Transcripts For SFGTV Police Commission 20240713

Francisco. I am excited about this Incredible Opportunity to open up a 200 bed Navigation Center in San Francisco. We all know what the statistics say. We have a real problem around homelessness, and the fact is last year we helped 2146 people exit homelessness. Since we have opened Navigation Centers in San Francisco, they have helped over 5,000 people. Despite what we know the challenges are, the fact is i am grateful and proud of so many of the incredible people behind me today. The people who workday in and day out to help make these Navigation Centers a reality, but more importantly to help the people that we know are struggling on the streets exit homelessness. We have seven Navigation Centers in San Francisco with a few more on the way. I am really excited what we are going to be doing. At the end of the day, lets be chair clear. It clear. It is that we need permanent housing for people who are exiting homelessness. Today we are well on our way to meeting the goal that i set of 1,000 shelter beds by 2020. This brings us to 566, and we have an additional 224 beds in the pipeline and the Bayview Hunters Point Community with ththe safe center. I want to take this opportunity because, you know, it is easy to say we want to do something, but sometimes it is harder to do it. In this case it was challenges, but it did take a village. That consists of partner the state to the local to the community levels. I want to start with senator scott weiner for passing the legislation to streamline the construction of Navigation Centers across the state so people experiencing homelessness throughout california have reasonable access to shelter. People ask how did you get this built so fast despite a number of obstacles . It had everything to do with the legislation scott weiner helped to pass in sacramento. Thank you to assembly man phil king because time and time again as someone who has been the chair of the Budget Committee in sacramento he prioritized not only San Francisco for a lot of resources but especially focusing on homelessness and Navigation Center. Because of his work, San Francisco has seen additional revenue to help support and move these projects forward faster. In fact, with his leadership, the state has invested 500 million to address homelessness in 2018 and 650 million in 2019. To be clear that is said wide. San francisco got a decent chung of that support. Thank you to supervisor haney for helping engage the community. I especially want to thank the neighbors of south beach. I know thi this this hasn hasn. We are committed to making sure that we fulfill the promises around safety and other challenges that people were so concerned about. We appreciate the work of the Advisory Group and the folks who have dedicated a lot of personal time to seeing this place succeed. Thank you to the port of San Francisco and the commissioners, president brandon is joining us today. Thank you for your work in allowing the opportunity for the Navigation Center to be from this location. We are grateful, we are excited. We know that this wont solve all of the challenges we have with homelessness in San Francisco, but it will help a significant number of people who we know need support and services. I also want to thank five keys. They will manage the Navigation Center. They have a lot of great experiences with helping people who are involved with the criminal Justice System Reenter Society and be successful, and we are grateful for their leadership, work in the programs and opportunities that they will provide to the people that we want to serve. Ultimately this is about helping people not only off the streets but helping them into housing, helping them with opportunities to succeed in life. So we are grateful for their work. Now, i want to take this opportunity to introduce our state senator scott weiner. [applause] thank you, mayor. I want to thank and commend mayor breed and supervisor haney for standing their ground to make sure that this Navigation Center could open. As a former local elected official in San Francisco, i understand first hand what it is like when you have neighbors who have significant concern and fear about changes that are happening in their neighborhood. That is very intense, her hard. It is very hard. I want to thank them for looking at the big picture and the reality this will make the neighborhood safer and more livable in addition to helping many homeless in San Francisco transition to a better and healthier future. Thank you. When you look at the situation at homelessness in california, it is pretty stark. We have well over 100,000 Homeless People in the state. I think it is 130,000. A large majority of homeless residents in the bay area and los angeles are not sheltered, and this is not normal. What is happening in california and in San Francisco and the bay area around homelessness is not normal. This is not how it plays out in the rest of the country where far, far fewer people are homeless to begin with because they have enough housing for people, unlike in california where we have systematically made it impossible through rezoning and other means made it impossible to build enough housing for the people that need it. Our housing has collapsed by 75 as the population has tripled. We made a decision as a state that housing was not important, and what has that led to . Many problems with people pushed out of the state and evictions happening. It has pushed over 100,000 people to homelessness in the state of california. That is because of choices that we made here in california. It is not normal for it to be so difficult to build a Navigation Center. It should not take years to provide shelter and housing and services for people in dire straits living on the streets. That should be something we can do immediately because we are in a crisis. We have been working at the state level to support San Francisco and other local communities to make it faster and more streamlined, to create Navigation Centers in support of housing. I know we have all been working on that to pass legislation to streamline the process. Wwe are working to reform the california approach to housing because Navigation Centers are an incredible way to help people transition off the streets. If you dont have housing for people to end up in, they will cycle back to the streets. We are working at the state level to solve these problems, and it is hard and controversial. It violates how we are supposed to do things in california. That way hasnt worked and driven the car into the ditch. We have to fix things. Thank you, mayor, and everyone e else who made this happen today. [applause] mayor breed thank you senator wiener. Now we have remarks from senator phil clean wh king who helped gs Navigation Center built. Thank you, madam mayor. As the mayor and senator weiner have said. We know the solution to homelessness. We need more affordable housing, more supportive services, but, ultimately, it takes courage at all levels of government to make it happen. We are trying to do our part at the state level. We have colleagues that dont feel completely on the same page with myself and senator wiener with making sure we are building more housing. We have challenges at the state level. Mayor breed and supervisor haney have challenges. Iit is not easy to stand in frot of 300 people and talk about homelessness and bringing Navigation Centers to a neighborhood that has not had them. It takes courage and guts and the city has to support them. If we dont get these centers built, there is no on ramp to housing. This is the third Navigation Center i have had the honor of standing with mayor breed as we opened them. They are the first step. The next step has to be, as she said, permanent Supportive Housing. Everybody is for housing, but in someone elses neighborhood, in someone elses city. I cant tell you how often i hear lets build a Homeless Center in stockton. Lets make it someone elses problem. Lets not solve the San Francisco problem here. Ship them somewhere else. That is not what the city and state is about, and that is not what leadership is about. Leadership is about taking a problem on and solving it here. We are the fifth richest economy in the world, california is. You wouldnt know it by many of the issues we have. This is not a financial issue. This is not an issue of money or resources. The state is doing their part to help cities and counties. This is about our residents saying we are each going to sacrifice. We are each going to take a piece of this problem and solve it here. We are not going to wait for someone to save us or hope that someone else will take this burden. This is about having the courage to say this is a San Francisco problem and San Francisco needs to solve it. I am so proud to be here with all of the other city officials who had the guts to get this built, to work with the community and to say this community is safer, not by having people on the streets sleeping, not by having people in tents sleeping here, wandering around here. This community is safer when they have services, when we can get them the resources they need to go improve their life. As the mayor said we are proud at the state level 4 million from the state helped this get built. 70 million from the state to San Franciscos general fund to help with homelessness over the last two years, and this is something we can only dubai workinonly do while we work t. I applaud you for having the guts to get this done. Thank you. Thank you, phil king. Now, ladies and gentlemen, the supervisor matt haney for district 6. Thank you, mayor breed. Congratulations for your leadership, for your staff who we got to work with so closely in making this happen. I especially want be to recognize jeff and emily from the department of homelessness. You all did such a wonderful job listening to the community, working with us. We went to dozens of meetings together. I am looking at emily and hearing the feedback and using that to adapt the proposal and make commitments to the neighborhood. Thank you all for that and for listening. I want to thank our elected officials in sacramento, senator wiener and Assembly Member king. We are lucky to have advocating for us, bringing Home Resource goes to help us address what is definitely the biggest crisis not just in San Francisco but facing our state. One of the things that i think that we can agree on is that it is a really cold day right now. Being out here on a cold day, i think, it is a reminder, a sharp reminder of the fact there are thousands of people on the streets who dont have a home to go to, dont have a warm bed or a place when it is pouring rain or below 40 that they can go inside to be warm and safe. One of the things you will notice when you go inside here is the difference between how it feels out here and how it feels in there. Even just having a place where you can be warm, where you can be safe, where you can be away from the madness and the dangers that people face who live on our streets is such a huge and critical and essential thing. When people get to be inside and not have to worry where they are going to sleep tonight or tomorrow night and be able to Access Services and have Case Management and have one work with them to figure out how to get off the street permanently is a huge and wonderful thing for us to celebrate today. One of th the things about Navigation Centers. They make a commitment to the neighborhood. Navigation centers make the neighborhood safer, they improve conditions on the streets here. As we make this commitment to people to live inside this Navigation Center we make a commitment to the People Living in the surrounding community on the water front and south beach this will reduce the number of People Living on the streets. We have a lot of work to do for the people who come in here, the people in the neighborhood and more work to solve homelessness in the city. Housing is the answer. We know we need a lot more Navigation Center and shelter beds in the city. This is the third Navigation Center in district six. We are excited and happy to do our part. As a city we need every neighborhood to take responsibility for addressing and solving homelessness. I thank five keys, the port and everyone who is a part of getting us this far. We have a long way to go in the city. I am committed to working with you, mayor breed, to make that happen and to everyone in the neighborhood to make sure this Navigation Center is a success. Thank you. [applause] mayor breed i appreciate your remarks. I would like to make it clear that as mayor i am responsible for the entire city. The fact is getting opportunities like this, finding land in San Francisco to do say Navigation Center, to do housing is a huge challenge. Wherever we have an opportunity to get a property like this whether it is here or anyplace else in San Francisco, we will take full advantage of excuse me. We will take advantage of the opportunity to do so. With that, i would like to ask for Community Member matt amy. Excuse me. We will listen to you when we are finished with the press conference, if you dont mind. Thank you. Matt carson, who is a member of this community will provide a few remarks. Thank you. Thank you for giving me this opportunity to speak. I dont think i have done anything special to deserve to be here. I just own my home a couple blocks away and work in the neighborhood as well. I walk by this spot with my 2 yearold every day. I am incredibly fortunate to have those things. When i walk unand down the embarcadero i see those less fortunate. It is appalling in the city, region and country with so much that we refuse to guarantee the most basic standard of living. Those sleeping here are living here and they are our neighbors. When the mayor proposed the Navigation Center to help them, i raised my hand to says i support her. I want to raise my kid in a city that helps its people. My neighbors have legitimate concerns. I have seen shattered glass and half stolen bikes. I dont want it to get worse. The mayor and the supervisor and the city promised they will make it better in the neighborhood, not worse. I trust them. If crime does go up they wont build any more Navigation Centers. She does need to build more. This is what a housing crisis looks like. This is 200 beds, but there are thousands of people on the streets in San Francisco. We need more shelters and related services. We need more protection for renters. We need a million homes throughout the region. Our region also needs a single seamless competitive Transit System to have a chance of addressing the housing crisis and climate change. I thank the mayor and everyone involved forgetting this Navigation Center built so quickly. I want to say to all representatives it is time to be way more ambitious. Thank you. [applause] mayor breed i want to take this opportunity to thank muhammad for his leadership in getting this built so quickly. Thank you to deputy chief from the San Francisco Police Department. We know Public Safety is important to the community. We know that the department has added Additional Resources to help ensure safety in this particular neighborhood. You know, it really did take a village to get this done. So many folks standing behind me and folks from the community. I want to express my sincere appreciation to everyone that has had a hand in helping to get this done. The love and care that you put into even as i just saw the landscaping and the flowers and just making it look like a home and welcoming people in with dignity. That is what our goal is, and to get clearly people to help in the support that they need. This along with other Navigation Centers in the future and eventually more housing faster is going to get us to a better place not just in San Francisco but in this entire state. Thank you all for being here. Now jeff and steve will lead a tour of the Navigation Center for those interested. Thank you. [applause] [ ]plause] homelessness in San Francisco is considered the number 1 issue by most people who live here, and it doesnt just affect Neighbors Without a home, it affects all of us. Is real way to combat that is to work together. It will take City Departments and nonprofit providers and volunteers and companies and Community Members all coming together. [ ] the product homeless connect Community Day of Service Began about 15 years ago, and we have had 73 of them. What we do is we host and expostyle event, and we were the very force organization to do this but it worked so well that 250 other cities across the globe host their own. Theres over 120 Service Providers at the event today, and they range anywhere from hygiene kits provided by the basics, 5 to prescription glasses and reading glasses, hearing tests, pet sitting, showers, medical services, flu shots, dental care, groceries, so many phenomenal Service Providers, and what makes it so unique is we ask that they provide that Service Today here it is an actual, tangible Service People can leave with it. I am with the hearing and Speech Center of northern california, and we provide a variety of Services Including audiology, counselling, outreach, education, today we actually just do screening to see if someone has hearing loss. To follow updates when they come into the Speech Center and we do a full diagnostic hearing test, and we start the process of taking an impression of their year, deciding on which hearing aid will work best for them. If they have a smart phone, we make sure we get a smart phone that can connect to it, so they can stream phone calls, or use it for any other services that they need. San francisco has phenomenal social services to support people at risk of becoming homeless, are already experience and homelessness, but it is confusing, and there is a lot of waste. Bringing everyone into the same space not only saves an average of 20 hours a week in navigating the system and waiting in line for different areas, it helps them talk, so if you need to sign up for medical, what you need identification, you dont have to go to sacramento or wait in line at a d. M. V. , you go across the hall to the d. M. V. To get your i. D. Today we will probably see around 30 people, and averaging about 20 of this people coming to cs for followup service. For a participant to qualify for services, all they need to do is come to the event. We have a lot of people who are at risk of homelessness but not yet experiencing it, that todays event can ensure they stay house. Many people coming to the event are here to receive one specific need such as signing up for medical or learning about d. M. V. Services, and then of course, most of the people who are tender people experiencing homelessness today. I am the representative for the volunteer central. We are the group that checks and all the volunteers that comment participate each day. On a typical day of service, we have anywhere between 40500 volunteers that we, back in, they get tshirts, nametags, maps, and all the information they need to have a successful event. Our participant escorts are a core part of our group, and they are the ones who help participants flow from the Different Service areas and help them find the Different Services that they needs. One of the ways we work closely with the department of homelessness and Supportive Housing is by working with Homeless Outreach teams. They come here, and these are the people that help you get into Navigation Centers, help you get into shortterm shelter, and talk about housing1st policies. We also work very closely with the department of Public Health to provide a lot of our services. We have all types of things that volunteers deal do on a day of service. We have folks that help give out lunches in the cafe, we have folks who help with the check in, getting people when they arrive, making sure that they find the services that they need to, we have folks who help in the check out process, to make sure they get their food bag, bag of groceries, together hygiene kit, and whatever they need to. Volunteers, i think of them as the secret sauce that just makes the whole process works smoothly. Participants are encouraged and welcomed to come with their pets. We do have a pet daycare, so if they want to have their pets stay in the daycare area while they navigate the event, they are welcome to do that, will we also understand some people are more comfortable having their pets with them. They can bring them into the event as well. We also typically offer veterinary services, and it can be a real detriment to coming into an event like this. We also have a bag check. You dont have to worry about your belongings getting lost, especially when that is all that you have with you. We get connected with people who knew they had hearing loss, but they didnt know they could get services to help them with their hearing loss picks and we are getting connected with each other to make sure they are getting supported. Our next event will be in march, we dont yet have a date set. We typically sap set it six weeks out. The way to volunteer is to follow our newsletter, follow us on social media, or just visit our website. We always announce it right away, and you can register very easily online. A lot of people see folks experience a homelessness in the city, and they dont know how they can help, and defence like this gives a whole bunch of people a lot of good opportunities to give back and be supported. [ ] ladies and gentlemen, please take your seats. We are about to begin. Thank you. [please stand by] [drumming] [cymbals] [cymbal] ladies and gentlemen, please welcome sheriff matt freeman. Thats a great way to kick off a party and celebration. Ladies and gentlemen, lets hear it for the San Francisco Police Department lion dance team. [applause] my name is Matthew Freeman and im the undersheriff for the city and county of San Francisco Sheriffs Office. And it is my honor and my pleasure to serve as your master of ceremonies for todays event for this auspicious occasion, and i cannot tell you enough how happy the men and women that wear this uniform are of the person we are going to swear in as sheriff today. [applause] and welcome to San Franciscos crown jewel, this beautiful San Francisco city hall. Ladies and gentlemen, at this time, if i can please ask you to stand for the presentation of the colors and pledge of allegiance. [pledge of allegiance] please join me in reciting the pledge of allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of america, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Please remain standing as we invite you to the podium to sing our Nations National anthem. Oh, say, can you see, by the dawns early light what so proudly we hailed at the twilights last gleaming . Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight, oer the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming, and the rockets red glare, the bombs bursting in air, gave proof through the night that our flag was still there. Oh, say, does that star. Spanninglyspangled banner yet wr the land of the free and the home of the brave. [applause] [military salute] ladies and gentlemen, how about a round of applause for the singer and the San Francisco Police Department color guard. applause. [applause] thank you. Please be seated. I would like to take this opportunity to recognize some of our dear guests, some of our elected and important people here in the city and county of San Francisco. And if you could hold your applause until i complete each group, i would appreciate it. Our city and county of San Francisco elected board of supervisor members, president of the board norman yee, district 7, dean preston, raphael mandelman, district 8, ashad, district 11. Ladies and gentlemen, our county board of supervisors. [applause] our district attorney, chesa boudin, public defender, our recorder, carmen chew and her treasurer jose cisneros. [applause] we are honored and pleased to have members from our State Government present today, attorney general of the state of california, javier, state board of equalization, state of california, cohen, treasurer, state of california, assemblymember, state of california, our state of california, ladies and gentlemen. [applause] we work with some of the public, finest Public Safety partners in any jurisdiction in the entire country. Our Public Safety partners, chief of police, San Francisco Police Department william scott. San francisco Fire Department, fire chief, jeanine nicholson. Chief of the probation department, city and county of San Francisco, karen fletcher. We are truly honored here today to have someone that we work very closely with and are fortunate to have that opportunity, sheriff of the san mateo county. [applause] and his undersheriff. [applause] city and county of San Francisco has some of the finest Public Servants in any jurisdiction in california if not the entire country. Our city administrator, naomi kelly. San Francisco Public Utilities Commission general manager, harlan kelly. And i really enjoy working with our department of public works director, mohammed nuru. Events such as these cant go off as well as they do without the hard work of our city and county of San Francisco chief of protocol, charlotte schultz. And no one has been around city hall for any length of time knows that we cannot go without thanking director of mayors special events, martha cohen. [applause] we would like to thank all the city and county of San Francisco commissioners for all the work that you do. We would like to thank all the city and county of San Francisco department heads, certainly want to thank all of the current members of the San Francisco Sheriffs Department and the many retired members that i see here in attendance today. Its wonderful to see your faces. You all look younger. I look older. You do something about that . The sworn command staff of the San Francisco county Sheriffs Department and our entire management team, thank you all for being here. [applause] i would also like to do a special shoutout and maybe if we applaud loud enough, im sure they can hear it upstairs, in case you didnt know, there was another inauguration here this morning, how about a round of applause for our mayor london breed . [applause] at this time, i would like to invite to the podium father tom hamilton of Saint Gabriel church for our invocation. Public service is an invitation to a life of personal devotion and sacrifice. Today we entrust the important work of leadership in our Sheriffs Department to Paul Miyamoto. We offer him our good wishes and our sincere support today and of the days ahead. Please join me, then, in the spirit of prayer and of hope. Oh, god of many names, known by many signs throughout this beautiful world, we pause during this celebration to invoke your blessing upon paul, chosen for service as sheriff. Please support him with the ability to confront the challenges that will inevitably come, making judgments that are in the best interest of this Exceptional Community of San Francisco. May his service be typified by patience, courage, stability, honesty and loyalty. In the name of all that is good and holy, we offer this prayer in humility and praise. And we all say together amen. Thank you, father. For the last 4 years, this agency has had the pleasure to serve under outgoing sheriff Vicki Hennessy. Sheriff hennessy would have loved to have been here today, but just last week she underwent hip surgery and unfortunately could not be in attendance today. Im sure that she would have liked nothing more than to be here to wish paul all the best and encouragement as he assumes office of the sheriff. She did, however, leave for paul and for all of us, a video message. Hi, sheriff paul. Vicki hennessy here, room 456, city hall, Sheriffs Office. Coming to you through the magic of video. I regret i cannot come to the ceremony. However, i am sending you and your family my congratulations, best wishes and deep appreciation for the service you have given to the San Francisco Sheriffs Department and the city and county. Theres nothing quite like your first day on the job as sheriff. The pomp, the ceremony, the love you feel from your supporters and the expectation. Enjoy it every moment. As soon as you have taken your oath, you will hit the ground running. Just remember, the sheriffs job is a marathon, not a sprint. This is a demanding job where you will feel the glare of the spotlight, whether you want to or not. As you know, the one constant will be your family. I know you will make time for them and you will be successful no matter what you do. You have the respect of the rankandfile. You are already building relationships with the criminal justice stakeholders. You are already a community leader. And you have the benefit of more than 23 years of experience serving in this department. I know that you will bring multiple perspectives to your new position. You are the right person for the right time to take up the sheriffs man tell. About those expectations, i expect great things from you. So, paul, congratulations. Youve earned it. Now, get to work. [applause] a little bit nervous. I might be more nervous than you. Well, the big moment, the swearingin of the 37th sheriff of the city and county of San Francisco is but minutes away. I would like to take a brief moment and share with you some information about the office of the sheriff and the awesome responsibility one assumes when holding the esteemed title of sheriff. There are 58 counties in the state of california. As required by the state constitution, each county must have a sheriff, and the sheriff shall be elected. The office of the sheriff is not simply another department of the county government. The office of the sheriff is a statutory, constitutional office, having exclusive powers and authority under state law and or the state constitution. The county sheriff serves multiple constituencies, the county board of supervisors, when executing county laws and ordinances, the state attorney general when enforcing state laws as a peace officer and as an officer of the superior court in and for the city of San Francisco and of course, the sheriff ultimately serves all the people and communities of their county and in our case, city and county. The management and leadership of the San Francisco county Sheriffs Office is no small task and will test the skills and abilities of the brightest and strongest of leaders. Our department is authorized for 946 sworn peace officers, 130 professional support staff, and 98 sheriff cadets. The sheriff is responsible for leading and managing the workforce approaching 1200 employees, spanning four divisions, with the annual operating budget north of 150 million. This includes, in part, the operation of four distinct jail facility, judicial protection and Court Security at four courthouses, execution of all civil processes in the city and county, operation of three communitybased sites offering a myriad of services to those criminal justice involved, robust, criminal internal affairs and Background Investigation units and Emergency Services unit to include a type 2 Law Enforcement mobile field force and special Response Team to deal with Critical Incidents that occur in the jurisdiction of the sheriff. General Law Enforcement and Public Safety services for the department of Public Health at San Francisco general hospital, Ten Department of Public Health neighborhood clinics, the department of emergency management, the San Francisco main public library, and, yes, here in the crown jewel of San Francisco, our beautiful city hall and much, much more all supported by training and personnel units. The daily operation of a Law Enforcement agency this size in a city and county as eclectic, diverse, dynamic and, yes, challenging as ours, requires the right person for the right time. And san franciscan, a graduate of lowell high school, a husband, a father who lives in and is raising his family in our city, a 23plus year record of service to this agency and the people of San Francisco, a leader that holds himself accountable first and by example will expect the best from all who work for this agency. A person of the highest integrity, character and moral compass, Paul Miyamoto embodies if not exceeds all the core elements required to be the sheriff of San Francisco. The deputies have assumed that i shall posts. They are eager, and they are ready to receive your direction. Paul miyamoto. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, it is a real pleasure at this time to invite to the stage for the oath of office, state of California Attorney general Xavier Becerra. [applause] i would also like to invite to the stage sheriff elect, Paul Miyamoto. [applause] i think you can hear me. Also coming to the stage is pauls other, his wife, and his children. Melanie, jordan, joseph, marissa and mia maya. [applause] please raise your right hand and place your left hand on the bible. I will ask you to repeat after me. I, state your name. I, Paul Miyamoto. Do solemnly swear. Do solemnly swear. I will support and defend the constitution of the United States. That i will support and defend the constitution of the United States. And the constitution of the state of california. And the constitution of the state of california. Against all enemies, foreign and domestic. Against all enemies, foreign and domestic. That i will bear true faith and allegiance to the constitution of the United States and the constitution of the state of california. I take this obligation freely, without mental reservation or purpose of evasion. And i will well and faithfully discharge the duties upon which i am about to enter and during such time as i hold the office of the sheriff of the city and county of San Francisco of the sheriff of the city and county of San Francisco. I present to you, sheriff miyamoto. [applause] [cheering and applause] i guess im supposed to Say Something right now. [laughter] hang on one second while i get my notes. Oh. Thats not a great start, but [laughter] good afternoon, everyone. Thank you, attorney general Xavier Becerra and to all of you who are here today in celebration of the office of sheriff. I have many people to thank for this moment. All of you here today played roles and given support for my rose through the ranks and my occasionally descent. [laughter] i begin by thanking my mom and my dodd, phil and ella. My dad is in the hospital today and couldnt make it, but my mom is here for both of them, and i just wanted to recognize her for the person that she is. [applause] growing up, my mother was a very strong advocate for both me and my brother when we were very young as we went through the School System here in the Public Schools of San Francisco. She was actively involved in our education to the point where even after we graduated she continued to volunteer her time and service, both with home and advocate for children and youth all the way up to the state ptsa level where she volunteered for many years and was so effective as a leader in the ptsa who worked to improve the lives of the children and the educational system that we have here in california. My fathers family immigrated to San Francisco around the time of the earthquake of 1906. And during that time, built a successful dry cleaning business and some of my family is here today, and i want to thank them for being here as well. World war ii happened and the federal government ordered the internment of americans of japanese ancestry, which included the miyamotos. Our family lost everything here in San Francisco and were forcibly relocated to heart mountain in wyoming for the first part of the war. Did they give up . Of course not. In fact, my grandfathers three brothers proudly fought for the United States as part of the most decorated unit in military history, the 442nd regimental combat team. Lucky for me, after the war, the miyamotos returned to San Francisco and began a new. My father grew up and became an attorney, he practiced law for the state of california and actually became appellatelevel judge for the Workers Compensation review board. I share this with you because this is my family. They are the role models who influenced me. They faced adversity and Racial Discrimination and yet they responded with grace, strength and grit and actually became civil servants. The miyamotos became the change they wanted to see. They embody resilience. Inspired by my Family Tradition of service, i chose to join the San Francisco Sheriffs Department over 23 years ago to try to make a difference in peoples lives. Every day, i don this uniform and serve our city with some of the finest people i know. People like our outgoing sheriff who has been a role model and mentor to me, she is the first to actually rise through our ranks and become sheriff, and shes also the first female to serve as the sheriff of San Francisco. Im honored to have worked for and with Vicki Hennessy and even though she is not here, i would like to ask for a round of applause for her and her contributions. [applause] its really wonderful, because i serve with people who put other people first, who ensure public and individual safety, both inside the criminal Justice System, in the jails, in the courts, and outside in the community. We take pride in all of our work serving San Francisco. Im honored to call all of you my colleagues and serve as the sheriff for the next four years. You all embody resilience to me. We as Department Members have been at the forefront of some of the toughest challenges facing the city, including an increase of the numbers who are incarcerated who suffer from Behavioral Health issues. Not surprisingly, this has challenged our infrastructure and our staff. We share these challenges across all our city agencies and with our justice and Public Safety partners. We collaborate to build and nurture relationships and trust and to provide services to everyone. In response to our changing populations, weve created psychiatric sheltered living unions which provide consistent care and structure. Our Behavioral Health assistance team, comprised of both trained deputies and department of Public Health specialists, are sporting people incarcerated, collaborating for individual treatment for people housed in all of these different units. And its making a positive difference in their lives, creating new hope for their successful reentry into our community. As the department moves forward, you can expect more of this from my staff and myself, care, compassion and collaboration. I started my career with the department back in 1996. It has shaped me in more ways that i can count. On my very first day, my training deputy sent me on a errand which made me late for the shift, i was scheduled to relieve. The deputy on duty at the time was not very happy with me for being late, but we actually, the both of us overcame that initial stumble. We fell in love and we were marid five years later, and thats my wife leeann. [applause] i wanted to recognize her for who she is and also my children who were introduced earlier. Melanie, jordan and the triplets, joseph, merissa and maya, if you guys could stand. [applause] come on, stand up. They have been my source of personal strength and love, and i wanted to thank them with all of my heart. Leanne and the children have supported and inspired me every step of this journey. They bring me joy and happiness. At the department, we have a faith in others to change for the better. As a young deputy working on the sixth floor of the hall of justice, i connected with a man who suffered from addiction. He was sober in jail, overcome his challenges, got released and then relapsed out in the community over and over, time and time again. Inevitably he would end up back as an incarcerated person. Most of you know that story, and hear it. We in the department actually live it and see it every day. But you know what . That individual never gave up. And i didnt give up on him either. I saw something of myself in him. Someone from the same ethnic and cultural background, on a different path but for one or two choices. Eventually, his commitment to stay sober stuck. He made changes and then went back into the community and served the community. Hes a mentor to many others in the community. I see him out there every day with rehabilitation services. Im proud to say he is one of my friends in the community and to see him there every day gives me strength. He embodies my fathers favorite quote which is to never give up. His mantra of resilience follows me along with my familys story of optimism and persistence in the face of internment, not just to survive but to give back to the nation that placed hardships on our family. My family has guided me. Their positive attitude will make a mark on the Sheriffs Department over the next four years. I actually lost my first election back in 2011. Eight years later, i am the first asianamerican in history to be elected to be sheriff in the state of california. [applause] so please [applause] i just want to end with my fathers quote. I want to say to him as elis in the hospital bed as he lies in the hospital bed, never give up. Thank you. [applause] [applause] the way i was raised, i could no longer say hey, paul, good morning, paul, because now he will be addressed as sheriff. Ladies and gentlemen, a round of applause for our sheriff, Paul Miyamoto. [applause] [applause] this is kind of mean now that you have sat down. Ladies and gentlemen, if i could please ask you to stand for the retrieval of the colors. [military salute] how about a round of applause for the color guard . [applause] thank you very much. You may be seated. Ladies and gentlemen, this brings to a close our celebration today, our swearingin of the 37th sheriff. I hopeve each and every one of you enjoyed your time with us today. If you are so inclined and interested, the sheriff will be receiving guests and visitors in the Sheriffs Office on the fourth floor, 456, the corner of the building over there. We would ask at this time that members of the public remain seated until such time that the sheriff, the elected and the City Department heads have had an opportunity to exit the rotunda. Thank you very much for being here today. [applause] [applause] you know ive always wanted to do this job that drives my parents crazy we want to help people i wasnt i did not think twice about that. I currently work as cadet inform the San Francisco Sheriffs Department ive been surprised 0 work within criminal Justice System field i had an opportunity to grow within that career path. As i got into the department and through the years of problems and Everything Else that means a lot i can represent women and in order to make that change how people view us as a very important part of the Vice President you have topanga you have to the first foot chase through the fight are you cable of getting that person whether large or small into captivity that is the test at times. As an agent worked undercover and prevent external and internal loss to the company it was basically like detective work but through the company from that experience and the people that i worked around Law Enforcement that gave me an action when i came to be a cadet i saw i was exploded to more people and the security he was able to build on that. Unfortunately, we have a lot of women retire to recruiting right now is critical for us we gotten too low faster the percentage of women in the department and us connecting with the community trying to get people to realize this job is definitely for them our Community Relations group is out attempt all the time. In other words, to grow in the fields he capitalized any education and got my bachelors degree so i can current work at city hall i provide security for the front of the building and people are entering entering but within any security or control within the building and checking personal bags is having a awareness of the surrounded. There is so month people the brunet of breaking into this career that was every for easier for me had an on the with an before he cleared the path for laugh us. My people he actually looking at lucid up to poem like he joe and kim and merit made theyre on the streets working redondo hard their cable of doing this job and textbook took the time to bring us along. Women have going after their goals and departments line the San Francisco Sheriffs Department provide a lot of training tools and inspiring you to go into the department. They gave me any work ethics she spider me to do whatever he wanted to do and work hard at the intersection. If youre going to make change you have to be part of change and becoming Law Enforcement i wanted to show women could do this job it is hard not easy. Finds something our compassion about and follow roll models and the gets the necessary skeletals to get to that goal with education and sprirmz whatever gets you there. If this is what you want to do dream big and actually do what you desire to do and you can go vertebrae far it is a fast job i wouldnt do anything else. [ ] i really believe that art should be available to people for free, and it should be part of our world, you shouldnt just be something in museums, and i love that the people can just go there and it is there for everyone. [ ] i would say i am a multidimensional artist. I came out of painting, but have also really enjoyed tactile properties of artwork and tile work. I always have an interest in public art. I really believe that art should be available to people for free, and it should be part of our world. You shouldnt just be something in museums. I love that people can just go there, and it is there for everyone. Public art is art with a job to do. It is a place where the architecture meets the public. Where the artist takes the meaning of the site, and gives a voice to its. We commission culture, murals, mosaics, black pieces, cut to mental, different types of material. It is not just downtown, or the big sculptures you see, we are in the neighborhood. Those are some of the most beloved kinds of projects that really give our libraries and Recreation Centers a sense of uniqueness, and being specific to that neighborhood. Colette test on a number of those projects for its. One of my favorites is the oceanview library, as well as several parks, and the steps. Mosaics are created with tile that is either broken or cut in some way, and rearranged to make a pattern. You need to use a tool, nippers, as they are called, to actually shape the tiles of it so you can get them to fit incorrectly. I glued them to mash, and then they are taken, now usually installed by someone who is not to me, and they put cement on the wall, and they pick up the mash with the tiles attached to it, and they stick it to the wall, and then they groped it afterwards. [ ] we had never really seen artwork done on a stairway of the kinds that we were thinking of because our idea was very just barely pictorial, and to have a picture broken up like that, we were not sure if it would visually work. So we just took paper that size and drew what our idea was, and cut it into strips, and took it down there and taped it to the steps, and stepped back and looked around, and walked up and down and figured out how it would really work visually. [ ] my theme was chinese heights because i find them very beautiful. And also because mosaic is such a heavy, dens, static medium, and i always like to try and incorporate movement into its, and i work with the theme of water a lot, with wind, with clouds, just because i like movements and lightness, so i liked the contrast of making kites out of very heavy, hard material. So one side is a dragon kite, and then there are several different kites in the sky with the clouds, and a little girl below flying it. [ ] there are pieces that are particularly meaningful to me. During the time that we were working on it, my son was a disaffected, unhappy high school student. There was a day where i was on the way to take them to school, and he was looking glum, as usual, and so halfway to school, i turned around and said, how about if i tell the school you are sick and you come make tiles with us, so there is a tile that he made to. It is a little bird. The relationship with a work of art is something that develops over time, and if you have memories connected with a place from when you are a child, and you come back and you see it again with the eyes of an adult, it is a different thing, and is just part of what makes the city an exciting place. [ ] shop and dine in the 49 promotes local businesses and challenges residents to do their shopping and dining within the 49 square miles of San Francisco. By supporting local Services Within our neighborhoods, we help San Francisco remain unique, successful, and vibrant. So where will you shop and dine in the 49 . My name is ray behr. I am the owner of chief plus. Its a destination Specialty Foods store, and its also a Corner Grocery store, as well. We call it cheese plus because theres a lot of additions in addition to cheese here. From fresh flowers, to wine, past a, chocolate, our dining area and espresso bar. You can have a casual meeting if you want to. Its a Real Community gathering place. What makes little polk unique, i think, first of all, its a great pedestrian street. Theres people out and about all day, meeting this neighbor and coming out and supporting the businesses. The businesses here are almost all exclusively independent owned small businesses. It harkens back to supporting local. Polk street doesnt look like anywhere u. S. A. It has its own businesses and personality. We have Clothing Stores to gallerys, to personal service stores, where you can get your hsus repaired, luggage repaired. Theres a music studio across the street. Its raily a diverse and unique offering on this really great street. I think san franciscans should shop local as much as they can because they can discover things that they may not be familiar with. Again, the marketplace is changing, and, you know, you look at a screen, and you click a mouse, and you order something, and it shows up, but to have a tangible experience, to be able to come in to taste things, to see things, to smell things, all those things, its San Francisco is surrounded on three sides by water, the fire boat station is intergal to maritime rescue and preparedness, not only for San Francisco, but for all of the bay area. [sirens] fire station 35 was built in 1915. So it is over 100 years old. And helped it, were going to build fire boat station 35. So the finished Capital Planning committee, i think about three years ago, issued a guidance that all city facilities must exist on Sea Level Rise. The station 35, Construction Cost is approximately 30 million. And the schedule was complicated because of what you call a float. It is being fabricated in china, and will be brought to treasure island, where the building site efficient will be constructed on top of it, and then brought to pier 22 and a half for installation. Were looking at late 2020 for final completion of the fire boat float. The historic firehouse will remain on the embarcadero, and we will still respond out of the historic firehouse with our fire engine, and respond to medical calls and other incidences in the district. This totally has to incorporate between three to six feet of Sea Level Rise over the next 100 years. Thats what the citys guidance is requiring. It is built on the float, that can move up and down as the water level rises, and sits on four fixed guide piles. So if the seas go up, it can move up and down with that. It does have a full range of travel, from low tide to high tide of about 16 feet. So that allows for current tidal movements and sea lisle rises in the coming decades. The fire boat station float will also incorporate a ramp for ambulance deployment and access. The access ramp is rigidly connected to the land side, with more of a pivot or hinge connection, and then it is sliding over the top of the float. In that way the ramp can flex up and down like a hinge, and also allow for a slight few inches of lateral motion of the float. Both the access ramps, which there is two, and the utilitys only flexible connection connecting from the float to the back of the building. So electrical power, water, sewage, it all has flexible connection to the boat. High boat station number 35 will provide mooring for three fire boats and one rescue boat. Currently were staffed with Seven Members per day, but the Fire Department would like to establish a new dedicated marine unit that would be able to respond to multiple incidences. Looking into the future, we have not only at t park, where we have a lot of kayakers, but we have a lot of developments in the southeast side, including the stadium, and we want to have the ability to respond to any marine or maritime incident along these new developments. There are very few designs for people sleeping on the water. Were looking at cruiseships, which are larger structures, several times the size of harbor station 35, but theyre the only good reference point. We look to the cruiseship industry who has kind of an index for how much acceleration they were accommodate. It is very unique. I dont know that any other fire station built on the water is in the United States. The fire boat is a regionalesset tharegional assete used for water rescue, but we also do environmental cleanup. We have special rigging that we carry that will contain oil spills until an environmental unit can come out. This is a job for us, but it is also a way of life and a lifestyle. Were proud to serve our community. And were willing to help people in any way we can. Clerk this is a reminder to silence all electronic devices. Fire Commission Regular meeting january 8, 2020, and the time is