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OCII honors Bayview and Fillmore elders; commissioners vote to continue Townsend tribute
Summary
The OCII Commission honored longtime Bayview and Fillmore community leaders Oscar James and the late Reverend Arnold Townsend on Oct. 15, 2024; commissioners voted 4–0, with one absent, to continue a fuller tribute to Townsend at the next regular meeting so archived video material can be restored and shown.
The Office of Community Investment and Infrastructure (OCII) on Tuesday honored two longtime neighborhood activists — Bayview historian Oscar James and the late Reverend Arnold Townsend — in a hybrid meeting at San Francisco City Hall, and voted to continue a fuller tribute to Townsend to the next regular meeting.
Chair Bevette Brackett opened the meeting and introduced short archival videos and readings recognizing James’s and Townsend’s decades of community organizing. Dr. Scott read an extended biography of Oscar FL James, recounting his 1946 birth in Bayview Hunters Point, work in BART and the redevelopment agency, leadership on joint housing and economic development committees, and long service as a neighborhood historian. After the biography, Mr. James addressed the commission and community, saying, "Let us keep strong, and I commend each and every 1 of you commissioners."
The…
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