The regular meeting of the Building Inspection Commission was called to order at 9:11 a.m. by President Murphy.

1. Call to Order and Roll Call – Roll call was taken and a quorum was certified.

COMMISSION MEMBERS PRESENTS:

Mel Murphy, President
Reuben Hechanova, Vice-President
Kevin Clinch, Commissioner, excused
Frank Lee, Commissioner
Robin Levitt, Commissioner
Criss Romero, Commissioner
Debra Walker, Commissioner, excused
Ann Aherne, Commission Secretary

D.B.I.REPRESENTATIVES:

Vivian Day, Director
Edward Sweeney, Deputy Director
William Strawn, Communications Manager
Rosemary Bosque, Chief Housing Inspector
Pamela Levin, Administration & Finance Division Supervisor

Sonya Harris, Secretary

Commissioner Levitt said that he does not think it is applicable, but said that he attended a P.G.&E. seminar the other day about solar power installation on residential properties, and the issue came up if someone installs a solar collector on their roof, is there anything to protect them from future property owners doing something to shade that..

Director Day stated that she did not know anything about that, but said she could check because it probably would come under the Planning ode for the shade portion of it; there is a joint committee working on solar panels. Director Day said that she knows there is a problem because somebody put some solar panels on their roof and then someone built an addition and blocked the solar panel and it was useless, so they are thinking about doing something in the Planning Department. Director Day stated that DBI has also been asked to attend the Planning Commission meetings just to make sure that the Planning Department is not planning or approving legislation that is going to affect DBI.

Director Day stated that there are several large projects that are going to come forward that semi-quasi state agencies have asked DBI to plan check and inspect and one of those is the Trans Bay Joint Powers Authority, the big terminal in the City. Director Day said that the Department is going to do the plan check and they have asked for inspectors on the project, so DBI created a Memorandum of Understanding between DBI and Trans Bay. Director Day said since the project will generate revenue of over $1M, this has to go the Board of Supervisors for approval after the Department signs off on it. Director Day stated that she has not signed the MOU yet and would like the Commissioners to e-mail any comments to her. Director Day said that she needs to get this signed and forwarded to the Board of Supervisors for approval so it can be implemented by October or November when they anticipate starting the heavy work.

Commissioner Lee asked if this project is spread over several years, and Director Day stated that the Department is anticipating about $1M each year since there will be full-time inspectors on the job. Director Day said that once she has the request for full-time inspectors in writing, then she can bring it back to the BIC and the Board of Supervisors to request those inspectors.

Director Day said that this is work that the Department cannot accommodate with current staff so that is why she is bringing it to the Commission. Director Day stated that there is also a Memorandum of Understanding with the P.U.C. for the building at 525 Golden Gate, which is in the process of being plan checked. Director Day said that there is an MOU for Treasure Island and it will not generate $1M, but DBI is going to be doing work for Treasure Island both in plan check and in field inspection. Director Day stated that DBI has a MOU for the Port which the Department will be doing the plan check for the new Exploratorium building, so as these memoranda come through she is bringing them to the Board. Director Day said that it will affect the Department and staffing so she is giving the BIC a heads up and trying to be proactive to get these through in order to get the necessary staff back to the Department.

Commissioner Levitt asked if the Department of Building Inspection normally does inspection services for these sorts of projects. Director Day said that the Port of San Francisco has their own inspectors, but they are asking for DBI’s assistance.. Director Day stated that the Port might use their inspectors or the Department’s, but they do want to use DBI’s structural plan checkers.

Commissioner Levitt asked if the Trans Bay project would be using DBI’s inspectors. Director Day said that it is a state agency and they could use state people but the Department has negotiated to use DBI people and the state has allowed it, and the same thing with the P.U.C. which is a semi quasi state agency. Commissioner Levitt asked how many new staff or inspectors Director Day was talking about. Director Day stated that so far they are only asking for one inspector in each discipline: Building, Electrical, and Plumbing, but said that if it gets to the point where more inspectors are needed that would be added to the Memorandum.

Commissioner Hechanova asked if the proposed legislation was adopted how it would accommodate the cost of DBI personnel having to review those areas. Director Day stated that it is currently covered in the Code and DBI can charge for the review of anything extra. Director Day said what is not covered is when they introduce a new program that would be city-wide, like stating that every restaurant has to have a grease interceptor by a certain date. Director Day said that in this case the Department would have to go out and survey the city restaurants and that would require more staff. Director Day stated that the Department is also low on existing staff so everyone knows that every division if backed up for inspections, so any other new inspections that come onboard or any new programs that come onboard has to be addressed with additional staff.

President Murphy asked how many projects in the city DBI have DBI inspectors working on them. Director Day stated that currently there is the boiler program which takes a couple of inspectors, and said she thought that there is one person working on that program part-time. Director Day said that the Housing Inspection division is working on the wooden ladders. Director Day mentioned there are solar installations and DBI is currently doing reduced fees for the solar installations which were part of the agreement several years ago. President Murphy asked about Laguna Honda Hospital, and Director Day said that there is one electrical inspector assigned, and in the summary of the fee legislation DBI is also asking that the inspection fees be increased for the inspector due to the fact that the Department has to pay him more per hour than another inspector because of his certification.

Vice-President Hechanova asked Director Day to explain the sentence that said when it deems appropriate, the SFPUC may, at its sole discretion, utilize its own personnel or private consultants to perform services. Director Day said that is just a sentence that is usually in the MOU that if the other department wanted to plan check their project it would be allowed, and that is in almost every contract. Director Day stated that the SFPUC wants the Department of Building Inspection to plan check the project and use their inspectors, and it is just a reciprocal agreement that DBI did not have to provide both services but staff can provide one or the other.

Commissioner Lee said that he just wanted to thank Director Day and her budget and finance staff for going through the budget process in the last few months, and said he is sure this was one of the roughest budget seasons in a long time. Commissioner Lee stated that they must have spent a lot of time talking and working with the Mayor's staff, negotiating and answering questions so he wanted to express his appreciation. Commissioner Lee said that it looks like some of the proposals that are being brought up today will also help with the budget, so that is a great thing.

Director Day stated that she wanted to let the Commission know that no revenues from these were included in the current budgets for this year, due to the fact that these projects were not fully funded until after the budget was approved in July and early August so that is why they were not signed and the Department could not use any of the anticipated revenues in the budget.

President Murphy called for public comment on item number 3, the Director’s Report.

There was no public comment.

Mr. Jose Morales said that he hoped the Commission would always uphold the truth, be a friend to him and glorify his case. Mr. Morales stated that these were the units that were started in the beginning, and at that point everything was going well. Mr. Morales said many years ago problems started when the landlord requested a permit, and he was given a number for the brand new unit and that number was only for the brand new unit. Mr. Morales said however what happened in 2002 is the owner got a permit for a brand new unit, and the permit was denied in 2004. Mr. Morales stated that when it was denied in the council this was a nonexistent number, also the lower unit was empty and it was going to be destroyed. Mr. Morales said that this number was introduced illegally by the landlord, and it should not have been because he did not have the approval for occupancy and a permit dated 1971 for unit 572-A. Mr. Morales stated that DBI needs to track down the units, and said that he wants the Deputy City Attorney to help him because this is a farce. Mr. Morales said that this is an injustice, and he wants a public hearing so that he could have transparency and due process.

Ms. Marie Jobling said that she was in attendance as part of the Community Living Campaign (CLC) and thanked the BIC for the opportunity. Ms. Jobling said that she was glad that the Commission was meeting again. Ms. Jobling stated that previously the Community Living Campaign representatives asked for several things: 1) A hearing on Jose's situation, with particular attention to the issue of enforcement and what happens when the unit numbers are changed in the Department. 2) How does that impact the monitoring of units that are impacted through the Ellis Act or other kinds of actions where the tenants are displaced? 3) Requested a hearing, but asked DBI to simply change the numbers back because the Department made a mistake and the unit numbers have led to this confusion. Ms. Jobling said that this is the department that has the authority to give unit numbers, and if a mistake is made it should be changed, but DBI could not do that. Ms. Jobling stated that the last time she was at the BIC the CLC asked for the City Attorney to look into this. Ms. Jobling said that they talked with the City Attorney subsequently and the Deputy City Attorney said it was clear that there may not be clear policies and procedures between this department and the monitoring of units, especially when the unit numbers change in a situation. Ms. Jobling stated that she had not had any follow-up with the Deputy City Attorney. Ms. Jobling stated that DBI staff struggled to do its job with the recent budget, but it is the citizens and residents that bring issues to the BIC and when they do, they hope the BIC will pay attention and help them get some justice. Ms. Jobling said that she is absolutely committed to see some good come out of this situation with Jose, and at the very least, there could be a change in policy or procedure, at least some clarity, so that not just DBI but the public knows how to help with enforcement. Ms. Jobling stated that to clarify the issue, there is a unit that had a history and the question is - How does this get monitored in the system, and for people who want to monitor these units into the future, how they know which ones have been Ellis Acts and which ones have not? Ms. Jobling said that she was asking the Department to provide policies and procedures that are clear to the public around these issues.

Ms. Sharon Jones said that she was present to speak in regard to a plan to do some work at Martin Luther King Marcus Garvey Cooperative Apartments, Inc. Ms. Jones stated that her understanding is that related companies of California have placed some applications with the Planning and Building departments, and they have done so in their own name rather than the name of the owner, and she would like to call this to the Commission’s attention.

Ms. Jones said that the deed of trust is in the name of Martin Luther King Marcus Garvey Square Cooperative Apartments Inc., and it is not related. Ms. Jones stated that there was also a dispute about whether that plan would go forward, and it is a rehab and refinancing plan of their housing cooperative so she would personally like to request that all of those plans be set in advance.

Ms. Jones said that she knows that they do not have the funding to do the work, and it is her contention that this does not represent or have a binding authority in regard to Martin Luther King authorizing that rehab. Ms. Jones said that this case is in court but will not be going to trial until December so she wanted to alert the Department, and said that if there is any advice the Commission could give her in terms of anything else she could provide that would clarify it she would appreciate it. Commissioner Murphy said that Director Day would look into this matter. Director Day asked for the street address, and Ms. Jones stated it was 1680 Eddy Street.

Commissioner Lee asked for clarification as to whether or not the Department of Building Inspection has a process of checking to make sure that the applicant is truly representing who they are before staff grants a permit. Director Day replied there is verification before DBI grants the permit.

Commissioner Romero said that he had a question regarding the first speaker because from the point of view of the citizens that came forward there was no policy. Commissioner Romero asked if staff has looked into how these unit numbers get changed, or if there have been any further developments or policy changes.

Director Day stated that the only additional thing that was added to the current policy is the fact that DBI will notify the Rent Board of an address change, but an address change on a unit is on the parcel, so all the unit history is still on the parcel and the unit history did not go away; it is still in the system. Director Day said that the Rent Board needed to pull up the whole parcel and get the history of the parcel, not just each unit. Director Day stated that DBI has talked to the Rent Board and renegotiated and the Department will be sending the notices of address changes in the future, but it was not the policy of the Department, nor was it the request of the Rent Board in the past to send them any notices of address changes.

President Murphy asked if the new policy has been implemented. Director Day said yes and the Rent Board has been added to the list of agencies that are notified. Director Day stated that the Department has notified federal and state agencies, utility companies, and any interested people that asked to be notified about these address changes.

Commissioner Romero asked if there was any real way to roll back a prior decision to change unit numbers. Director Day replied that this would not happen unless the owner of the property asks to do that, and the owner of the property is the only person who can ask for an address change.

Commissioner Murphy asked if there was a fee for an address change now. Director Day said that there has always been a fee for an address change.

Director Day said that DBI is working with the Department of Emergency Management, who has put together a small task force, and on September 15^th the Department is going to roll out the beginning of the commemoration activities. Director Day stated that there are going to be several Town Hall meetings and Board of Supervisor’s meetings, as well as two public hearings. Director Day said that one of the topics will be Where Were You in 1989 during the Earthquake, and there is staff that will be on both panels that will be open to the public. Director Day stated that it will be fully advertised in the paper, and will happen on September 17, so she does not know if that is before the next Board meeting or not. Director Day said that the Department hopes to have the legislation introduced at that time so staff can roll it all out together. Director Day said that on October 17 there is also going to be an event sponsored by UC Berkeley and the City and County of San Francisco, and a bulletin is coming out that would be distributed to the Board, and DBI will post it in and around 1660 Mission so that people will know about the events. Director Day stated that DBI will also post all the notices of the Town Hall meetings that will be taking place, and said that staff from our department will be in these meetings and distribute information on what the Department is going to do if an event happens. Director Day said that from what she understands on October 17 there will be a small exercise called Shake Out San Francisco which is a statewide program that DBI will participate in with our emergency units.

Commissioner Hechanova asked if the siren would be sounded for audible notification as part of the exercise. Director Day said that she assumes it will be to notify people that this is just an exercise, similar to every building exercise that is happening that morning. Director Day stated that it will be publicized as just an exercise, and that there will be a warning for people to not be alarmed that DBI is having building inspectors go through and inspect buildings. Director Day said that it is just a “what if” scenario and staff are going to try to educate the people and the public in the months before the actual event, but all the details have not been firmed up yet..

Commissioner Lee stated that he is happy to see the goal is to introduce some sort of soft story legislation during this commemoration period, because there is a lot of emphasis on personal preparedness for earthquakes and sometimes building seismic safety issues are left behind. Commissioner Lee said that he saw this as an opportunity to perhaps bring some of those concerns that DBI has to the forefront and just bring it to people's attention to not wait until an earthquake hits to be prepared.

Director Day said that is exactly what the Department wants to do, and also the Mayor's Office has realized that sometimes the building end of it gets left out. Director Day stated that normally

it is all about what to do for personal safety, but if people do not have somewhere to go to, that is also a problem and DBI’s main goal is to make sure that the buildings can be habitable so people can go back into the buildings. Director Day said that people need to protect their buildings, not just their own person and this is what the Department is trying to get out.

Director Day said that DBI is involved along with all the other agencies such as the Police Department, Fire Department, etc. in these emergency exercises because it is a semi-drill to test the various City departments’ interaction in case of an emergency. Director Day stated that the Department would open up the main emergency management center, and then the satellite agencies would open up maybe just for a short time in order to let our staff know what they are supposed to do in the event of an emergency at 1660 Mission so it is an internal training program too.

President Murphy asked if the internal training program applies to everybody at DBI. Director Day said that it applies to everyone in the building, because there is a duck and cover exercise, and there are floor monitors that are supposed to check and make sure this happens. Director Day stated that DBI also has to prepare the public to have some kind of safety training for anyone in the building in case of an event. Director Day said that this includes all DBI staff working with other departments. Commissioner Hechanova asked if NERT was going to be part of the event. Director Day stated that from what she understands they are, and some of the community groups are going to be part of what DBI prepared to be helpful in the case of an event.

Director Day stated that this is the monitoring fee that she has mentioned for the past several meetings and said that the Department finally got the legislation introduced yesterday which also includes some fee adjustments for the inspectors and some things that DBI has to reconsider. Director Day said that DBI is not keeping track of any additional documentation that is submitted with building permits, such as the structural plans and other items that really need to be retained, but said that they need to be imaged. Director Day stated that there is going to be a small charge for the Code Enforcement process, so it is just recouping the fees that would be charged after certain periods were given for people to comply with their notices of violations depending on the severity. Director Day said then staff is going to start working the complaints every single month and try to get compliance before it goes to a Director’s Hearing and before it comes to the Abatement Appeals Board. Director Day stated that the Department is going to try to work with the property owner a little bit more efficiently than in the past, but it is also to reimburse staff for doing this. Director Day said that the Code Advisory Committee reviewed the legislation, and are asking that the BIC refer this for introduction, which it got introduced yesterday because of the supervisors taking leave.

President Murphy called for public comment, and there was none.

Commissioner Lee made a motion, seconded by Vice-President Hechanova to support the legislation. The motion carried unanimously.

RESOLUTION NO. BIC 038-09

Director Day stated that the MOU's are starting to come forward, and as they are implemented DBI will be getting advance notice of when additional staff is needed; then DBI will be going to the Board of Supervisors to ask for additional positions in the budget that were previously removed.

Commissioner Murphy said that the Department should probably rehire some of the clerks back for Central Permit Bureau to speed things up a little bit, as far as taking the checks in for instance, provided that DBI gets some staff back that knows exactly what they are doing.

Commissioner Levitt asked who instigated the idea of DBI staff working on these projects such as the MOU's with Trans Bay project and so forth. Director Day said that they had actually asked for the advice of our principal engineer, Hanson Tom, who has been instrumental in creating these MOU's and working with the City Attorney to get them to a point where they were manageable within the Department. Director Day said that Mr. Tom is monitoring the MOU's and is in charge of most of the large projects. Commissioner Levitt stated that he is applauding Mr. Tom for finding ways for the Department to retain or rehire staff.

Commissioner Lee said that in the past the Department has supplied the Commission with the Department’s organization chart, and asked if it had been updated. Director Day stated that

DBI is posting the current organizational chart today, but there will be changes to it and the chart will also be available online. Director Day said that she was working with the Code Enforcement and Housing Inspection units to beef up enforcement, and to get the processes more streamlined so that is where DBI’s next focus will be.

Commissioner Romero stated that on the Organizational Chart under some of the positions it says vacant for new positions. Commissioner Romero asked if these were positions that just were not filled so that DBI could have a bunch of savings over the last year, or were these new positions as of spring time. Director Day said that they are not new positions, but they are the vacant positions the Department has to leave for attrition. Director Day stated that in the budget process there was only one new position added, and it was a temporary position that was the Project Manager for the Permit Tracking System. Director Day said that this will actually be paid out of pocket money and will not be paid out of operating funds.

President Murphy called for public comment, and there was none.

President Murphy made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Hechanova to approve the April 15, 2009 minutes. The motion carried unanimously.

RESOLUTION NO. BIC 041-09

Commissioner Levitt made a motion, seconded by Vice-President Hechanova to approve the May 20, 2009 minutes. The motion carried unanimously.

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Commissioner Hechanova made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Levitt to approve the June 12, 2009 minutes. The motion carried unanimously.

RESOLUTION NO. BIC 043-09

Commissioner Levitt said that he did not want to make an inquiry but he wanted to go back to the evaluation and said that the BIC is very lucky to have Director Day as DBI’s Director and said that the Commission are very pleased with her work. Commissioner Levitt stated that Director Day is very organized, communicative, and a team player who works well with staff and other departments as well as the Commission. Commissioner Levitt said that the Commission really appreciates the work she has done, especially during this very difficult time with the budget and all the difficult decisions that have to be made at this time. Commissioner Levitt said that the Commission really appreciates everything Director Day has done and wanted to thank her. Director Day thanked the Commissioners in return.

Commissioner Lee congratulated Director Day on a very good job, and said that it has been a tough few months so he also wanted to add that the Director has done a great job in relating to people outside of the Department. Commissioner Lee stated that sometimes as an enterprise department DBI has to live within its means, but at the same time the Department does not just live by itself and staff has to work with other departments, agencies, outside people, and the public as well so he thinks the Director has done an excellent job in relating to everyone. Director Day thanked Commissioner Lee.

Vice-President Hechanova said that without a doubt the exceptional work that Director Day has done to date has really helped to stabilize the Department. Vice-President Hechanova stated that he looks forward to more of the direction that Director Day will give to both the Department and working within the city government and other agencies.

Commissioner Romero stated that the comments that he had inside when the BIC was in closed session were primarily that he was convinced that if the BIC had not had Ms. Day as a Director, during this period of time it would have been a lot tougher on not just the folks that work in the Department but on the Commission as well. Commissioner Romero said that in terms of actually not having any type of meltdown, he thinks Director Day did a lot to prevent that from occurring even though she had to reduce the staff by 90 people. Commissioner Romero said that it is always hard in a department, especially in these very unique times, not just in this department but all across California. Commissioner Romero stated that even in the Bay Area he is seeing this type of thing in Oakland where Local 21 represents people, it is not an easy thing for anybody but he feels as though it ought to create stability in a very unstable environment. Director Day thanked Commissioner Romero.

Director Day said that she would also like to thank her supporting staff, because if she did not have them and the rest of the staff then the Department would not have been as successful. Director Day stated that staff came forward with suggestions on how to help the Department during this time, and it is actually the staff that needs the congratulations not her. Director Day said that she had wonderful help from the finance department. Director Day stated that she had wonderful help from the other Deputy Directors and even staff came forward with suggestions for revenue enhancements and things like that, so it was the whole department together that pulled through this, not just her. Director Day thanked all of the Commissioners.

President Murphy congratulated Director Day on a job well-done, and said that he is impressed because she has been tough when she had to be tough and she has been kind to people when that was warranted. President Murphy stated that Director Day has an open door policy which he likes, and under the circumstances he does not think there is anyone around that could have done as good a job as she has in the past six months. President Murphy again congratulated Director Day on behalf of the Commission, and she thanked him.

Commissioner Lee said that he had an inquiry since people have been reading in the newspapers that there have been some pot busts at some residential homes in San Francisco and there are some statements being made that they might pose some safety risk to how people tap into power sources. Commissioner Lee stated that he was just wondering if D.B.I. could offer some assistance to whoever is leading this, as far as looking into these buildings to see if they are safe or not.

Director Day stated that DBI does get called out on some of these activities or busts, so to speak, or even because of the fires that are caused by the illegal tapping into the electrical. Director Day said that DBI works with the other departments on some of these, and there is a task force so when they ask for the Department’s assistance DBI is always there to provide as much assistance as possible.

President Murphy said that he would like a report on inspections performed by inspectors over the last 18 months to compare the daily inspections as of today with the loss of staff. President Murphy stated that he would like the information across the board if that wouldn't be too much work.

Director Day stated that she would try to get it by the next meeting, if not then she would have it by the following meeting because it involves getting some records out of storage and things but it will be done as soon as possible.

President Murphy said that he would also like a report on the break down of the average time that the over-the-counter process takes for instance if somebody comes in with a set of plans, plan check, in other words. President Murphy stated that he wanted to know why some projects take three or four months and said he cannot understand why it takes that long. Director Day asked if he was talking about over-the-counter permits or submitted permits. President Murphy said that he was talking about over-the-counter permits.

Secretary Aherne said that the next meeting would be the third Wednesday of September, which is September 16th, and there is also going to be a special meeting on September 30th. Secretary Aherne stated that this meeting would involve the Building Inspection Commissioners, the Access Appeals Commissioners, and also the Board of Examiners who will be getting a presentation from the Ethics Commission regarding some new policies and recommendations as to what we have to do since there are new filings that they are requiring.

Commissioner Lee asked if this was a training session. Secretary Aherne said that it will be like a training session where commissioners can ask questions for clarification. Secretary Aherne stated that the time is going to be 9:00 a.m. in room 416 on September 30.

Commissioner Lee asked what the topic of discussion was. Secretary Aherne said that it will be a training session on what is required for filing from the commissioners regarding a quarterly filing on any activity the Commissioners might be involved in with the Department.

Commissioner Lee asked if it strictly applied to the Building Inspection Commission or does it involve all the commissions. Secretary Aherne said that it probably involves all the commissions, but this training will be specific to the BIC.

Commissioner Lee stated that he was wondering why the BIC needs a separate session when in the past they just went to one big session. Secretary Aherne said that the Ethics Commission has requested this. Secretary Aherne stated that there would also be an Abatement Appeals Board meeting, because there are a couple of cases to be heard. Secretary Aherne said that if anyone has any items in the meantime they can email them to her and she can get them to Director Day and President Murphy.

Commissioner Hechanova made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Lee, that the meeting be adjourned. The motion carried unanimously.

RESOLUTION NO. BIC 044-09