Winter 2002 Vol.1 Issue 1 - Japantown Task Force, Inc

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Japantown Task Force, Inc.
1765 Sutter St., Suite 1
San Francisco, CA 94115
japantown task force, inc
a planning, preservation, and development organization
winter 2002 volume 1 issue 1
Place
Stamp
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Welcome!
Got Japantown?
San Francisco’s Japantown is one of three
remaining in the United States. Japantown’s
boundaries are defined by the areas within and
along Pine, Octavia, O’Farrell, and Fillmore Streets.
Preserving and revitalizing Japantown is essential as a
manifestation of Japanese American history, a celebration of current cultural
expression and an inspiration to future generations about Japanese American
cultural heritage. Although dispersed throughout the region, San Francisco’s
Japanese American community has demonstrated an exceptional capacity
to unite in pursuit of their common goal of preserving Japantown.
Have you “got Japantown?” If you don’t, come to ours. If you
do . . . save it and all that makes it whole and special.
Contents:
Page
What is the Task Force? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Director’s Message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
JTF Announcements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Meet the JTF Board . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Talkin’ Trash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1600 Webster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Landmarking Japantown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Captain Cashman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Community Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
JTF Wish List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Japantown Demographics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Bike Lanes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Japanese American History Quiz Answers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Focus Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Japanese American History Quiz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Task Force Meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Japanese Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Contact Us:
Phone: 415.346.1239
Fax: 415.346.6703
Email: heiwa@jtowntaskforce.org
Website: www.jtowntaskforce.org
Japantown Task Force, Inc.
1765 Sutter St., Ste. 1
San Francisco, CA 94115
20
1
What is the Task Force?
Our History, Our Goals, Our Plans
Japantown Task Force, Inc. is a
new non-profit community development organization created to pursue and maintain the goals and objectives identified in the Japantown
Community Plan developed by the
previous 50-member Japantown
Planning, Preservation and Development Task Force organization. These
goals are to: develop Japantown as
an historical center, a cultural capital, and a community center for
people of Japanese ancestry in
America; revitalize Japantown as a
thriving commercial and retail district; preserve and expand
Japantown as a neighborhood of
residents, community-based organizations, institutions and neighborhood services; and improve
Japantown’s physical environment
so that it contributes to the diverse cultural, economic and neighborhood vitality of the community.
SF’s Japantown community
has become diverse, yet still holds
on to the Japanese culture as seen
through the annual Cherry Blossom Festival, the Nihonmachi Street
Fair, Bon Odori and New Year’s Activities. JTF, Inc. continues to work
on revitalizing and preserving
Japantown, a
community of
culture, tradition and
history.
Board of Directors:
Jeff Mori (President), Caryl Ito, (Vice-President), Mark Moriguchi (Secretary/Treasurer),
Sheila Chung, Doug Dawkins, Seiko Fujimoto, Colin Gomez, David Ishida, Tak Matsuba,
Benh Nakajo, Jon Osaki, Bob Otsuka, Pat Shiono, Rosalyn Tonai, and Mariko Watanabe.
Advisory Board:
Hatsuro Aizawa, Steven Doi, Rev. Grange, Geri Handa, Rod Henmi, Daryl Higashi, Yo
Hironaka, Karen Kai, Travis Kiyota, Ben Kobashigawa, Dan Kunihara, Sandy Mori,
Charlie Morimoto, Jerry Ono, Kathy Reyes, Shinichi Seino, Kenji Taguma, Pamela Wu,
JK Yamamoto
Staff:
Linda Jofuku (Executive Director), Chris Durazo (Project Manager), Takeno Chiyo
(Intern), Yoko Tsukuda (Intern), Ernie Yoshikawa (Intern).
2
19
Director’s Message
“Too Busy Picking up the Pieces of Your Life . . . “
by Linda Jofuku
My grandmother died in
1999. I still think of her often. She
and my grandfather were the owners of a grocery store on Geary
Street in what was considered
Japantown prior to World War II.
My grandmother endured a very
difficult life in the United States; a
husband who died just before the
entire family lost everything and
were incarcerated in America’s
Concentration Camps; being a single
mother raising five children alone
and not speaking English; floating in
a world that did not belong to her.
I once asked my grandmother,
“Bachan, aren’t you angry that everything was taken from you and
you were put into concentration
camps?” She said, “Too busy picking up the pieces of your life to think
about that.”
My grandmother found
meaning and beauty in the simplest
of things…no matter how insignificant they seemed in the eyes of the
world. She shared everything she
had with her family, friends and even
strangers.
My grandmother was a domestic for most of her life. She
worked very hard at what some
would consider demeaning work.
Yet, she was proud because she took
care of her family…no matter what.
I’ve been thinking a lot
Director’s Message (cont’d on pg. 14)
JTF Announcements
The Task Force Website is Up!
After a series of delays, the
Japantown Task Force, Inc. website is
finally online! If you visit our website,
located at www.jtowntaskforce.org,
you’ll find information on the history
of the Task Force, our meetings,
reports/studies, and community
events. The website includes all the
information that you’d expect to find
on such a site, and will give you a good
18
idea what the Task
Force does. In the meantime, we’re
working on developing our website
to include a history of Japantown, so
be sure and check back often for
updates. We also welcome any
suggestions you may have on the
website, including any links you want
to add, so feel free to email us with
your input!
3
Meet the JTF Board
Who They Are and Why They’re Here
The Japantown
Task Force’s board is
made up of 15 community members with a variety of different backgrounds, interests, and
skills. Learn more about
some of our directors
below:
Jeff Mori: I am the Executive Director of
Asian American Recovery Services,
Inc. (AARS). The purpose of AARS
is to decrease the incidence and
impact of substance abuse in the
Asian and Pacific Islander communities of the San Francisco Bay Area.
Francisco. Owner/manager of
Community Travel Service, Albany
for 20 years. Co-founder of
Nobiru-kai, Japanese Newcomer
Services. Volunteer lecturer of nonprofit management at Japan Pacific
Resource Network in Oakland.
Why are you on the board? “As
a third generation Japanese American in San Francisco and because
of my 23 years as Executive Director of the Japanese Community
Youth Council, I believe I can make
a contribution in the planning the
future of our community. I believe
we should be able to take our past
experiences and use them to plan
for the future.”
Why are you on the board?
“Currently, I am writing a thesis for
the Masters in Nonprofit Administration. My thesis is entitled “Ethnic Philanthropy: Why Japanese
Americans Give.” Recent studies
showed that the level of
volunteerism by JAs was significantly higher than the general public of the same socio-economic
group. Over 90% belong to at least
Mariko Harumi: Masters Gradu- one charitable organization in both
ate student in Nonprofit Adminis- Japanese and non-Japanese comtration at the University of San
JTF Board (con’t on p.10)
4
Thanks to our funders:
Japan Center Garage Corporation, Neighborhood Beautification Fund,
San Francisco Foundation, & the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency.
17
JA History Quiz
Talkin’ Trash
Do You Know Your JA History?
Cleaning up J-Town
1. True or False: The United States
has the largest Japanese population outside Japan.
2. In what areas were the
first Japantowns in San
Francisco?
3. With whom did
the Japanese farm
workers form a
union during the
1903 Sugar Beet
Strike in Oxnard, and
what was the result?
4. How many residents in
San Francisco’s Redevelopment Area A-1 were displaced
in 1960?
a) 500 b) 1000 c) 1500
5. How many units of low-rent
housing were destroyed in A-1?
Did you know that you
could help revitalize Japantown
every Wednesday morning? The
Japantown Merchant’s Association
(JMA) holds their weekly
“community sweeps” every
Wednesday from 10-11 am. It is a
fun way to help keep the
neighborhood clean and get to
know some of your favorite local
merchants. Each Wednesday
morning, you can find a bin of
brooms and dustpans near the
eternal flame in the Peace Plaza. Just
grab a broom and start sweeping
up litter, leaves and cigarette butts.
The Japantown Task Force, Inc. (JTF)
has been participating for half a year
now, and has seen a growing sense
of community spirit and pride
through these activities. So much
so, that we were able to double our
efforts with the City’s help.
In July of this year, the JTF
and the JMA received a grant from
the San Francisco Mayor’s
Neighborhood Beautification Fund
to purchase a cleaning machine,
known as the Litter Hawk.The Litter
Hawk is small enough to ride through
the Peace Plaza without cracking the
slate tile (as larger cleaners have done
in the past), but sturdy enough to
pick up trash through Ruth Asawa’s
a) 4,000 b) 5,000 c) 6,000
6. True or False: In 1950, the percent of Nikkei living in
Japantown was 95%.
7. What year marked the
first mass immigration of
Japanese overseas?
8. In what year did
Japanese Americans
finally obtain the
right to naturalization?
9. Which school was
designated the gathering
place for San Franciscans being
sent to Tanforan Assembly Center?
10. Who founded the Nichi Bei
Times?
(answers on p.14)
Task Force Meetings
Join Us!
All Japantown Task Force take place at our office at 1765
board and committee meetings are Sutter Street (JACL building) in
open to the public, and we Japantown.
welcome your attendance and
comments. Also, if you’d like to join
Board meetings: Every 4th Monday of
our email list for announcements,
the month at 6:00pm.
meetings, and updates, just email
Communications Committee: Every
3rd Tuesday at 5:00pm.
us at heiwa@jtowntaskforce.org.
All Japantown Task Force meetings
16
stone river in the Buchanan Mall.The
cleaning machine can be pushed or
driven and has a wet vacuum cleaning
process that places litter cleanly into
a replaceable trash bag, located under
the hood of the vehicle.
With the combined efforts
of civic investment and the Litter
Hawk, our hopes of keeping J-town
clean are closer to being realized.
Over the next year, we plan to
expand cleaning efforts beyond the
malls and into the sidewalks and
community spaces throughout the
rest of J-town. We also plan to set
up a schedule for larger property
owners, such as local churches and
apartment buildings, to use the
Litter Hawk, for a nominal fee, which
will pay for trained operators from
the community. If you would like to
learn more, please email us at
heiwa@jtowntaskforce.com.
5
1600 Webster
SFRA Hearing on the Former Japantown Bowl
Focus Groups
Addressing the Japanese-Speaking Community
by Yoko Tsukuda
continuance of 3 months to allow
the Task Force to negotiate a mutually
agreed upon community benefit at
the Aug. 16 hearing. Various people
at the hearing voiced divergent
positions. McInerney announced
that he would donate 100% of his
23 shares in the Nihonmachi
Parking Corporation as a
community benefit to Kimochi, Inc.,
Japantown’s senior service
organization.
The Redevelopment Agency
Commissioners disclosed that each
member had been approached by
the developer and had separate
meetings,
lunch
and/or
conversations with him to discuss
the 1600 Webster Street proposed
development prior to their vote. The
SFRA Commissioners voted on the
approval of the Owner Participation
Agreement with 1600 Webster
Street Associates LLC, owner/
developer of the former Japantown
Bowl site, and conditional approval
of the schematic design 5-2 in favor
of the project with Chantel Walker
and
Kathryn
Palamountain
dissenting.
It is unclear as to what the
donation of 23 shares of the
Nihonmachi Parking Corporation
On Aug. 16, the San
Francisco Redevelopment Agency
Commission voted 5 to 2 in favor of
developer John McInerney III’s plan
to build 48 residential condominiums
including 2 affordable units (meeting
the City’s mandate of at least 5%
affordable housing units per housing
project), 3,000 square feet of
ground floor commercial space, and
55 off-street parking spaces on the
site.
The Japantown Task Force,
Inc.’s staff delivered the official Task
Force position to request a
Rats!
Concerned about the serious
possibility of Japantown being
overrun by rats as the 1600
Webster site is demolished, the
Task Force contacted the Mayor’s
Office of Neighborhood Services
to see what can be done to
prevent such a problem. A
representative there informed us
that it was the responsibility of
the developer to eradicate
the rats in the
building prior
to demolition.
In the
meantime, we’ll be
keeping an eye out.
1600 Webster (cont’d on p.12)
6
The project I am doing focuses on Nikkei residents in
Japantown, especially those who
speak Japanese as their first language.
In fact, the Japanese-speaking
population
are
mostly seniors.
They not only notice any small
changes
within
Japantown sooner
than anyone but
also are strongly affected by those
changes because they spend most
of their time in J-town. Therefore,
their voices are very important to
us, the Japantown Task Force. However, it is not easy for such Japanese-speaking seniors to express
their concerns regarding their community publicly. Because many of
them do not understand English
well and because of physical difficulties, many of them hesitate to attend community meetings.
This focus-group project aims to
reach out to
Japanesespeaking seniors who are
strongly affected
by
changes of the
community but
have few opportunities to
express their
concerns. Their important voices
must be reflected in the Task
Force’s future community plan. As
a Japanese-speaker, I hope more
Japanese speakers will be involved
in the process of community building with us. We welcome your
voices whatever language you
speak!
Bike Lane (cont’d from pg.13)
Task Force, working in collaboration
with the Japantown Merchant’s Association, succeeded in stopping the
second trial re-striping of Post in
May. Although both sides would like
to come up with a mutually agreed
upon alternative, the Coalition,
through the Committee for Post
Street Traffic Calming, is gaining sup-
port through a petition for a bike
lane on Post St. Whether or not
there is currently enough support
to implement the plan is not yet
known, but the Merchants Association has begun passing around it’s
own petitions against the
proposed bike lane.
15
about the fragmentation that exists
in our J-town communities. How
do we put the community back together? Why did I come here?
I came back to Japantown because I believe the fragments of my
family and friends are worth restoring into a new mosaic that is
“Japantown.” There are very few
original buildings left and there are
very few original Japantown residents and businesses left as well.
Japantown is more than buildings.
Japantown consists of an infrastructure built of strong family, friendship,
cultural and ethical ties…a diversity
of human beings spanning many
generations, new immigrants and
hibakusha.
Many people do not understand why a human and civil rights
advocate and labor organizer would
come to try and pick up the pieces
of Japantown. This is because they
do not know what a union is or
what community means. The main
premise of a union is to pool resources to help one another out,
promote justice and peace. The
main premise of a community
should be the same. I just think
many people have lost sight of “community.” They can only see themselves.
My grandmother had very
little in the form of material things
but she gave me everything that is
important…a life spirit and pride
that will endure extreme hardship
and cruelty. We each have someone like my grandmother inside ourselves. Remember 9-11. Remember our own hibakusha (Hiroshima
and Nagasaki bomb survivors).
Our community, our family,
our history, our culture is worth saving. Help the Japantown Task Force
hone the “community plan” and revitalize Japantown. I welcome you
to join us to listen and voice your
concerns for our community. Let’s
pick up and put the pieces together.
Linda Jofuku, Executive Director
Japantown Task Force, Inc.
1. False, Brazil has a population of 1.3 million
Japanese in contrast to 1.15 million in the US.
2. South of Market & Chinatown
3. 2,000 Japanese and Mexican laborers in
Oxnard, CA formed the Japanese Mexican Labor
Alliance in 1903 to protest exploitative contracting
relationships and wages well below prevailing
standards. Despite attacks leaving 4 Japanese
and Mexican workers wouded, and 1 dead, the
JMLA succeeded.
4. c) 1500
5. c) 6,000
Director’s Message (cont’d from pg. 3)
Sources: Yuji Ichioka’s The Issei,
NJAHS Nikkei Heritage Vol. XII, No. 3,
Vol. XII, No. 4, Vol XIII, No. 1.
6.True.
7. On May 17, 1868 the Scioto set sail out of
Yokohama for Hawaii, carrying 153 Japanese
migrants bound for employment on the sugar
plantations.
8. 1952 with the passage of the McCarran Bill.
9. Kinmon Gakuen
10. Shichinosuke Asano
Answers for Quiz (p.16):
14
Landmarking Japantown
What Does it Mean to be a Landmark?
by Chris Durazo
On Sept. 4, the Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board (LPAB), a mayoral appointed advisory group to the
SF Planning Department held its
monthly public board meeting at the
Japanese Cultural and Community
Center of Northern California, and
unveiled its proposal to consider making two buildings in Japantown
citywide landmarks and ultimately to
designate Japantown as a historical district.
This came as a surprise to many
community members at the meeting,
including the Japantown Task Force
(JTF) and representatives of the two
buildings, Hokubei Mainichi and
Kinmon Gakuen. When questioned
whether LPAB spoke with the owners of the buildings or looked through
the Japantown Draft Community Plan,
they claimed that they had not.
The Task Force invited Tim
Kelley, LPAB President, to the Oct. 28
JTF Board Meeting, along with representatives from Hokubei Mainichi,
Kinmon Gakuen, and Nihonmachi
Little Friends. The goal was to better
understand what it means to be a
Landmark and what the LPAB is going to do to better communicate with
the community, especially with the
owners of the buildings that have been
chosen for consideration for Landmark status.
Much discussion revolved
around whether the benefits of
landmarking a site outweighed the disadvantages. Kelley provided a list of
tax benefit incentives that owners
could access, but was unclear about
how non-profits might be able to capitalize on these benefits. He also
pointed out the weakness of having a
landmark within a redevelopment
project area by explaining, “Redevelopment is a state chartered agency
and can exempt itself from these controls.”
As the meeting continued, the
Task Force Board expressed their
commitment to working with LPAB
to help improve communications between them and the community. The
Task Force hopes to provide avenues
to hear public comment on LPAB’s
Japantown Historical Context Statement* and support LPAB’s efforts to
provide neighborhood workshops
on the pros and cons of becoming a
city landmark. JTF Board members
will also be looking through the draft
Japantown Community Plan for language, which should be added into the
Historical Context Statement.
*A copy of LPAB’s Japantown Historical Context Statement can be seen on our website
www.jtowntaskforce.org/studies. Please let us
know what you think.
7
Captain Cashman
Bike Lanes
Capt. Cashman Addresses
Community Concerns
Community Expresses Concern
Over Proposed Bike Lane on Post St.
tober 6 with the murder Tony Chan.
The Sonic Lounge security guard
was shot to death in the Japantown
Parking lot behind the former
Japantown Bowl.The Task Force put
in a call to Cashman, requesting patrol around Japantown during the
early morning hours of 1 to 3 a.m.
The Captain granted a verbal request for more patrols during the
times many of the local nightclubs
close, to prevent any further such
incidents.
If you have had any difficulty
contacting the police department,
contact Kanamori and Sato,
Japantown’s Daytime Beat Officers.
Any concerns may also be directed
to the Task Force, who will assist in
dialogue with the police department.
On Monday, September 23,
Kevin Cashman, the new captain of
the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) Northern Station met
with the Japantown Task Force
board and members of the
Japantown community to hear their
concerns regarding safety issues in
and around Japantown. Cashman
stated that the SFPD is committed
to community policing – the community sets the priorities for the
department. For that reason, he
stressed the importance of the
community to fully express its concerns and report any crimes committed right away, including purse
snatchings, vandalism and damages
to property. Because the SFPD deploys officers in proportion to the
crimes that are committed, it is critical that all crimes, no matter how
trivial, are reported to ensure sufficient and responsive policing.
Japantown Patrol Officer Kiyotaka
Kanamori was also in attendance at
the board meeting. He, along with
Patrol Officer Wayne Sato make the
Japantown rounds seven days a
week, helping to ensure a better and
safer neighborhood.
The latest major incident in
the Japantown community took
place early Sunday morning on Oc-
Contact Information:
SFPD Northern Station:
(415) 614-3400
Emergency:
911
Non-Emergency:
(415) 553-0123
Anonymous Tip Line:
(415) 614-3451
Website:
http://www.ci.sf.ca.us/police/#
Several months ago, the Department of Parking and Traffic
(DPT) began repaving Post Street.
What most people don’t know
however, is that the DPT was planning to temporarily re-stripe Post
between Gough and Steiner,
thereby removing one lane of car
traffic and adding another for bikes.
The re-striping would be in
line with the San Francisco Bicycle
Coalition’s plan to create a network
of bike lanes to connect San Francisco neighborhoods. It would also
be the second attempt to create a
bike lane on Post, as the first failed
attempt, in 1999, was met with opposition by the Japantown Task
Force’s former entity, the
Japantown Planning, Preservation,
and Development Task Force
(JPPDTF), as well as the Japan Center Garage Corporation and
Japantown merchants.
At a Task Force Board meeting in May, Bicycle Coalition members presented their concerns surrounding the fact that a trial period
was not allowed for the bike lane.
According to one bike rider who
commutes on a regular basis, Post
is ideal because it already has a dedicated bike lane (which ends at
Steiner) and is the flattest route
Downtown. In addition, Coalition
members added, more opportunities would be created for people to
bike to work and the trip would be
safer with a lane dedicated to bikes.
While there are clear environmental, health, and traffic benefits that accompany the extension
of bike lanes, there are many who
are opposed to the idea. As you may
have noticed, businesses in
Japantown on Post routinely receive deliveries along Post and are
often forced to double-park. Nevertheless, because there are two
westbound lanes, cars can maneuver around the trucks and continue
on their way. The removal of the
second westbound lane may cause
serious traffic and safety problems
as cars will have to pass parked
trucks by heading into oncoming
traffic. At the same time, bikes and
numerous pedestrians, including
many seniors, may be endangered
by blind spots created by these
trucks. A Task Force member also
brought up concerns that the addition of a bike lane would create
bicycle
through-traffic
in
Japantown’s commercial core, which
is not conducive to revitalization.
Given these concerns, the
Bike Lanes (cont’d on pg. 15)
8
13
Japantown Demographics
Who Are Your Neighbors?
Japantown by Race
Some Other
Two or
Race Alone
More Races
3%
Native Hawaiian
5%
and Other PI
>1%
White
44%
Asian
30%
AI and Alaska
Native Alone
1%
November Events
Other Asian
1%
Southeast Asian
6%
Indian
4%
Pacific Islander
>1%
Chinese
31%
Korean
21%
Manga: A Century of Social
Commentary by Japanese
Artists in America: View works
ranging from Henry Yoshitaka
Kiyama’s Four Immigrants, the WWII
cartoons of Jack Matsuoka and Pete
Hironaka, to the more recent work
of Stan Sakai (Usagi Yojimbo) and Kaiji
Kawaguchi (Eagle). Exhibit runs from
Oct. 15, 2002–Feb. 29, 2003 at the
NJAHS gallery 1684 Post St., San
Francisco Japantown. Call NJAHS for
more info (415) 921-5007.
Filipino
7%
Total: 11,613
Total: 3,543
(NPC) means to future development
in San Francisco’s Japantown. The
property (parking lots) behind the
commercial corridor along Post
Street opposite the mall that
comprises the NPC is the only highly
visible property in Japantown
(Western Addition A-2 area) that
remains undeveloped.
The interior of the 1600
Webster Street building has already
been gutted. The exterior will be
demolished by the end of November.
The construction crew has informed
us that the construction will be
completed in 1½ years.
Some questions come to
mind. Where do all the rats go when
the building comes down? When
does the property get reassessed?
What happens to that tax increment
when the property is reassessed?
How much will the condominiums
sell for? How and when will
certificate holders be informed of
how they may acquire two affordable
housing units at 1600 Webster? Will
the residents start their own
Association? Keep your eyes and
ears posted.
based on the 2000 U.S. Census
SFRA (cont’d from p.6)
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Find Out What’s Going on in the Community
Japantown by API Subgroup
Japanese
30%
Black or
African American
17%
Community Events
half years to figure out how to build
an educational visitors center at Tule
Lake. They will be meeting on
Wednesday, Dec. 11, from 10:00 am
to 3:00 pm at the Japantown Task
Force office at 1765 Sutter St. 1st
Floor, SF 94115. If you have any
questions, call Pat Shiono at (415)
648-4453.
Silver Bells: Kimochi, Inc. invites you
to “Silver Bells” an annual holiday
arts and crafts faire in conjunction
with the first weekend of the
month-long Gara-Gara festival. Get
a head start on your holiday
shopping and support Kimochi, Inc
too. Faire runs Saturday, Nov. 30 and
Sunday, Dec. 1, in the Kinokuniya
Building and the Miyako Mall in the
Japan Center, San Francisco from
11:00 am to 5:00 pm. Featured are
Asian hand crafted items by Bay Area
artists. Admission is free.
Japantown Year-End Festival:
Check out the special discounts and
special merchandise at many stores.
Activities include gara-gara drawings
with a grand prize trip to Tokyo, arts
and crafts, koto & taiko performances,
mochi pounding and more! Nov. 2–
Dec. 31. For more info, call the
Japantown Merchants Association at
(415) 202-0350/(415) 567-4761
Future Events
Cherry Blossom Festival:
Japantown’s annual Cherry Blossom
Festival heralds the blooming of the
cherry trees. Event takes place on
the weekends of April 12 – 20. Call
the Northern California Cherry
Blossom Festival at (415) 751-3815
for more information.
December Events
Tule
Lake
Preservation
Committee: The Tule Lake
Preservation Committee is a diverse
group of individuals from federal and
state government, academic, forprofits and non-profits who have
been meeting for the past two and a Want to post your event? Contact us
at heiwa@jtowntaskforce.org
9
JTF board (cont’d from p. 4)
munities. This suggests that JAs
have structurally assimilated into
the American social system, yet retained their ethnicity and strong
ties to the community. Scholars
argue that it may be the long-term
consequence of the social and cultural orientation of the Issei, which
valued “peoplehood” and collectivism that shaped the attitude of their
descendents. We should really be
proud of the Issei heritage and ourselves. It IS a great community. My
reason for serving on the board of
the Task Force? It is too obvious!”
business in toys in association with
Lorraine Bozeman & Associates, also,
I own and operate a small kiosk
business Sweets & Company in Sacramento. I currently serve on the
SF Airport Commission, Board of
Directors for SPUR, Trustee for
Saint Francis Memorial Hospital,
and am a Board member for the
Pacific Asian American Women Bay
Area Coalition.
Why are you on the board? “I
have served on the JTF Board to
make a contribution to preserve
the cultural history, and integrity
Benh Nakajo: Japan Airlines / Ac- of SF Japantown as well as to help
count Manager
create a vision for the economic
vitality and growth of the commerWhy are you on the board? “To cial area.”
make a positive difference in the
future of the Japanese American Jon Osaki: Executive Director,
community, to preserve and pro- Japanese Community Youth Countect the Japanese culture and the cil
area of Japantown for generations
to come, and to ensure the con- Why are you on the board? “I
tinuance of “things” Japanese to be joined the board of the Task Force
shared with the greater commu- because I believe that youth must
nity and with the City of San Fran- be at the forefront of any commucisco. To leave a legacy for the fol- nity planning effort. Without them,
lowing generations so that the an- Japantown has no future as a comcestors who struggled and worked munity.”
so hard to build their lives and
build Japantowns and fought to Pat Shiono: Community activist,
become the fabric of American will research scientist, fundraiser.
never be forgotten.”
Why are you on the board? “I
Caryl Ito: I have an outside sales am
concerned
that
SF’s
10
Nihonmachi will soon disappear.
The Nikkei community must come
together right now to support
projects like Kokoro and
Nihonmachi Little Friends that are
leading the way to bring new life
back to Japantown. I look forward
to someday having a performing
arts venue in Nihonmachi and
other nice places where we can all
go to have fun. We also need to
develop a strong economic base
and entice new families to shop and
enjoy what Nihonmachi has to offer.”
Tak Matsuba: Import/export business and also an EMC (electrical
magnetic compatiblility) agent for
a manufacturer, NoiseKen, for
North America.
Why are you on the board? “I
was with the previous Task Force
and felt we need to pull our resources together to help ourselves
to see this community will continue to survive and the businesses
to thrive.”
David Ishida: U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services, Administration on Aging. Regional Administrator for AoA, Region XI.
Why are you on the board? “I
am on the Board as I am committed to the vision and the goals of
the Community Plan to provide
ideas and strategies to preserve
and develop Japantown as a viable,
vibrant neighborhood by revitalizing its commercial and cultural district into a local, state, national and
international resource. We envision strengthening the ethnic diversity of San Francisco by bringing together the culture and history of the Nikkei community into
the Japantown center for all to
share, and to create an atmosphere
of safety, beauty, and prosperity for
the residents, organizations and
businesses all residing in the neighborhood for now and in the future.”
Task Force Wish List
Digital Camera, paper clips,
tea, laser printer paper, plastic sheet
covers, paper plates, napkins, plastic forks, technical assistance for
web design and/or DSL installation,
and a heavy-duty paper shredder.
If you are willing to donate any of
the above, please contact us at
(415) 346.1239. Thanks!
11