Franciscans are showing new signs of optimism and our city no doubt faces serious challenges from the pandemic, Public Safety concerns and negative media. But despite all that, we saw a slight increase in the voters who think that the current Economic Conditions are better than a year ago. This is a very important. Thats right. And not only that, san franciscans are more optimistic about the state of our city, but they are ready to take action. Well dive into the poll results later. A bit later on. But one thing is clear San Francisco voters are supportive of taking action at the ballot for a change in our city, especially when it comes to making it easier to do business and increasing Public Safety. Im confident that 2024 will be a year that lays the foundation for a stronger, more inclusive and even more innovative San Francisco, a foundation that is actually being built by people in this very room here today. And it feels like literally almost every day i get a call from a Member Company who has a new activation idea for the downtown, a new innovator who has technology thats emerging here in San Francisco, a group of volunteers who want to get engaged and knock on doors during Election Campaign season, or a student whos looking away looking at ways to encourage and get involved in our workforce in 2020, before we even dreamed of apec coming to San Francisco and hosting 21 heads of state, and before chatgpt was available to us on the phone, we had the same annual breakfast. And the theme of that breakfast was wake up San Francisco. That was a subtle call to action for san franciscans to Pay Attention of whats going on in our city. And since then, our city has faced unique and persistent challenges over the course of this last year. But i truly, truly feel the energy. I hope you feel it as well that people in their hearts want to change. San francisco. I think that san franciscans didnt just wake up, but we are starting to put pen to paper right now, implementing many of the visions and ideas about renewing and reimagining our city. The chamber of commerce is deeply investing in reimagining our Downtown Core to be more vibrant, resilient, diverse, and sustainable. Through the partnership of mayor london breed and our Business AssociationBusiness Association peers, weve helped push policy forward to make wins and make key investments in Public Safety, cleanliness, tax relief for restaurants, retail, hospitality, the arts and changing some of the city code that allows changes in the widest possible range. Permitted uses. In the downtown. These milestones will help the foundation to attract innovative businesses to San Francisco, and we are positioning all of us San Francisco to become a yes city. Yes to economic prosperity. Yes to renewing our city and yes to our environment. So everybody has a future here in San Francisco. Last june, we worked with some of our partners, deloitte, salesforce, citi, and the World Economic forum to put out a call to action inviting innovators from around the world to contribute to shape the citys future for an even greener future, starting here in San Francisco. And just this last month, these partners unveiled the yes Sf Initiative in davos. I want you to take a look at this clip here. Thats going to show you this important call to action. I just love that music. It makes me feel like i need to be productive or something. I want to thank uplink in the World Economic forum for this program. You know, this started off with more than 140 startups responding to the sf urban sustainability challenge and 14 top innovators were ultimately selected out of that. Theyre an impressive group, an inspiring group, and you may have met some of them just outside who were who were tabling. So stay tuned for more things happening with the sf. More announcements or some big announcements that we cant quite unveil yet. But theres some good surprises, so stay tuned. Um, we know that to build a stronger future, we have to come together and explore innovative ideas as the chamber of commerce. In the end, is a convener and my goal is to provide a table for thought leaders to come together to forge solutions in ways that we have never seen before. The Business Community has come together to brainstorm, refine and champion collective advocacy efforts, and these efforts are centered around making Housing Production pencil out in San Francisco, supporting our Small Businesses and making it easier and less costly for existing and new entrepreneurs to open and operate businesses. Increasing foot traffic in our downtown an obvious one, but to provide a more reliable Customer Base for businesses through events and programing and continuing to advocate for clean streets and safe streets so our employees resident family members, visitors want to come to the downtown and exploring ways to make conversions of existing spaces into new uses and to serve emerging industries. And finally, to make the downtown vibrant and just fun. We need this. So im inspired and more confident than ever that our citys future looks bright. And lets all say yes to San Francisco. Id like. Now, id like to take a moment to thank some of our sponsors and recognize some individuals here. First, i want to thank this years city beat pole sponsor, United Airlines. Thank you united. Give them a big hand. I also want to thank our additional sponsors, sutter health, bank of america and gensler architects. Wed also like to thank all of our Event Sponsors here that are listed on the slides there below. And uh, our Event Planning companies and everybody whos participated. This is a real assemblage of different vendors and specialties and crafts in San Francisco. I also want to recognize the chamber of commerce Board Members, and many of them are here today. Would you please stand up . If youre a board member . Now some people probably think were crazy because we have over 60 Board Members, but it is really a representation of the vast array and range of businesses here in San Francisco, both large medium and small. And i want to thank all the Board Members for your patience and your personal guidance as the chamber of commerce continues to grow. I want to point out in the back room that we have actually a beautiful heart with an image of the palace of fine arts there, and that is from the San FranciscoGeneral Hospital foundation. For those of you that are familiar, the Hearts Program has been in existence for 20 years. Its celebrating its 20th anniversary, and there are many just key leaders in San Francisco who have been supportive of that families and support of it. And really, its a public art display that i think makes us unique. I think on valentines day and the Hearts Program, its all kind of coming together and our love for San Francisco. So thank you for the San FranciscoGeneral Hospital foundation on. And thank you to our media partners, nbc and the fabulous emcee, audrey asistio, as well as the San FranciscoBusiness Times for their amazing work. And mary huss is here. Mary Just Announced her retirement from the Business Times. Many of you have heard that marys been the face of the Business Community for so long. And mary, congratulations and were looking forward to your next chapter. Its my honor to recognize a number of leaders from City Government that are here and really, its an impressive list. So maybe hold your applause, but mayor london breed, thank you for being here. Our assembly member, phil ting, District AttorneyBrooke Jenkins , assessor recorder joaquin torres, sheriff paul miyamoto, treasurer jose cisneros, catherine stefani, supervisor. Thank you. Rafael and thank you, supervisor. Um, director of department of public health. Doctor grant colfax is here. Sfo director ivor sotero is here. Director sarah dennis phillips. Thank you. And San FranciscoPolice Bill Scott is here as well. So give them a big hand. These are very tough jobs. I also want to thank you. And this is something thats close to my heart. Thank you for those who have supported unite sf. Unite sf is one of the initiatives in the chamber that is a Workforce Development piece, and this program is a collaborative effort with the San Francisco employers and the Business Community. And our educators, academia, the purpose is to really train our youth here in San Francisco and give them opportunities, skill sets to compete for living wage jobs in San Francisco. The chamber of commerce feels strongly that supporting our young san franciscans is a key, key piece to our future in the city. So in past years, weve done a unite sf event, a one day thing, a two day thing. We actually kind of stopped and scratched our heads and we want to make sure that youth is involved in everything we do all year long. So youll see students at every single one of our events participating and engaging with you. So here today we have about ten students from various schools in San Francisco. If you could stand up or raise your hand, that would be great. Well become students and if anybody has the opportunity to talk to them, introduce yourself. That would be great. So thank you very much. And finally, i wanted to thank you for joining us today. Uh, it says a lot when we have a turnout like this with standing room only in the back sold out. And just a reminder that if youre not a chamber of commerce member, theres a qr code in the program and you can become a member today, we really appreciate that because as in the end, lets not forget that it is you individually in your efforts that makes up the chamber of commerce. So thank you very much. With that, its my great pleasure to bring on stage the outgoing chair, Catherine Cahill. Thompson catherine took over as the board chair in the beginning of 2023 and has been a strong advocate and leader for the Business Community. She has led the chamber of commerce in stride through new challenges and new opportunities, and thank you, catherine, for your dedication, time and thoughtfulness. If you could join me on stage, thatd be great. We have a Little Something for you. Catherine, as a token of our gratitude, you have something you probably always wanted. Your own very own cable car bell. Its quite heavy , and it sounds great. If youd like to give it a ring, please do so. Okay thank you, thank you. All right. Ill try to talk fast so rodney doesnt have to hold that too long. Its been my honor to serve as board chair of the chamber this past year. Um, as you all know, it continues to be a challenging time for San Francisco, but im extremely proud of the work that the chamber has done to double down on the city, to push for the changes the city needs to make, to think outside the box and reimagine what our downtown could be. Um, im especially proud of the collaboration the chamber undertook this year, working together with other Business Associations, neighborhood associations, chamber members, the mayor, the board of supervisors to rally behind our city and collaborate for positive change in a way that just hasnt been seen in the city working together before. Um, i also want to thank my fellow chamber Board Members who are alongside me this past year, and especially my fabulous executive committee, alfredo pedroza, scott dunlop, david perry, lee gregory, poppy gamblin, jason geller, cammy blackstone, stephanie isaacson, noah clark, katie brown and mike grisso. I couldnt have done it without you, and i especially want to thank the Chamber Staff who pours their heart and soul into this organization and the city every day, particularly rodney fong, whos a true leader and a coalition builder. Hes worked hard through these challenging times and really lifted us up with his energy and optimism as you heard him talk earlier today, um, this process is far from over, but the wheels are in motion. With everything weve done this year, things are moving forward and we are going to work towards a cleaner, safer and more functional and more vibrant city. I know this momentum will continue you as i turn the Chamber Board leadership over to alfredo pedroza, Senior Vice President of local Government Relations for wells fargo. Alfredo has been my vice chair over the past year, and his insights and support have been invaluable. He is a native san franciscan with a deep love for the city and a true desire to restore the city to be a great place to live and do business. And with that, please give a big welcome to your new Chamber Board chair, alfredo pedroza. Woo buenos. Dias bienvenidos a city. Estoy emocionado y honrado de ser su president e de la camara de comercio de San Francisco. Primero quiero. Agradecer a mis padres de mingo y rosa. Pedroza por su apoyo y sacrificios no estaria aqui sin su amor. Los quiero mucho. Good morning and welcome to citybeat. I am thrilled and honored to serve as your chair of the San Francisco chamber of commerce. First, i want to express my gratitude to my parents, domingo and rosa pedroza, for their support and sacrifice. I wouldnt be here without your love. I love you both. In the heart of San Francisco. My parents journey unfolds as a resilient love story, blending their multi generational immigrant roots. The Mission District became home for my mothers family and love guided my dad to San Francisco. Their 53 year marriage is woven together by celebrations that took place in this iconic city where my dad, alongside my grandfather and uncles, a generation of mexican laborers, contributed to building downtown San Francisco. We see today. Despite their humble beginnings. My mom worked her way from secretary to accounting and sold tupperware on nights and weekends to pave the way for our familys success. Their dream of providing Educational Opportunities they did not have materialized in their four children with college degrees. As a son at the treasury department, a daughter combating cybercrime, another serving as a registered nurse at ucsf, and myself all thriving in the vibrant heart of San Francisco. Id like to acknowledge and thank the farmers and servers who are responsible for your breakfast here today. As your chair of the San Francisco chamber of commerce, its first openly gay son of immigrant mexican immigrants, native born san franciscan, i will draw on the examples and values of my inspiration, teachers and mentors, including the sisters of mercy, the daughters of charity, the christian brothers, the jesuits and the sisters of perpetual indulgence. All orders who have demonstrated their love for this great city. I extend my gratitude to our immediate past board chair, Catherine Cahill thompson, for her leadership. Our ceo, rodney fong, the talented Chamber Staff and my fellow Board Members for their incredible work and dedication in connecting resources and advocating for all, but especially Small Businesses all over the city and year round. Thank you to my husband, Wayne Bautista for 24 years of unconditional love and support. This journey would not be possible without you. I love you. I would also like to recognize my colleagues from wells fargo for their vital work centering customers and offering resou