THIS 1589 ELIZABETHAN PLAN OF THE PORT OF NOVA Mr. TAYLOR. Dorothy Gibbons; on deck, Paul Boyich. Paul Boyich; Terry Coddington, on deck. STATEMENT OF PAUL R. BOYICH, PLANNING ASSOCIATION FOR THE RICHMOND (DISTRICT), SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF. Mr. BOYICH. Mr. Chairman, gentlemen, I have a prepared speech but I would like to ask your indulgence on a personal matter to me, and why I feel so strongly about the need for this particular type of action on your part. I am in my late 60's and my wife is in her late 60's. She has cancer. She was born and raised in San Francisco and has lived in Mill Valley. Gentlemen, one of the most beautiful things that I witness is when I take my wife up to the Presidio and she can look out over the area that is still virgin, that is still land which she remembers in her childhood. Gentlemen, what I am pleading with you is to make it possible for these older people who are unable to travel long distances, are unable to finance trips, and so forth, around the world, that in their late years they can sit there and enjoy by just simply looking at the tranquil scene of a wooded area and a wonderful, wonderful ocean. Thank you. Mr. TAYLOR. Thank you for a very fine statement. (Prepared statement of Paul R. Boyich follows:) STATEMENT OF PAUL R. BOYICH, PLANNING ASSOCIATION FOR THE RICHMOND My name is Paul R. Boyich and I reside at 233 9th Avenue, San Francisco. Speaking as a representative of the Planning Association for the Richmond, I urge you to recommend the passage of legislation to create a Golden Gate National Recreation Area. This would provide open space for the present and future of everyone. Urban sprawl, which is endangering what precious little open space left for the enjoyment of the people, is now encroaching upon our western shorelines. To native San Franciscans, it is alarming to see the shoreline disappearing. Wildlife is being rapidly destroyed or driven away, and huge concrete and asphalt jungles are creeping to the very ocean. This must stop before it is too late. Our open spaces are being rapidly filled to capacity as is evidenced by the requirement of advance notices and reservations for the use of our national and state parks. We in the Richmond District of San Francisco are constantly being bombarded by requests for rezoning and variance permits to allow the building of high-rise and mammoth towers on our waterfront, and your help to protect and preserve this natural beauty of our waterfront is needed. Not only are private developers seeking to change our environment, but even government agencies are involved, as for example a request at the Presidio for the building of more housing, which requires the removal of many trees. Also, the recent fiasco in Marin County of the Marincello project, and the building of a warehouse at Fort Miley. Our neighborhood, located in the northwest corner of San Francisco, is one of the most racially and economically diverse sections of the city, in which more than 60,000 residents are proud to live and raise their families. A larger than average proportion of Richmond residents are retired or near retirement with limited income and mobility. The Richmond District is a healthy, stable community, in large part due to its close relationship to such natural areas as the Ocean Beach, Sutro Baths, Fort Miley, and the Presidio. And yet, we have somehow taken for granted all of the great resources, like they always have been here and always will be here. But that's not true. We've seen and helped defeat proposals to put a General Services Administration records warehouse on the headlands of Fort Miley, apartments where the tourist buses now visit Sutro Baths, and more and more military housing upon the forest lands of the Presidio. Rather than continue to fight these battles piecemeal, we hope that Congress will take the permanent means necessary to place under Department of the Interior control these areas both for ourselves and for future generations. Some see this proposal in an aesthetic sense; others as a recreational resource. We see it and we ask you to see it as the major method by which San Francisco's largest family neighborhood can continue to keep competing on equal terms with the suburbs and can continue to do its part in holding back the trend towards the destruction of environmental assets. Mr. TAYLOR. Terry Coddington; Craig L. Brown, on deck. Alan Wendroff. Mr. BROWN. Mr. Chairman, I am Craig Brown. Mr. TAYLOR. Proceed. STATEMENT OF CRAIG L. BROWN, BOARD MEMBER, PACIFIC RE-CREATION Mr. BROWN. Mr. Chairman, I want to point out a couple of things. Concerning the mayor's statement this morning about a great conspiracy between the city of San Francisco and specifically the planning department and the Department of the Army, few of us in San Francisco are terribly inspired about that because it stands as a matter of point that the city of San Francisco itself up as recently as 1968 was responsible for the recommendation for housing being developed in all of these sites, and I am referring here to the forts report that was offered by the city planning department. Two of these sites were recommended for housing, middle density housing, and this is our own planning department. The other point I would like to bring out is the fact that although John Trudell was not aware of it, and I understand it hasn't been pointed out to you up to this point, there was once an Indian reservation on Alcatraz. Here I am referring to the Alcatraz Island report done by our planning department. I just came from their office. They also don't know anything about Indians having been out here previous to 1846; 1846 is when the Spanish took their island. That is because there were Indians out there previous to that time. There is historical precedence for them to be on the island. In this report prepared in August 1968, the city planning department threw up its hands on any use of that island. It seems up to very recently nobody has been interested in that piece of rock out there except the Alcatraz Indians. I might say in behalf of myself and Pacific Re-Creation if the Indians of All Tribes declare that to be Indian sacred land we support them and we hope it never becomes a Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Mr. TAYLOR. The reports your referred to will be placed in the committee file. (The documents referred to will be found in the files of the subcommittee.) Mr. BROWN. My only point is in behalf of the people who have not yet spoken here today and that is a lot of young people not just in city but throughout the Nation. This is a national issue. You have millions of young people traveling around the country, not just in the United States but in Canada and most of the highly urbanized countries. These are young people who are traveling around to see what it is they are now being required to vote on. You now have a lower voting age. We are very interested in seeing the people and the places and I hope very much that there will be some consideration of those young people and I hope that you will please offer as much citizen support in order that we can have a say in this park as is feasible. Mr. TAYLOR. Thank you. Alan Wendroff. Mrs. MEYER. Alan Wendroff asked me to read his testimony for him, Mr. Chairman. May I do so? It is about two paragraphs. Mr. TAYLOR. We have permitted substitutions where they were members of the same organization and Mrs. MEYER. He is an individual. Mr. TAYLOR. And for an individual. Hand it to counsel. He can bring us copies of it so that we can read it now and place it in the record. Mrs. MEYER. You don't want me to read it? Mr. TAYLOR. No, we won't have it read. (Prepared statement of Alan L. Wendroff follows:) STATEMENT OF ALAN L. Wendroff, San FRANCISCO As a life long resident of San Francisco I wish to add my voice to those who have spoken in Support of HR 9498 introduced by Congressman Phillip Burton. In particular, I feel that the land mentioned in HR 9498 that is now under control of The Defense Department-The Presidio of San Francisco and Fort Mason should be transferred to The Department of The Interior for inclusion in The Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The assurances given to us by todays Department of Defense, could very well change in a few years. Mr. TAYLOR. Arthur B. Emmes; Janet Addams, on deck. STATEMENT OF ARTHUR B. EMMES, CITIZEN OF HAYWARD, CALIF. Mr. EMMES. Honorable Chairman, my name is Arthur Emmes and I am a private citizen from the Hayward area of the East Bay. The proposed project for the creation of a Golden Gate National Recreation Area is essential for three basic reasons: First, there is a manifest need for it in view of the present and projected population of the San Francisco Bay area as well as of the State as a whole. Second, there is now public land available for such use which, if supplemented by private land purchases, will make the project feasi ble. Third, the lands under consideration are imminently suitable for the purposes intended because of their convenient location and relatively undeveloped condition. In addition to this, there is a real element of urgency in setting aside this public land that is now available before some of it is diverted to other use and to acquire the private land that is needed before land values increase. I have a short anecdote here. A week ago I took a hike along the Bolinas Ridge and I observed the beauty of this land and the depredation of the loggers. On one side you had the municipal utility district land which is kept intact. On the other side you had the inroads of logging among the redwoods and it was pathetic to see the difference. I plead with you that you complete this project, protect us from the depredation of the loggers where they don't belong and keep this land for our use. In view of this alone, we should proceed without delay to hold this precious land for open space and recreational use while it is still available. |