonder if you could talk about how that would apply to you and know whathe level of your holdit could create an issue, if you were to be on the planning commission. >> as you know, we always take part in the ethics training. i take it seriously, as i am sure you do. as you point out, there is a provision that does not allow you to participate in any vote if you are a property owner within 500 feet. you must recused yourself. with the port commission, that has come up. i have obviously always done that. if questionable, i have erred on the side of conservative.

i respect that. i believe it is an important role, as well as the gifts rule. as far as my personal relationship, there probably would be less than two handfuls of occasions, properties in which that would take place. supervisor campos: do you have any concern that a major project, plan that is currently before or might be before the commission, that you would be precluded from being involved in? one question is the fisherman morph' -- wharf's public home plan. the fear that you may not be able to participate in that? in that one, probably yes. -- >> in that one, probably yes.

supervisor campos: one piece of legislation we have been grappling with the past few weeks -- actually the past seven months in my office -- the health care services master plan. i wonder if you are familiar with that and if you have a position. >> i am not familiar enough to speak to it yet. supervisor campos: so you do not have a position either way at this point? supervisor alioto-pier, any questions? why don't we opened it up to public comment. thank you very much, commissioner. is there anyone from the public that would like to comment on this item? we see the president out of the planning commission. we have seen a lot of presidents today. it is great to see that. >> thank you. i was pleased with this

appointment when it came up, for more than one reason. it is easy to be behind the gavel of the commission in san francisco when it is a full commission. we have been laboring a bit under an empty seat, i should say. we are busy. we are probably, to my knowledge, the only commission that meets weekly, and long hours, as you referred to before. each of you, commenting on previous items before you, used terms like community involvement. that describes rodney fong. he and i share something in that our grandmothers were both born in the city, in the mid-late 1800's. that becomes important, more important than i thought when i was on the commission. you bring a history of the city

and you understand the changes because of that that have occurred in the past, and that will probably continue to occur in the future. that impacts a lot of the plan and we do. he has a background in the tourist industry, which is absolutely essential to san francisco, and currently, i am the only person on the planning commission that really understands neighborhood commercial districts. these are important. we deal with them constantly. i believe he brings that range of ability to the commission that we can take advantage of. i urge you to support him. supervisor campos: thank you, mr. president. next, the president of the redevelopment agency commission. >> thank you. i am here to support rodney fong today, supervisors. the willingness to serve on these commissions -- that is a

major kudo. the public should only go to the planning commission meetings to understand that. rodney fong is a small business leader. i sat with him at the business bureau, and he succeeded me as the chairman. he did a much better job than i did. he has contributed continually to the city through the better business bureau, and now the port commission. it would be a loss to the port commission, but a tremendous game for the planning commission. i look forward very much to working with a great professional like rodney fong.

i support his appointment tremendously. thank you for your time. supervisor campos: thank you very much. next speaker please. >> good morning, supervisors. i am the acting director of the san francisco bicycle coalition on behalf of our members, urging you to support rodney fong and his appointment to the planning commission. i have had the good fortune to work with him both as a planning commissioner and as his role leading the fisherman's wharf cbd. i have been impressed with his expertise, as he brings experience as a business leader, and surely understands san francisco's transit first policy is something that can be a benefit to businesses and commercial districts. the fisherman's wharf public realm plan that came out of the public process has really

demonstrated a sea change in terms of attitudes in the fisherman's wharf. amongst merchants, from fear and resistance, to really emphasizing transit, walking, biking on jefferson street, to a real embrace of what that can mean to their businesses. a real part of that transformation was due to rodney's leadership. i think he will bring a much- needed perspective to the commission. thank you. supervisor campos: thank you. next speaker. >> my name is tim, i run the san francisco action coalition. on behalf of our members -- i think we have a great candidate here. because of our interest in the waterfront, i have been to a slew of commission hearings. my observation would be he has

been consistently and scrupulously fair minded and balanced in his approach to the issues of the port, even when we do not agree. but because of his long civic engagement with the city, he is an ideal candidate, and i urge you to appoint him and move forward immediately. supervisor campos: next speaker please. mr. delassandro. >> it is my pleasure to be here to testify on behalf of rodney fong's nomination for the planning commission. his family has a long and deep history in san francisco, one that has contributed to this city and what it is today. rodney was our border last year. he did that with the highest level of involvement and

dedication and open mindedness. he has tremendous work ethic and a tremendous character. on many occasions we had issues that came before our board and he was always open minded, is a tremendous listener, and he always put san francisco first on any decision. he did not ever bring a personal agenda to the board, and that is critical. he is a tremendous listener, never came with a predetermined decisions. he understands the needs of our unique neighborhoods and small businesses of san francisco. but beyond being an arm to get -- advocate for san francisco, he has passions that can also help, whether it is the restoration of the angel island restoration station, working with lgbt rights, rodney has a passion for san francisco and

would be a tremendous asset. supervisor campos: thank you. next speaker. we have the port director. >> good morning, supervisors. you answered a lot of the question that i wanted to ask about rodney. one of them was, when i first got word that he would be nominated to the planning commission, i did not take it very well. the truth is, there are probably only two bodies where i would be willing to see my lovely boss. one is with all of you, and the other is with planning commission. i do want to point out, as much as i would have it differently, president fong's presidency at the port commission, it is only two more meetings, and then he will not be able to continue in that position regardless. i am ready to bear that. i want to speak to his character. we have seen a lot of commissioners over the years.

he has to be one of the most dedicated and committed. his attendance is exemplary. more importantly, his dedication to the public process is fantastic. his help, the board has become far more transparent to the general public. he has given the public a great plot form for access, and frankly, dispute. we have lots of controversial issues there. he has been incredibly committed to master plan process cheese, not just for jefferson street, but also for the pier 78 and southern waterfront areas. he is committed to parks and rehabilitation of historic preservation. even though i will cry, please move them forward. thank you for your time. supervisor campos: thank you. next speaker. >> i want to put both of these appointments to gather because your next one is replacing the

port commission. both the rodney and f.x. crowley bring a lot of background and skills to any commission they serve on. both - 7 siskins, both involve with the community their entire lives. both serving on commissions. -- both san franciscans, both involved with the community their entire lives. these people could have moved on, but they came to the conclusion, in his mind, putting rodney on the planning commission added to the strength of that body, bringing f.x. crowley off of the puc, on to the port commission, where there has always been a strong labor voice. that was important to that commission as we are dealing with the projects we are having in the port. i urge you in both cases to support the nominations. supervisor campos: thank you. mr. decosta.

>> supervisors, let the first categorically state, the mayor should understand, in san francisco, we have many as twute candidates. we have too many candidates who follow the mayor for the sake of following the mayor. if we do not send mr. fong to the planning department, we would traumatize it. he is a talented person. even though monique moyer said that he would only be there for two meetings as chair -- i know her pretty well. i do not know rodney fong all

that well, but the port commission is broadcasted, so i follow the various moves over there. we need to have the best representation in san francisco on the commission's, and we do not need a small group of people who have the ear of the mayor or the san francisco democratic committee. cronyism, nepotism, just helping somebody does not help. having said that, i wish him the best. he is young, he has history, he is committed to this city. i am going to give him one piece of advice. speak your conscience, do right by the people.

thank you. supervisor campos: thank you. just for the public -- i have to take a short break. we will act on this item, but before we do that, we are going to take a short break and come back for the rest of the agenda. in terms of commissioner fong -- actually, supervisor alioto- pier? supervisor alioto-pier: i just wanted to say, i agree with everything director moyer was saying, he cannot leave the port, why would anyone want to do that? but i do not think that there are two commissions that are so similar. what people do not often realize is the port commission is really on the planning department on the waterfront. so we are taking the expertise that rodney had developed over the past four years and moving it into the greater areas of san