OCII honors Bayview and Fillmore elders; commissioners vote to continue Townsend tribute

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 commission played excerpts of archived video documenting redevelopment-era organizing and the certificate-of-preference (COP) program, which commissioners and several commenters credited with preserving rights of return for displaced residents. Chair Brackett said the videos were produced by the COP subcommittee and other partners to preserve local history; she also said some archived material was temporarily inaccessible after what the meeting record described as "a hacking situation" affecting a vendor site.

Multiple residents called in or spoke in person to congratulate James and to honor Reverend Townsend. Lynette Mackey, Daniel Landry and others described personal experiences with the COP program and said they were recipients of certificates of preference. Demetrius Williams, president of the San Francisco Hyperlocal Building Trades Contractors Collective, said James’s presence and long-term advocacy had helped the neighborhood survive repeated waves of redevelopment.

Townsend, who the chair said had died shortly before the meeting, was honored with two short clips and a biographical reading that traced his activism with WAPAC, the Black Student Union at San Francisco State, and community efforts in the Fillmore. Speakers at the meeting urged the commission to archive and widely share the footage; one public commenter proposed naming a short street segment “Reverend Arnold Townsend Way.”

Because of the technical issue with archived videos, Dr. Scott moved to continue Item 7B (the Townsend tribute) to the next regular OCII meeting so staff can retrieve and show the full footage; another commissioner seconded the motion. The roll call vote was: Commissioner Aquino — Yes; Commissioner Lim — Yes; Vice Chair Scott — Aye; Chair Brackett — Aye; Commissioner Drew — Absent. The secretary announced the vote as "4 ayes, 1 absent." The motion passed.

Executive Director Thor Koslowski offered brief remarks recalling his early work with redevelopment and praising the two honorees’ mentorship. The commission also used the meeting to share community announcements: Chair Brackett said Hunters Point Shipyard’s crane would be illuminated Oct. 19 from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. and that Into Action would operate a new India Basin café with two local Black women–owned businesses starting the following weekend.

The meeting closed with a moment of silence for Reverend Arnold G. Townsend and a motion to adjourn; commissioners moved and seconded the adjournment and the meeting ended at 3:12 p.m.

Votes and formal actions taken at the meeting are limited to the continuance motion described above; no ordinances or budget decisions were before the commission at this session.