STATEMENT OF HAROLD B. BROOKS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, BAYVIEW-HUNTERS POINT MODEL NEIGHBORHOOD AGENCY Mr. Chairman and Members: My name is Harold B. Brooks Jr., executive director of citizen participation, Bayview-Hunters Point Model Neighborhood Agency. This is a duly established agency of the city and county of San Francisco charged with the responsibility of comprehensive planning and development of that neglected, deprived and depressed area in the southeast sector of San Francisco commonly known as Hunters Point. This planning is under a grant of the federal government enacted in 1966 as the City Demonstrations Act. I wish to apologize for the presentation here today as it was prepared without adequate time to provide you with an indepth description and outline of our major concerns with the Burton bill H.R. 9498. I would submit to you that it is a continuation of the practice of government, federal, state and local to communicate primarily with the affluent and influential and omit contact with your poor and ethnic minority constituency. This has the effect of placing the minority group and the poor in the position of reacting to already developed plans rather than assisting in developing them. We are all aware of the human reluctance to change. This communication lag and gap accounts to a great degree for the distrust and lack of confidence in our legislative leadership generally held by the minority groups and the poor within our society. We in the Bayview-Hunters Point sector of San Francisco county would like to go on record supporting the Burton bill with certain conditions to be considered prior to finalizing it into law. The writers of the Burton bill as well as the Mailliard bill and others who are concerned have overlooked some important factors, mainly that large segment of our population that cannot economically afford the use of public recreation and those of our population who still face discrimination when moving about our country and even our state. Our concern is predicated upon the belief that any legislative acts must build in those terms that will safeguard the dignity of all our citizens, be they Black, Red, Brown, Yellow or White; be they rich or poor and be they Jew, Protestant, Catholic, Moslem or atheist, or democrat, republican, socialist or communist philosophy. Open spaces, recreation and parks to the people ought to be just that and serve common human needs but we must make special efforts to provide these facilities in our communities where most of the disadvantaged reside in order to ease their financial burden and express through our acts that we have not forgotten them. The Bayview-Hunters Point Model Neighborhood Agency would urge that you write into this or any other measure you decide to pass criteria and performance standards that support mutual human needs and dictates against discrimination and segregation. We would like you to amend this bill to include the San Francisco bay beginning south of the Ferry building at Market street and extending south to the San Mateo county line taking in and including those properties available for public access and use. Area to consider would be Port Authority, India Basin. Warm Water cove, unused portions of the U.S. Naval Base, South Basin and Candlestick Park and Cove. That whatever concessions, jobs and administrative positions generated by this legislation will accrue to ethnic minority people, poor people as fits the poverty guidelines and returning veterans. That transportation compensation for the poor be accounted for in location of this National Recreation area. Parks to The People can become a beautiful humanizing tool if the total needs and values of a multi-ethnic society are considered and written in. Without the consideration of these suggestions you will enact once again legislation that assist the affluent and neglects the poor. Bayview Hunters Point Model Neighborhood Area Mr. TAYLOR. Now, we intended to adjourn for lunch at 12 and come back at 1. We have thought that perhaps we could grab a bite to eat and be back in 45 minutes. I realize that it may make it a little hard on some of you. If a witness cannot get back quite that quickly, we will hold your space and move on to the next one. We will adjourn at about 12:15. Now, it may be that some of you are on the list and cannot come back this afternoon. If you are on this witness list and cannot come back this afternoon, and would like to take turn in your statement and take about 1 minute to summarize it, regardless of your order, I will give you that opportunity now. Just come up, state your name and your number on the witness list so that we can mark you off and we will give you a moment to summarize your views. STATEMENT OF JOSEPH E. BODOVITZ, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, SAN FRANCISCO BAY CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION Mr. BODOVITZ. Chairman Taylor, I believe I am the next on the list. My name is Joseph E. Bodavitz and I am the executive director of the San Francisco Bay Conservation Development Commission. I cannot come back this afternoon and I will try to keep this to 1 minute. Mr. TAYLOR. Any others who would like to take advantage of that proposition, please come forward. Mr. BODOVITZ. I am executive director of a commission created by the State of California about 5 years ago primarily to deal with the problem of haphazard and piecemeal filling of San Francisco Bay, that is, inland from the Golden Gate, but in the course of the commission's planning and studies in accordance with the State law that established it, we have all become acutely aware of the great need for recreation related to the water. It seems to me this may be a point that has been inadequately touched on today, particularly in regard to the chairman's statement of national park needs. I think all of us are familiar with the many, many out-of-State license plates, the need perhaps, the young urge on the part of many people to take advantage of recreation related to water, and our commission's plans and the law under which we operate, therefore strongly encourages recreational development of all kinds, all around the bay, and certainly the proposed Golden Gate National Recreation Area which would extend this principle to the ocean is one of which we heartily approve. Thank you very much Mr. TAYLOR. Thank you, Mr. Bodovitz. STATEMENT OF DONLEY C. SMITH, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, PARK PRESIDIO CENTER YMCA Mr. SMITH. Mr. Chairman, members of the subcommittee, my name is Donley C. Smith, associate director, YMCA of San Francisco. My board of directors directed me to endorse the concept of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Our only other further comment at this time is that we would like to see that under the jurisdiction of the Department of the Interior. Thank you. You have my statement. Mr. TAYLOR. Well, thank you very much. You went way below the limit. (Prepared statement of Donley C. Smith follows:) STATEMENT OF DONLEY C. SMITH, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, PARK PRESIDIO CENTER YMCA The Park Presidio Center YMCA has made a commitment in terms of its programming: to pursue a program of education and action concerning the quality of our natural environment, and to promote responsible action concerning the quality of life in the urban setting. The city of San Francisco is trying now to understand fully its own image and sense of direction. The coastal lands surrounding the city are an important part of the feeling of the city; to let these lands be changed from their present state, or fall into the hands of developers would set the city against itself in terms of the city's own self understanding. San Francisco denotes a style and quality of life that is built upon a realization of our surroundings; that the urban dweller have opportunity to parks and open areas is essential to this quality of life. Preservation of the coastal areas of San Francisco and Marin County would be of great benefit, not only to the persons who would have direct access to this park. but would also offer a concept of living harmoniously with one's surroundings from which the entire nation could benefit. President Nixon, in his 1971 State of the Union Message proposed "to expand the Nation's parks, recreation areas and open spaces in a way that truly brings parks to the people where the people are," yet every year the possibility of enjoying the outdoors diminishes. The creation of a Golden Gate National Recreation Area will open new opportunities; it will preserve the open lands, forests, beaches, the excellent views and the feeling of openness that are the mainstay of the beauty and quality of the San Francisco Bay Region. It will be a park and outdoor recreation area readily accessible to a major urban center. The Park Presidio Center YMCA wishes to endorse the establishment of a Golden Gate National Recreation Area to include those portions of Fort Baker, Fort Cronkite, Fort Mason, Fort Miley, Fort Funston, Fort Scott and the Presidio of San Francisco which are determined not to be essential for national defense, and those areas of federal, state, city and private lands north of the Golden Gate in Marin County extending up to Mount Tamalpais State Park, and from Mount Tamalpais to Olema between the lands of the Marin Municipal Water District and Point Reyes Seashore, thus establishing an extensive park, an excellent resource and recreation area for all. Mr. TAYLOR. Next is Irwin Luckman-No. 55 on the list. STATEMENT OF IRWIN LUCKMAN, PRESIDENT, PEOPLE FOR OPEN SPACE IN THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA Mr. LUCKMAN. Mr. Chairman, members of the committee, I am Irwin Luckman, president of the People for Open Space, which is an organization representing membership throughout the nine Bay Area counties. We wish to express our enthusiastic support for the concept of a Golden Gate National Recreation Area as proposed in the various bills introduced by Congressman William S. Mailliard, Congressman Phillip Burton, and Senator Alan Cranston. The differences between the three bills introduced by these legislators are worthy of careful consideration, but these differences are not as significant as the basic agreement to preserve magnificent natural areas flanking the Golden Gate as permanently protected open space. The regional plan 1970-90 for the San Francisco Bay Region, recently adopted by the Association of Bay Area Governments and paid for by Federal funds, proposes that within the nine Bay Area counties there should be more than 3.5 million acres set aside as open space and for possible urban expansion after 1990. Of this amount, over 2 million acres, not including San Francisco Bay, would be permanent open space. Currently, only about 1 million acres are protected by the public ownership, including military reservations. In a recent study funded by the Ford Foundation-you have the rest of my statement, Mr. Chairman. Thank you very much. Mr. TAYLOR. Thank you very much. Your entire statement will go in the record. (Prepared statement of Irwin Luckman in letter to Congressman Taylor, follows:) PEOPLE FOR OPEN SPACE, Hon. Roy A. TAYLOR, Chairman, Subcommittee on National Parks and Recreation, Interior and Insular Affairs Committee, House of Representatives, Washington, D.C. DEAR CONGRESSMAN TAYLOR: We wish to express our enthusiastic support for the concept of a Golden Gate National Recreation Area as proposed in the various bills introduced by Congressman William S. Mailliard, Congressman Phillip Burton and Senator Alan Cranston. The differences between the three bills introduced by these legislators are worthy of careful consideration, but these differences are not as significant as the basic agreement to preserve magnificent natural areas flanking the golden gate as permanently protected open space. The Regional Plan 1970-1990. For the San Francisco Bay region, recently adopted by the Association of Bay Area Governments and paid for by federal funds, proposes that within the nine Bay Area counties there should be more than 3.5-million acres set aside as open space and for possible urban expansion after 1990. Of this amount, over 2-million acres, not including San Francisco Bay, would be permanent open space. Currently, only about one-third of a million acres are protected by public ownership, including Military Reservations. In a recent study funded by the Ford Foundation and sponsored by People for Open Space called "Economic impact of a regional open space plan", it was clearly established that the scale of open space protection envisioned by the ABAG plan is physically practical and financially realistic. A bill is currently before the California State Legislature to create a regional environmental quality agency, responsible for planning many things of a regional nature, including just such an open space program as proposed in the ABAG plan. The Golden Gate National Recreation Area which is currently proposed would be a major initial step towards the ultimate goal of expansive green belts around the bay area's urban centers. We urge passage of a bill to establish the maximum size Golden Gate National Recreation Area possible. Respectfully yours, IRWIN LUCKMAN, President. Mr. TAYLOR. Mr. Alton S. Lee, American Institute of Architects. No. 41 on our list. STATEMENT OF ALTON S. LEE, NORTHERN CALIFORNIA CHAPTER, AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ARCHITECTS, SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF. Mr. LEE. Mr. Chairman, gentlemen of the committee, the San Francisco Bay area is one of the most rapidly growing population centers of the world. San Francisco itself has the second highest population density in America. A second ingredient in the quality of good living in urban areas is the proximity and ready accessibility of open space for recreation. A park system incorporating various characteristics from the rugged Marin coastline and forests to the more developed open spaces and beaches in San Francisco will afford a wide range of recreational opportunities. At the same time it will preserve some of the natural beauty for which the area is famous. As the population increases in numbers and density, the need for open space will rise proportionately, if the quality of living is to be maintained. The open spaces now available for future recreation areas are indeed a previous asset growing more important with each |
