Minutes - August 2024 Regular Meeting of the JCGC Board of Directors

Regular Meeting of the Board of Directors 

City of San Francisco Japan Center Garage Corporation

(A California Non-profit Public Benefit Corporation) 

In-Person Meeting 

Thursday, August 22, 2024 - 10:00a.m. 

US Bank Community Room 

22 Peace Plaza, San Francisco, CA 94115 

Minutes 

Present: Jan Masaoka, Tom Hayashi, Brandon Quan, Robert Hsu, Henry Karnilowicz, Suzanne Medina, Kimberly Kolbe and Rodney Chin 

Absent: Edward Ong, Hagen Choi and Junichiro Ikeda 

Also Present: David Dunham, SFMTA; Francisco Lira, George Granizo, IMCO; Emily Murase, Japantown Task Force; Susie Kagami, KOHO; Greg Viloria, Japan Center Malls; Claudine Cheng, JCGC Corporate Counsel and Richard Hashimoto, Corporate Manager. 

1. Call to Order - Meeting called to order at 10:06AM. A quorum was not present. 

2. Board President's Report 

President Hsu expressed deep concern about the high number of vacancies on the JCGC board. He believes that a full board is essential for effective decision-making, oversight, and representation of the community's interests. To address this issue, President Hsu proposes reaching out to the community, not just within Japantown but also in neighboring areas like Fillmore and Geary, to recruit new members. 

President Hsu suggests that a full and diverse board, representing various interests and perspectives, would be particularly beneficial for the garage's success. This could include individuals with expertise in finance, engineering, community development or other relevant fields. By having a diverse board, the garage can benefit from a wider range of ideas, experiences, and connections. Ideally members would include individuals from throughout the city and the Board would benefit from a list of potential candidates. 

Director Masaoka expressed her desire to see more representation from the Korean American Community. 

3. Corporate Manager's Report 

a. For the month of July 2024, Revenue increased $54,848 which is 14% more than last  year. Cumulatively, we are $194,822 in the positive since recovering from the pandemic. 

b. Transient Vehicles for July there was a slight decrease of 591 vehicles (1%) below last year. However, cumulatively, we are still in the positive at 57,675 vehicles. 

In comparing the transient parking performance of the 21 city garages for the month of June, Japan Center ranked No. 6 in revenue at $329,014 and No. 1 in transient vehicle volume at 49,196. We remain at those spots for July with $337,989 in revenues from 48,157 vehicles. As mentioned before, this is truly remarkable for a neighborhood garage which indicates we are doing well in attracting people to the community. 

c. The demolition phase of the Japantown Peace Plaza is coming to an end and the waterproofing and design phase will soon start. Scaffolding on the ramp has been installed for plumbing work and shoring to support the Pagoda renovation will be installed in the coming weeks. The shoring will be in place through Spring 2025. During this time cars will be detoured around the obstacle and the garage will lose approximately 60 parking spaces. The SFMTA has been made aware of this and will waive the loss in parking revenue especially during our peak periods and festivals. 

4. Approval of April 2024 Minutes 

Initially deferred due to a lack of a quorum; at 10:35 a.m. Director Hayashi arrived, and a quorum was established. The Board returned to the approval of the minutes. It was moved by Director Masaoka and seconded by Director Medina to approve the minutes from the regular meeting of April 18, 2024. The motion was approved unanimously. 

5. Corporate Counsel's Report 

a. UCSF Employee Parking Agreement 

Undergoing discussions. A minimum of 50 spaces, $200 per space for a minimum monthly rental of $10,000 with the possibility of increasing up to 400 spaces. 

UCSF is not ready to sign the agreement, but hopefully the paperwork will come through in the next week or two. 

b. Nominations 

What the terms of office should be? With changes to the Bylaws we have found at times officers would be serving 2 years while others were serving 3 years, and multiple other variations. As we look for new Board members, this may be a good time to review terms of office as well through the Bylaws committee, before we move forward with recruiting. 

The Bylaws committee should review the prerequisites for nominating new Board members. Then the Nominations Committee can begin recruiting. The Bylaws committee is chaired by Director Masaoka, with Directors Choi, and Quan as members. 

The Board can fill vacancies without the annual meeting. The Annual meeting is more for the election of Officers. 

Regarding filing vacancies, the nomination committee can nominate candidate(s) to fill vacant seat(s) as needed throughout the year. Otherwise, the current Bylaws provide for the election of directors serving 2-year terms during Annual Meetings and election of officers annually during the annual meeting, 

If the Board wishes to change the term of office, the Bylaws committee will need to review and make recommendations of the change to the Board. The Bylaws have not been reviewed for a few years and Director Chin volunteered to join the Bylaws committee. 

Director Hsu commented that the understaffed board makes it challenging to fill committee positions. Therefore, board recruitment should be one of the priorities. The Nomination Committee is currently chaired by Director Ong with Director Medina and Ikeda as members. 

Counsel Cheng reminded the Board that pursuant to the Lease signed with SFMTA, the board is bound by the Sunshine Ordinance requiring all meetings, including the committee meetings, to be in person and transparent. Changing the requirement would require an amendment of the Lease, meaning that the City Attorney's office has to review the change and an amendment to be voted by the SFMTA board. This process can take quite a few months. 

A comment was also made about the challenges of having committee meetings in person because some meetings only take 5-10 minutes, and it may be a hardship for those members who have to come into the City from the East Bay. Corporate Manager Hashimoto also asked why a sister parking corporation is able to allow virtual meetings. 

Counsel Cheng responded that it is her job to advise the Board about governance and compliance, and it is the Board's decision to comply. However, she will look into the possibility of amending the Lease if the Board wishes for a change. 

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6. SFMTA Report 

In response to a question about adding electric vehicle charge stations, Mr. Dunham replied that all existing chargers were updated around November last year. There are no current plans to increase the number of charge stations at any City garages. Although, the MTA is looking into federal and state grants for funding. 

The main concern in increasing the number of EV chargers city-wide is the power grid capabilities that will require grid upgrades if there is a demonstrated demand, but there are no known plans to upgrade the grid upgrades as of now. The Safeway parking lot has recently added EV charges, but that is a private transaction. 

7. Treasurer's Report 

February 2024 

Balance Sheet 

Total Changes in Current Assets, Liabilities and Equity is at a positive $41,459.97. This increase is largely due to the growing balance in the Capital Improvement Account. 

Profit and Loss 

For the 10 months of the FY, Profit and Loss Comparison is at 83.33% to the Approved Budget 

• Overall Total Income is 80.08% and for the month shows an increase of $9,619 and Year to Date at a positive $111,133. 

For Expenses 

• Total Expenses are at 85.96%, which is a 2.63% more than the approved budget. The increases are mainly due to the increase in labor that are described in the summary and prior year invoices paid in the fiscal year. 

• Number of Transient Vehicles for the month increased 2,010 vehicles over the same period last year and Year to Date remains at a positive of 23,011. 

• No change in Monthly Vehicles and Year to Date reporting a decrease of 73 accounts. This decrease is associated to alternative means of transportation such as Muni and ride hail services. 

March 2024 

Balance Sheet 

• Total Changes in Current Assets, Liabilities and Equity is negative <$196,529.01>. This is because the operator paid two months of monthly parking revenue in March. 

Profit and Loss 

For the 11 months of the fiscal year is at 91.66% to Approved Budget 

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• Overall Total Income is 95.39% and income for the month decreased <$32,949> but Year to Date is still at a positive at $78,184. 

For Expenses 

• Total Operating Expenses are at 95.39% to budget which is 3.73% above the month's approved budget allocation as explained in the monthly report 

• Number of Transient Vehicles increased 4,012 vehicles for the month over prior year and YTD is at +27,023 vehicles 

• Monthly Vehicles decreased 46 accounts with YTD is at a negative <119> accounts 

April 2024 

Since April is the end of our fiscal year and the annual audit has not been completed, the audited April financial statement will be presented at the following meeting. 

President Hsu made motion to accept February 2024 financial statement. Director Kolbe seconded and the motion was unanimously accepted. 

Director Hayashi made motion to accept the March 2024 financial statement and was seconded by President Hsu. The motion was unanimously accepted. 

8. Committee Reports 

a. Audit and Finance Committee - Director Chin stated that the committee met with 

Ben Lau from MGO to review this year's audit which included accounting policies and practices, year-end adjustments and changes in policies. As usual, the overall audit was sufficient in reporting practices. Therefore, the committee recommends that the Board accept the audit from MGO 

Mr. Hashimoto stated that every year for the past 4-5 years, we have had very good experience with MGO. Prior to MGO, audits would require an onsite audit team consisting of multiple people to inspect documentation. MGO has streamlined this practice by JCGC staff uploading documents to a ShareFile. This uploading of documents reduces labor costs thereby reducing the expense. Mr. Hashimoto further acknowledges the thoroughness of MGO for their due diligence in ensuring our numbers are correct. 

A motion was to accept the MGO audited report made by Director Masaoka and seconded by Director Hsu. The motion was carried unanimously. 

A motion to accept the management report was made by Director Karnilowicz, seconded by Director Medina. The motion was unanimously approved. 

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b. Community Participation and Marketing Committee 

President Hsu stated that the committee met on Tuesday August 13, 2024 to review funding requests. However, prior to discussing the requests, President Hsu recapitulated a previous discussion where the committee oversaw 2 separate funds...Community Participation and Marketing. The problem with this was that when one fund was short, the committee had to request a transfer from one fund to another which puts limitations on approving the requests. The committee and the board previously approved combining the two funds under the Community Participation Fund and the application form was changed to be more efficient. 

Following a brief discussion, President Hsu clarified that at the February's board meeting, there was a vote by email to approve a request from the Cherry Blossom Festival. However, since there were limited funds in Community Participation account, and funds would have to be moved from the Marketing Fund account. 

Mr. Hashimoto stated that there was an oversight with the distribution and that the Cherry Blossom Festival had been accounted for and moving funds was not necessary. At the end of the fiscal year, there was a positive balance of $4,000 remaining in Community Participation and $6,000 in Marketing. A total of $10,000 was forfeited. 

Funding Requests 

a. Community Initiatives for SF Hep B Free for $3,000. 

The event is held outside of Japantown. Since JCGC has supported this annual event for a number of years, the committee is recommending the full amount of $3,000. 

A discussion ensued regarding the funding of events that are held outside of Japantown and their tangible benefits to the garages. The development of the criteria for evaluating this type of event has not been completed although the topic has been previously discussed by the committee. 

Director Quan indicated that many organizations in Japantown may be unaware of the fund and would need to be informed in some way. Mr. Hashimoto mentioned that the applications were available online but the JCGC was overwhelmed with requests, so the online posting was removed. 

Ms. Murase suggested targeting the SF Nihonmachi Community Coalition to help disseminate the funding availability. However, the approved budget amount of $60,000 is not that much to fund every requests. 

Ms. Cheng offered to work on a draft criteria based on previous discussion of the committee. 

A motion to approve the $3,000 to SF Hep B Free was made by Director Chin and seconded by Director Kolbe. Director Masaoka opposed, and the motion was approved with a majority vote 7 to 1. 

b. Korean Center for Chuseok Festival - Funding request for $5,000. 

This is another historical request that is held outside of Japantown but the event attracts thousands to the cultural specific festival. The office is located in Japantown and a show of support will be advertised in all of their print material. The committee recommends supporting the event at the Bronze level at $1,500. 

A motion to approve the recommendation was made by Director Karnilowicz, seconded by Director Kolbe. The motion was unanimously approved. 

c. Japantown Merchants Association GodzillaFest - Funding request for $5,000. 

Mr. Hashimoto stated that the monster icon is celebrating its 70th anniversary and is expected to attract thousands to Japantown during the two day event. 

Since the event will be held in Japantown and the garage will benefit from its attendees, the committee recommended the full amount of $5,000. 

Motion was made by Director Hayashi and seconded by Director Kolbe. Director Quan abstained since he is a member of the organizing committee. The motion was approved by a 7 - 1 majority vote. 

d. JCYC for Aloha Run - Funding request for $1,000 

This is another historic event off-site but is hosted by a well-respected community organization. The committee recommends the full amount of $1,000. 

A motion was made by Director Chin and seconded by Director Medina. The motion was unanimously approved. 

e. JCCCNC for Tabemasho Matsuri - Funding request for $5,000. 

JCGC has been a steady supporter of the event and attendees are encouraged to park in the garage. The committee recommends the full requested amount. 

Motion made by Director Karnilowicz and seconded by Director Medina. The motion carried unanimously. 

Nomination Committee 

The committee met on June 7, 2024 and recommends the nomination of Victor Lau to serve on the board of directors. Mr. Lau is the owner of Katachi and Amiko Boutique. He has been involved in the community, including merchant meetin

Mr. Lau was unable to attend today's meeting but expressed his desire to help promote garage use that will ultimately have a benefit to the merchants. The committee recommends approving Mr. Lau to join the board. 

A motion was made to accept the recommendation by Director Chin and was seconded by Director Hsu. The motion was unanimously approved. 

9. Community Updates 

a. Japantown Task Force 

ì. Working on updating internet, the whole neighborhood is a dead spot for 

high-speed internet 

1. Appreciate Garage support allowing teams to inspect the garage

2. Want to work in concert with Peace Plaza and Osaka Way projects

ii. Will help publicize the great parking rates on the Peace Plaza website

iii. Osaka Way schedule for late summer/early Fall next year 

iv. SFMTA is hosting a D5 Biking plan meeting 

v. SF received a Federal Planning grant for the Geary Expressway, starting next 

year 

vi. API Council is hosting Mayoral Town Hall on September 25 from 2-4pm at the 

Hilton Financial District 

vii. JTF is conducting a Housing Survey 

1. 120 responses so far 

b. Japantown Community Benefit District 

i. Working with Japan Center Malls, Japantown Merchants Association and Recreation and Parks Department to implement the second phase of wayfinding signage for the Peace Plaza reconstruction 

ii. New Street Lamp Banner Program promoting the JCBD "Yes We Are Open" 

campaign 

iii. New Visitor Maps being printed 

iv. GodzillaFest planning with the Japantown Merchants Association and the Japan Center Malls 

1. Free Outdoor movie night on Saturday September 15th at 7:30pm v. Working with JTF on the Accessible Business Entryways for businesses in Buchanan Mall affected by the Osaka Way construction 

vi. Fleet Week Neighborhood Concert Series on Wednesday October 9th at 5pm 

Since Directors Quan and Karnilowicz co-chairs the SFPD Small Business Advisory Forum, Mr. Hashimoto asked if they would like to update the board members. 

i. The forum is composed of the leaders of Merchants Associations or Community Benefit and Business Improvement Districts. 

c. KOHO 

Hosted by Assistant Chief David Lazar and co-chaired by Directors Karnilowicz and Quan. Hosted alternatively on Zoom and in person. 

SF Safe and corruption problems imploded. 

Those responsibilities have been taken over by the Community Engagement Division of the SFPD, and Lt. O'Meara will be speaking about their efforts. Services include residential and business security assessments. 

1. Soft launch at the end of June 

ii. Worked with SF Taiko and JCYC for a summer camp program 

iii. Worked with Chameleon Vintage for a lofi rap concert 

iv. Partnered with Nichi Bei Foundation for their Book Fest 

v. NJAHS and their Love Letters to Japantown focused on the effects of Redevelopment 

vi. Partnered with Nihonmachi Street Fair for their Children's World vii. Upcoming Events 

1. Bon Pop in Golden Gate Park on August 31 with community dance 

practices in the KOHO space; official opening sometime in September 

2. October 26 will be Destination Nihonmachi. Jazz music in the hotel, city pop in the KOHO space, and vendors. Funding from the Mayors Office of Housing and Community Development and Avenue Greenlight to highlight merchant corridors viii. KOHO space is available for rental for corporate trainings and as a community space for the community. There will be a market rate, and the community rate will be discounted by 60% 

10. Website Updates – Greg Viloria 

a. For Q2, transient data remained flat. Q2 includes the Cherry Blossom Festival 

b. Mobile use is still strong but desktop use is down 

c. The website has become secondary to mobile 

d. Google has connected all of their products so there are more options on ft 'mygooglebusiness" 

e. Top pages 

i. Daily 

ii. Validation 

iii. Monthly 

iv. Car charging 

v. About Japantown 

vi. Car charging is slowly becoming more popular

vii. Opportunity to take advantage of ad placement 

1. Need to develop a strategy for ads 

viii. Manager Hashimoto responds to all Google reviews 

ix. We have not taken ownership of the Yelp account, cannot reply to Yelp reviews 

11. Operations and Security Report - George Granizo 

a. Some car break-ins are not being reported to the garage staff 

b. There is an increase in catalytic converter thefts 

c. Staff have been notified to look out for vehicles that enter the garage without a license plate 

d. There is disappointment with the response by SFPD. They are not coming out to review cameras 

e. During the shoring-up process, we will lose 2 EV charging spaces 

f. The loss of the 60 vehicles will most impact the garage on the weekends g. The annex typically fills up before the main garage on the weekends 

12. Recess to closed session - No request for closed session. 

13. General Public comment on items not on the agenda - No comments 

14. Old/New Business, Announcements etc. - No comments 

15. Adjournment - Meeting adjourned at 11:53 a.m. 

Respectfully submitted, 

Brandon Quan 

Secretary 

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