2.

Election of BIC President and Vice-President.

Commissioner Guinnane made a motion seconded by Commissioner Fillon to nominate Noelle Hanrahan for the position of BIC President.   Commissioner Hanrahan said one of the reasons she wants to be President is that she believes the Commission needs someone who would be really fair and independent, and able to not be affected by pressures and she would like to do this because she does not want to see the Commission and the Department in general really battered about.  Commissioner Hanrahan stated she believes she has the ability because she does not have any real agenda other than her homeowner seat and her tenants’ interest to make this Commission function very efficiently and thoughtfully, and take really good care and listen to everyone.  Commissioner Lee made a motion seconded by Commissioner Ting to nominate Ephraim Hirsch for the position of BIC President.  Commissioner Hirsch said if this is a campaign speech – He is campaigning on the basis of being a practicing structural engineer for 40 years in the city of San Francisco, having dealt with the Building Department, having had projects go through the approval process and the construction process.  Commissioner Hirsch stated that he is interested in strict enforcement of the code, safety; public safety is the premier issue before this Department, both health in terms of day-to-day living and safety in terms of seismic resistance of buildings and code enforcement.  Commissioner Hirsch said as President, he would do his utmost to see that this is enforced.  Commissioner Lee said he would like to add that Commissioner Hirsch is also the chair of the Central Freeway Advisory Committee, and he has been very fair at that.  Commissioner Lee stated everyone knows that this has been a very controversial issue, but Commissioner Hirsch has been able to chair that well and make sure everybody is heard and has kept a balanced view of everything. 

Commissioner Fillon asked if there was any public comment on this item.   There was no public comment. 

Commissioner Fillon asked the Secretary to take a roll call vote on the first motion, which was Noelle Hanrahan for President.

The Commissioners voted as follows:

Commissioner Fillon
Commissioner Guinnane  
Commissioner Hanrahan
Commissioner Hirsch
Commissioner Lee
Commissioner Romero
Commissioner Ting

Aye
Aye
Aye
Nay
Nay
Nay
Nay

The motion did not pass.

Commissioner Fillon asked the Secretary to take a roll call vote on the second motion, which was Ephraim Hirsch for President.

Commissioner Fillon
Commissioner Guinnane  
Commissioner Hanrahan
Commissioner Hirsch
Commissioner Lee
Commissioner Romero
Commissioner Ting

Aye
Nay
Nay
Aye
Aye
Aye
Aye

The motion carried with a vote of 5 to 2.

RESOLUTION NO. BIC 006-05

Commissioner Fillon congratulated President Hirsch.   President Hirsch thanked Commissioner Fillon and all of the Commissioners who voted, both sides.  President Hirsch said he would do his best to cooperate and work with each and every one of the Commission staff and the Department to ensure a full compliance with all the issues before the Commission and with the code.  President Hirsch asked if there were nominations for Vice President.  Commissioner Fillon made a motion seconded by Commissioner Guinnane to nominate Noelle Hanrahan for Vice President.  Commissioner Romero nominated Philip Ting for Vice President, but he declined the nomination. President Hirsch made a motion to nominate Frank Lee for Vice President and Commissioner Lee seconded the motion.

President Hirsch asked the Secretary to take a roll call vote on the first motion, which was Noelle Hanrahan for Vice President.

Commissioner Fillon
Commissioner Guinnane  
Commissioner Hanrahan
Commissioner Hirsch
Commissioner Lee
Commissioner Romero
Commissioner Ting

Aye
Aye
Aye
Nay 
Nay
Aye
Aye

The motion carried with a vote of 5 to 2.

RESOLUTION NO. BIC 007-05

3.

Randy Shaw, Director of the Tenderloin Housing Clinic, said in the ten years that this Commission has been in existence the selection of the President has never been controversial or weighed with any political issues; it has just been whoever had the time.   Mr. Shaw stated he thinks for all the collegiality and the talk we had here, there really is stuff the public needs to know that has gone on around the nomination, which is the role that Supervisor Peskin and Mayor Newsom played in orchestrating this vote.  Mr. Shaw said this will not only lead to charges that he thinks have already been filed or will be filed in the City Attorney’s office against Supervisor Peskin, but also potential legal action against Supervisor Peskin for violating the Charter and engaging in official misconduct.  Mr. Shaw stated he has no doubt that Commissioner Hirsch means well, and Aaron Peskin says Commissioner Hirsch is his guy, he is his friend, and that Commissioner Hirsch is committed.  Mr. Shaw said he believes this and he also believes that Commissioner Lee is committed to doing well, but unfortunately the context in which they were appointed, they were not just appointed to the Commission, they were appointed as part of a Chronicle story that said they were here to clean up the Commission.  Mr. Shaw stated that Mayor Newsom said he was appointing President Hirsch and Commissioner Lee to clean up the Commission, so it is not exactly like they are talking about people who do not have an agenda.  Mr. Shaw said he wishes both Commissioners the best, but they have marching orders from their superiors, the Mayor and the head of D.P.W., and the Mayor can replace them at his whim.  Mr. Shaw stated that the Mayor has impact and control over one of the votes on the Commission, which is disturbing and it is very disheartening to see two Commissioners selected by former President Matt Gonzalez appointed by Newsom over fellow Gonzalez appointees.  Mr. Shaw said he knows that this is due to the various political considerations that went on and it is important that when we talk about how someone has been an engineer for 40 years and they know the code, he wishes we were not having the agendas, but they are here.  Mr. Shaw stated we should not make believe otherwise, because the Chronicle will bill this as now we have a Commission President that will clean up the problems.  Mr. Shaw said of course, this whole clean up and all this stuff going on has nothing to do with the Department of Building Inspection.  Mr. Shaw stated this is about various grievances that Mayor Newsom and Supervisor Peskin have against Joe O’Donoghue, which they want to manifest in the form of dealing with this Commission, because it gets back at Joe O’Donoghue, which is a bizarre thing.  Mr. Shaw said why don’t they just simply blow up his house or turn off the power on McAllister Street where he lives, but D.B.I. is an agency with a lot of important functions and it is turned over to political football by political leadership.  Mr. Shaw stated it is a sad thing and there will be a piece on BeyondChron.org so people can read the facts.  Mr. Shaw thanked Commissioner Hanrahan for offering to become BIC President and said she would have given the board the independence it needs.

Mr. Henry Karnilowitz congratulated President Hirsch and Vice President Hanrahan and said he hopes they will continue the good work of the past President, Rodrigo Santos and Vice President, Bobbie Sue Hood.   Mr. Karnilowitz said he hopes whatever decisions they make as they go along in time, they are not going to be political, but they will be fair and even-handed so no one gets anything different just because of politics, because he thinks this would be unjust.  Mr. Karnilowitz stated that now that the new Commissioners are on board, there could be an issue coming up of appointing the new Director for D.B.I. and he hopes that when they look at this, that they not only look at the credentials, but more of the administration.  Mr. Karnilowitz said you can always delegate the other matters of the codes, enforcements, and that sort of stuff but what the Department needs is a really good administrator.  Mr. Karnilowitz stated he hopes the Commission would really look at this more than anything else.  Mr. Karnilowitz said lastly televising the BIC hearings is an issue he raised at a previous meeting, and he thinks it is disappointing that the Planning Commission meetings were taken off the air.  Mr. Karnilowitz stated the hearings are still being televised for the Public Utilities Commission, the Taxi Commission, and several others, which he feels, do not matter as much, as far as having transparency. Mr. Karnilowitz said in order to have transparency people need to see what is going on, and this is a city where neighbors are concerned about what happens in the neighborhood.  Mr. Karnilowitz stated if Planning hearings are not televised then people have no idea what is going on, and he hopes the Commission will be able to persuade the Mayor to put this back on the air.

Ms. Debra Walker introduced herself as an Ex-Commissioner and she congratulated the new Commissioners and the new sitting Commission.   Ms. Walker said she really appreciates the work that all of the Commissioners do, because she knows firsthand what is involved.

Ms. Sue Hestor said she occasionally comes to the Commission meetings and she has admired Vice-President Hanrahan’s work for a long time.   Ms. Hestor stated that she knows Vice-President Hanrahan wants to do the right thing and she thinks she will be an effective Vice-President.  Ms. Hestor said she has watched President Hirsch on the B.C.D.C. for several years and he has been an important member of the Design Review Board.  Ms. Hestor stated it is hard being a public official at times, especially when you have large competing forces before you and difficult decisions to make.  Ms. Hestor said she has watched President Hirsch make difficult decisions on the D.R.B., and she never heard as much nonsense as she heard coming from Randy Shaw’s mouth.  Ms. Hestor stated it is the dying gasp of people who want to have control of this Department and she is sure the Commission will hear just the opposite from Mr. O’Donoghue once she sits down.  Ms. Hestor said this Department needs a lot of work and there are a lot of issues about the Department.  Ms. Hestor stated that a lot of good people have left the Department and some have retired.  Ms. Hestor said she wishes the Commission well as they have a public duty for everyone.  Ms. Hestor stated she hopes that the Commission can work together and tackle the management of the Department, which is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, and just go ahead and ignore what Randy Shaw said with the attacks.  Ms. Hestor said we live in San Francisco and people are appointed by areas and are lobbied by a lot of people, including herself and others in the audience.  Ms. Hestor wished the Commissioners well and said that she thinks Vice President Hanrahan and President Hirsch are good people to run the Commission for the city.

Mr. Joe O’Donoghue of the Residential Builders Association said at least today was not the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre.    Mr. O’Donoghue congratulated President Hirsch and Vice President Hanrahan.  Mr. O’Donoghue said regarding President Hirsh’s statement that no one is more concerned about safety than the building industry, and they are the ones that paid the bills, hired the engineers, and hired the subcontractors.  Mr. O’Donoghue said the building industry has insurance liability and it is for that reason over the years that they have been diligent about safety, so when President Hirsch talked about safety Mr. O’Donoghue did not exactly get what the President was getting at.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated as a matter of fact, it was the building industry’s concern with safety that led them jointly with Commissioner Guinnane to undertake an investigation where they thought safety was being compromised.  Mr. O’Donoghue said if President Hirsch’s statement was based on politics then he could understand that, given the context of the appointment but if it was based on safety concerns he would like the President to elucidate later where the safety aspects that he was so concerned about had been, because in the building industry if safety is compromised they will have to pay a heavy bill.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated in terms of paranoia that there is no one more paranoid than Sue Hestor herself, who is the epitome of complaining and being opposed to anything and everything.  Mr. O’Donoghue said he is surprised that Sue Hestor was not opposed to her own birth, and for her to challenge Randy Shaw because he dared to questioned the politics that has now been brought into the Commission is outrageous.  Mr. O’Donoghue addressed Commissioner Ting and stated that Mayor Newsom in his inaugural speech talked about cleaning up the Department from undue influence.  Mr. O’Donoghue said a vote against Commissioner Hanrahan and for Commissioner Hirsch was to advocate that Commissioner Hanrahan in some way or other was going to be guilty of undue influence and the man coming in here was more honest than she was; that is the reality of the progressive vote.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated last week he recommended that Commissioner Hirsch be President and Commissioner Lee be Vice President, however it was right after that, that Commissioner Hirsch wanted to immediately change the meeting, which was insensitive to the other Commissioners.  Mr. O’Donoghue said Commissioner Hirsch wanted to change the meeting for his peculiarities or idiosyncrasies and it was not only insensitive but it was wrong.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated the following:  How dare President Hirsch come to the Commission and before his seat was even warm he wanted to change the role upside down without considering his fellow Commissioners and whether they wanted to change the meeting or not.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated this was the utmost arrogance and he and President Hirsch do not know each other, but they only know what they hear or read about each other, but obviously they are going to have an interesting relationship.

President Hirsch said if he may respond, he does not know what these allegations against him are. Mr. O’Donoghue stated it is Public Comment and President Hirsch could not respond to public comment.   President Hirsch said thank you and said he stood corrected.

4.

Report, discussion and possible action on the proposed budget of the Department of Building Inspection for fiscal year 2005/2006. [Diane Lim, Administration and Finance, Manager and Assistant Director Amy Lee]

Diane Lim, Administration and Finance Manager, said the Commission met last week and discussed the budget very briefly, and there were a few questions that arose which she wanted to address.   Ms. Lim stated there was a question in regards to communications within the Department and she just wanted to mention that at this time the Department has quarterly reports located on the D.B.I. website.  Ms. Lim said within those reports there are performance measures as well as accomplishments and goals in each one of DBI’s divisions.  Ms. Lim stated the reports are available on the Department’s website for anyone to view, and in the past the Department had a monthly bulletin coordinated through the Director’s Office, and the Director’s Office worked with all managers within the division.  Ms. Lim said at this time, the Department no longer has the bulletin however if the Commission would like to reinstate the bulletin that would be their choice to do so.  Ms. Lim stated those are the mechanisms of communications the Department has at this time.

Commissioner Ting stated he had some questions regarding the item of training and travel.   Commissioner Ting said one of the questions is the budget is about $104,000 annually, but the year-to-date projection is $85,000.  Commissioner Ting stated the Department’s budget for next year is proposed at $382,000 and it has almost tripled and the question is why is this so.  Ms. Lim stated in the proposed budget, in the supplemental portion, the Department is proposing about 51 new positions.  Ms. Lim said they have included training and travel money for the new staff, as well as addressing the computer system’s implementation and upgrades.  Ms. Lim stated a lot of the training money is dedicated toward the I.S. staff, which will have to go through a lot of training to be updated on the latest systems.  Ms. Lim said there is training for all of the staff within the Department, as well as training money for being in compliance with AB-717, which allows all the inspectors to be upgraded on the building codes, and this is an ongoing process.  Ms. Lim stated there is also money for certification and this is why the Department’s budget is projected higher for next year, rather than this year. 

Commissioner Lee said he raised these two questions after reviewing the budget last week, and what he saw was that the training budget was increased almost three times and this is great.   Commissioner Lee stated he supports training as well as employees learning to do their job better, but he also saw that this year’s budget allocation as is projected now, the Department is not even going to meet that projection.  Commissioner Lee said he asked staff how the message was going to get out and how were they going to encourage the employees to go to training next year otherwise the Department would not be able to meet the projection for next year as well.  Commissioner Lee asked what methods are going to be used to get the word out to the employees or what can be done to persuade them to take training.  Commissioner Lee also asked if there was a communication tool within the Department that carries out the message for the Director or who carries the message out to the line people.  Ms. Lim stated in reference to the training, she thinks certification is mandatory, so either way employees have to be certified or they lose their job in the Department.  Acting Director Hutchinson confirmed that this was correct and said much of the certification is mandated by state law, both for plan checkers and inspectors.  Mr. Hutchinson stated in general the Department stresses training and if the Commission went back and looked at the Controller’s Audit some years ago, and saw the Department’s work with various agencies, our work downtown with B.O.M.A., A.I.A., etc. you would see that training is one of the most important things the Department could do.  Mr. Hutchinson stated San Francisco is a world-class city, which is inherent with property line walls and all sorts of things you do not experience in other major cities.  Mr. Hutchinson said the Department takes training very seriously, are generous with it and they will try to do a better job to encourage the employees.  Mr. Hutchinson stated part of the problem the Department faces is there are staff shortages and we have mandates to carry out the inspections to provide customer service.  Mr. Hutchinson said at times this conflicts with taking large chunks of staff offline to do training, but DBI can do a better job to make sure the employees attend.

President Hirsch said he sees a lot of membership to structural engineer associations, and he would like to be ensured that if dues are being paid for membership in these organizations, that staff that benefit by that attend the meetings, and participate fully in the activities of these associations.   President Hirsch stated secondly, going through this list, he belongs to many of these himself, including renewal of his professional licenses, which he just paid.  President Hirsch said he noticed all the numbers on the budget have been rounded upwards, so he trusts in the final analysis there is an accurate accounting for what these issues really are.  President Hirsch stated he also noticed there seemed to be a duplication of annual convention and then the next page, another for the same association annual convention.  Ms. Lim said she wanted to explain that one item is for member dues, but travel and training is expenditure for traveling and attending the conferences and training, which is separated out.  President Hirsch said he understood, but there was one item for the A.I.S.C., which had 35 attendees for the A.I.S.C. Steel Design Seminar. 

Acting Deputy Director, Tom Hui said to answer Commissioner Lee’s question regarding the training, last month the Department appointed Mr. Laurence Kornfield as its training officer.   Mr. Hui said Mr. Kornfield organized all the training for the Department, either in-house or outside consulting including an architect, engineer, or contractor.  Mr. Hui said there was already a training order posted for two bi-weekly trainings; one is in-house, and one is outside.  Mr. Hui stated he would like to welcome all the outside consultants to come to the training as well.  Mr. Hui said the training budget is higher this year because when the newcomers arrive they are engineers and architects from the street, but it takes 12 months to train them in the Department.  Mr. Hui stated for example, the Department might hire a consultant from the State Architect’s Board to train all the staff, including himself.  Mr. Hui said there is training scheduled at the end of the month, and the Commissioners are welcome to attend as well.  Mr. Hui stated regarding membership, he joined the A.I.S.C. Structural Engineer Association, and said he has paid for himself for the last 10 or 15 years.  Mr. Hui stated it is not beneficial for 20 or 30 people to join a membership, and he would like to ask everyone at D.B.I. to join one organization as a whole, to designate the membership.  Mr. Hui said he is a licensed civil and structural engineer.  Mr. Hui stated each year, according to the union rules, when a person gets certified, including the I.C.C. Certification, the City is supposed to reimburse staff the amount they pay for the training.  Mr. Hui said when the Department hires new staff they will all have to take tests to be in compliance with the state law.

President Hirsch said there is a line item in the budget for $300,000 for Code Enforcement Outreach, and he asked what this was.   Acting Director Hutchinson said the Code Enforcement Outreach program has been in effect for probably the last ten years.  Mr. Hutchinson stated the Department realizes that a lot of people have a distrust of government, so the Department got together with non-profits to go out and affect resolutions, when there are tenant violations.  Mr. Hutchinson said these people work with the Department and try to affect a resolution between the tenant and the owner, and this program has been very effective.  Mr. Hutchinson stated one of the best things the Department has done is to partner with non-profit organizations and this has been a wonderful alliance, and currently $300,000 is the amount the Department allotted to continue this.

Commissioner Ting said he is on the Board of the Chinatown C.A.C., a non-profit partnership, and it is critical that the non-profits who have trust and relationships in the community are allowed to do the outreach.   Commissioner Ting stated tenants do not feel comfortable coming to D.B.I. or the government, because they do not speak the language.  Commissioner Ting said there is no Cantonese or Mandarin spoken in City Hall, at least that is for the general public so it is really important for the Department to continue that program.  President Hirsch said he was not questioning the program, just more of elucidation what it was.  President Hirsch called for public comment on item number 4.

Mr. Joe O’Donoghue of the Residential Builders Association said it is good the Commission is looking at the micro aspects of the budget itself.   Mr. O’Donoghue said he would rather for industry perspective look at the macro; the fact is this is the goose that is laying the golden egg, however he said he hopes the new Commissioners would prevail on Mayor Newsom to go where the real problem is.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated time lag is a disaster at the Planning Department.  Mr. O’Donoghue said Planning has now been taken off the air, and he thinks it is because the Mayor does not want the criticism of the Department or its budget brought out to the public.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated the fact is that it is taking, by the time you file a permit, six to nine months before it is assigned to a planner and that is unacceptable.  Mr. O’Donoghue said the industry is dying and if you can not get your permits or your plans through the Planning Department over to the Building Department, that means buildings that are in the pipeline will never be built, because the interest rates are on their way up. Mr. O’Donoghue stated from the industry perspective, as a member of the Residential Builder’s, they look at the economic and political model and for that reason they told their members a year and a half ago not to buy any more property in San Francisco because the permit process is non-existent, especially since Mayor Newsom has taken office.  Mr. O’Donoghue said the fact is that permits are delayed in the Planning Department because there is no system or Director.  Mr. O’Donghue stated rather than being focused on the Building Inspection Department, which has a good Acting Director and top class administrative staff, the Mayor should concentrate on the real problem in Planning and should also tell the angry, little dwarf, the President of the Board of Supervisors, Aaron Peskin, to focus on disengaging himself from interfering with the Planning process.  Mr. O’Donoghue said before a permit is issued to anyone in Telegraph Hill it has to go to Supervisor Peskin’s wife Nancy and she signs off on it, then it is reassigned back to Planning Department people and this is unacceptable.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated the Commission may or may not know that the industry filed a lawsuit against the Department, the City Attorney’s Office and others for $10 million that they stole from this Department.  Mr. O’Donoghue said this lawsuit will be heard shortly and no one is more interested than the R.B.A. because they are a self-interest organization that is paying the fees for every department in this city.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated the subsidiaries to housing comes from their fees illegally, but they have not challenged that in court, and the subsidiaries for inspection comes because of this contribution therefore it needs to be recognized by the progressive community what the building industry is doing.  Mr. O’Donoghue said he is glad to see the Commission is looking at the detail, because unless people are trained a year ahead of time then the Department does not have the inspectors to do the quality inspections that the city has been very well noted for, and the inspectors have done an excellent job.

Commissioner Ting made a motion seconded by Commissioner Fillon to adopt the budget.

President Hirsch asked the Secretary to take a vote on the motion.

The Commissioners voted as follows:

Commissioner Fillon
Commissioner Guinnane  
Commissioner Hanrahan
Commissioner Hirsch
Commissioner Lee
Commissioner Romero
Commissioner Ting

Aye
Aye
Aye
Aye
Aye
Aye
Aye

The motion carried unanimously.

5.

Review Commissioner’s Questions and Matters.

a.      Inquiries to Staff.  At this time, Commissioners may make inquiries to staff regarding various documents, policies, practices, and procedures, which are of interest to the Commission.

Commissioner Guinnane said he dropped off a letter at the Department on Friday and he asked Acting Director Hutchinson about the status of the complaint regarding interference from the Board of Supervisors.   Mr. Hutchinson said he wrote a letter to the City Attorney Dennis Herrera, and he will try to give him a call for his response.  Commissioner Guinnane asked Deputy City Attorney, Judy Boyajian, if she had seen the letter.  Ms. Boyajian said she just saw the letter a few minutes ago.

Commissioner Ting said a member of the public, Alex Longo, approached him and he had a question regarding appointments to the Access Appeals Commission.   Commissioner Ting stated Mr. Longo also informed him that many of the appointments had lapsed, and he asked if this was true.  Commissioner Ting said he knows there were some vacancies, and he would like to request from Acting Director Hutchinson or Secretary Aherne that the Commission receive a list of appointments.  Commissioner Ting stated he would like to know which appointments are vacant, which appointments have lapsed, when they will be reappointed, etc.  Commissioner Ting said he had a concern because he is active in the disabled community, and is concerned about representation versus A.D.A. safety issues. 

Secretary Aherne said that she just recently contacted S.F.G.T.V. and they now have a list of all of the sub-committee vacancies on the A.A.C., C.A.C., B.O.E., and the U.M.B.   Secretary Aherne stated the information about which vacancies the Department has is now listed on the message board.  Secretary Aherne said she has received one phone call from a tenant for one of the vacancies, but the Commission does need to agendize the item of electing a new committee at a future meeting.  Secretary Aherne stated the committee usually consists of two or three Commissioners and they would go over any applications that are submitted for any of the available seats.  Commissioner Ting said great, and just to follow up on that comment he asked if the Commissioners get a copy of the agenda for the Access Appeals Commission, because he noticed that a lot of their meetings have been cancelled.  Commissioner Guinnane asked if there was a reason for the cancellations or if there was a quorum issue or a problem with not having items for the agenda.  Mr. Hutchinson said he believes that there are not always cases to bring before them.  Secretary Aherne said that vacancies for the sub-committees are also listed on the bulletin board, on the first floor of the Building Department so when people come in hopefully they will make note of that.  Secretary Aherne said if someone is interested in applying they could discuss it with the Commission and submit a resume.  Secretary Aherne stated if the Commissioners know of anyone that they can have apply to have them do so, because that has really been the only way of finding candidates.  Secretary Aherne said one time she did two large mailings, and sent out about 2,600 announcements to various organizations and individuals, and she only got back about 17 applications, and out of that 17 probably 12 of them were architects and some of the available seats are very specific.  Secretary Aherne said for example there is a vacancy for a fire sprinkler engineer, so some of the seats are very specific and they have been very difficult to fill.  Secretary Aherne stated maybe she and the Commissioners could work together to get the positions filled.

Commissioner Fillon said typically there is a committee that is appointed of Commissioners, and they actually do some outreach.   Commissioner Fillon stated it is pretty difficult to fill a lot of the positions, but it is very important as well, so maybe at the next meeting the Commission should have it on the agenda to establish the committee and figure out who is going to be on it.  Commissioner Guinnane said while the Commission is discussing the committees, they need to address the Litigation Committee pretty quickly.  Commissioner Guinnane said the Litigation Committee previously consisted of himself and Commissioner Santos, and now that Commissioner Santos is gone from the Commission there would not be a quorum so there needs to be another one or two members to join the Litigation Committee.

Commissioner Ting asked Commissioner Guinnane if he could explain what the Litigation Committee does.   Commissioner Guinnane said the committee looks through the cases and makes referrals.  Commissioner Guinnane stated the Litigation Committee has been instrumental in settlements on outside cases, and in streamlining the cases between the City Attorney’s Office and the Department.  Commissioner Guinnane said the Litigation Committee has been involved in a lot of settlements of those cases.  Commissioner Hirsch asked are these cases that the Department brings against individuals or vice versa.  Commissioner Guinnane said these are code enforcement cases.  Secretary Aherne said if any of the Commissioners are considering joining the Litigation Committee that they usually meet at least once a month, and it is very involved.

President Hirsch said he would like to agendize the item of having the Director discuss the question of calculations submitted, because it has been brought to his attention that some calculations are being rejected because they are hand calculations, rather than computer calculations.   Acting Director Hutchinson said he would be happy to address this issue. 

President Hirsch asked if the item would go on the next agenda and Mr. Hutchinson said it would most likely be on a future agenda, perhaps for the next meeting.

Commissioner Ting said he hopes with the election of President and Vice President that they can get down to business with the Commission.   Commissioner Ting stated the Department has had a difficult job with code enforcement and making sure permits are issued.  Commissioner Ting said some members of the general public have constantly come to meetings telling the Commissioners this, and he believes there are still 13 positions that still need to be filled.  Commissioner Ting stated in this budget cycle there are more positions that need to be filled coming up, and the Commission just had a presentation on Bayview Hunter’s Point about various environmental issues.  Commissioner Ting stated he is hoping that the Commission can continue to get greater cooperation from the Mayor’s office down the road in making sure that the budget items get filled and that the Commission can really start to get down to work.  Commissioner Ting said the Department’s role as issuing permits is the first step in pushing the construction industry; the real estate industry can really fulfill that role down the road. 

Commissioner Guinnane addressed Acting Director Hutchinson and said there were 27 positions to be filled, and at Bayview Hunter’s Point Shipyard there was a supplemental of 15 or 16 positions, so he asked where was the Department at with these two items.   Mr. Hutchinson said the Department closed the test and had taken applications for building and housing inspectors, but there was a question on whether the minimum qualifications were appropriate.  Mr. Hutchinson stated at the last meeting the Commission directed him to go forward with hiring the building inspectors, which was about four positions, and he is still holding this up pending a review with the Commissioners.  Mr. Hutchinson said the Department is in the process of hiring engineers and clerical support; those positions were finally unfrozen by the Mayor’s Office about a month ago, so they went right ahead and are in the process of noticing, testing, and selecting candidates for those.  Mr. Hutchinson stated regarding the supplemental process, those were the additional positions the Commission talked about for Bayview Hunter’s Point for the shipyard, in addition to getting the Department up to full staff based on the workload for economic expectations.  Commissioner Guinnane said the approval at the Hunter’s Point shipyard was tied to the 16 positions, so if the Department does not get the 16 positions, then they have no ability to check the jobs.  Mr. Hutchinson said this was correct and Commissioner Guinnane said the Department does not have the staff.  Mr. Hutchinson stated except for the fact that as he stated at the last meeting, the Department has the ability to check permits for anyone who files for a building permit, but the problem is if it is a city project or fast-track project they will want dedicated staff.  Mr. Hutchinson said what the Commission discussed before is the Department cannot go ahead and take staff away from the public, away from other districts and jobs and put them on the shipyard, but if the Department was to get the supplemental, including dedicated staff then they can have their own contingent.  Mr. Hutchinson stated the Department can check plans and do inspections, but probably would not be able to perform at the level they are anticipating without additional staff.  Commissioner Guinnane addressed President Hirsch and said since he was appointed by the Mayor, himself, maybe President Hirsch could tell the Commissioners at the next meeting what the status is on the 27 positions, plus the 16 supplemental.  President Hirsch said he would make inquiries and Commissioner Guinnane said that would be great.  President Hirsch called for public comment on item 5a.

Mr. Joe O’Donoghue of the Residential Builders Association said regarding the staffing question and the legal aspect of how important the Department has played a role in good, qualified staff, the AIMCO case settled recently by the City Attorney’s Office was settled only because of the excellent preparation that was done by the staff, primarily the housing section, because years ago housing inspectors were primarily being recruited from the Public Health Department.  Mr. O’Donoghue said when the Department was created through the voters’ initiative, the Department requested that there be a change in policy and that housing inspectors be hired from the construction industry.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated as a result of that there was one inspector, John Kerley, who was a contractor/builder who became a housing inspector, and it was his preparation work and the detail he gave which allowed the City Attorney’s Office to make an excellent case to the opposition in one of the largest settlements in the history of the city.  Mr. O’Donoghue said it has been the custom that, whoever was the presiding structural engineer at the time, went with Commissioner Guinnane and did inspections on enforcement cases, and he presumes that pattern and custom would continue especially now that he understood that President Hirsch was retired and may have more time.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated it is necessary to go out at times and do field inspections in order to help in deciding whether or not to push or settle a case when serving on the Litigation Committee.  Mr. O’Donoghue said in the past the Department has not had a good relationship with the City Attorney’s Office because the bills were enormous when they first took over this Department, and there was no scrutiny.  Mr. O’Donoghue said the Department was getting billed for time that was not being responded to, so it is for this reason that the Litigation Committee was developed, of which Roy Guinnane became a member of to keep the cost of litigation under control.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated there would be a proposition on the November ballot that would make the Department independent in many aspects, including more independence from the City Attorney’s Office, so the Department will have the ability to go to the outside, which he understands is in the Charter, but not defined except for a vague matter.  Mr. O’Donoghue said they intend to redefine that so all Departments will have the right to be able to hire an outside legal attorney.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated language has been drawn up with awaiting signatures from the public.

b.       Future Meetings/Agendas.  At this time, the Commission may discuss and take action to set the date of a Special Meeting and/or determine those items that could be placed on the agenda of the next meeting and other future meetings of the Building Inspection Commission.          

President Hirsch said he believes the next future Building Inspection Commission meeting is set for Monday, March 7, 2005 at 9:00 a.m.  Secretary Aherne said she wanted to let President Hirsch know that she followed up on his request about looking into other meeting days and she heard back from City Hall that Wednesdays and Thursdays are completely taken.  President Hirsch thanked Secretary Aherne for inquiring about this.

6.

Public Comment:  The BIC will take public comment on matters within the Commission’s jurisdiction that are not part of this agenda.

Mr. Joe O’Donoghue of the Residential Builders Association said clean government and accountability in government has been one of the issues in the ‘90s and unfortunately was not corrected, despite the great movement of the Green Party in San Francisco and their impact on the young people that it has had on the electoral process.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated they have been in discussions with members of the party in other groups and they intend to go on the November ballot and that language has also been drawn up for them to seek signatures from the general public, which states under no circumstances can any member of the Board of Supervisors or their staff contact any Commissioner or any Department head or employee, including the same thing from the Mayor’s Office, except it is in the public interest such as a complaint from the general public.  Mr. O’Donoghue said in that event they have to go to an ombudsman, so that way they will have to inform the public in a timely manner and explain why they met and what the purpose of the meeting was.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated they intend to keep immunized and ensure the independence of the Department that the Charter originally intended.  Mr. O’Donoghue said what occurred for several years under the then Acting President of the Board of Supervisors, Aaron Peskin, not just this year but last year, in which he was intimidating various people in the Departments by saying if they did not do certain things, he would cut their funds, and that was the impact and the message.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated that was violating the separation of powers, which is implicit in the substitution here and in the Charter and folding everything in so that there was abuse of a power, and it was certainly showing that power corrupts.  Mr. O’Donoghue said for that reason, they are putting forward an excellent means for clean government ensuring that again, an elected official has to concern himself with elected policies and legislative matters, and allow the administrative functions of the Department to proceed unabated.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated he might say the same of the Commissioners; the Commissioners have no right to interfere and make phone calls, intimidating members of staff no matter what level.  Mr. O’Donoghue said they intend to find that out, all politics being local, they can ensure clean government so allegations of undue influence, which are easily made, now will be in fact impossible to happen.  Mr. O’Donoghue stated of course those allegations have never been substantiated because they are non-existent, and the ones making the allegations are the ones doing the interfering.  Mr. O’Donoghue said for that reason, he will also put in a Sunshine Request of the Acting Director, because he understands the Mayor’s Office is calling the Department every day and impacting and wanting things done that border on the illicit and the illegal.

7.

Adjournment.

President Hirsch made a motion seconded by Commissioner Guinnane, that the meeting be adjourned.   The motion carried unanimously.

RES. NO. BIC 009-05

The meeting was adjourned at 10:05 a.m.

Respectfully Submitted,



________________________
Sonya Harris
Assistant Secretary