Board Pkt 031726

File No. 260267 Committee Item No. Board Item No. 24 COMMITTEE/BOARD OF SUPERVISORS AGENDA PACKET CONTENTS LIST Committee: Date: Board of Supervisors Meeting Date: March 17, 2026 Cmte Board Motion Resolution Ordinance Legislative Digest Budget and Legislative Analyst Report Youth Commission Report Introduction Form Department/Agency Cover Letter and/or Report MOU Grant Information Form Grant Budget Subcontract Budget Contract/Agreement Award Letter Application Public Correspondence OTHER Prepared by: Jocelyn Wong Date: March 13, 2026 Prepared by: Date: FILE NO. 260267 RESOLUTION NO. Supervisor Wong; Dorsey, Melgar, Sherrill, Mahmood BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Page 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 [Expressing Intent to Establish the Sunset Irish Cultural District] Resolution expressing the intent of the City and County of San Francisco to establish the Sunset Irish Cultural District to recognize and preserve the history, legacy, and living cultural traditions of the Irish and Irish American community in San Francisco's Sunset District. WHEREAS, Irish immigrants arrived in San Francisco in significant numbers during the Gold Rush era of the 1840s and 1850s, driven from their homeland by the catastrophic Great Famine -a disaster that killed over one million people and forced the emigration of millions more; and WHEREAS, By 1870, Irish immigrants constituted approximately 13% of San Francisco's total population and more than 21% of its labor force, making them one of the City's largest and most significant immigrant communities; and WHEREAS, Irish immigrants arriving in San Francisco in the mid-19th century faced documented nativist discrimination, including prejudice in housing and employment, stereotyping in the press and popular culture, and organized anti-Catholic hostility that explicitly sought to exclude Irish Catholics from civic participation; and WHEREAS, Despite these hardships, Irish immigrants in San Francisco built community institutions, labor organizations, and civic infrastructure that shaped the character of the City, making enduring contributions to the founding of the City's labor movement, public safety institutions, and political infrastructure; and WHEREAS, The Sunset District has been home to a significant Irish and Irish American community since the 1920s and 1930s, when Irish Catholic working-class families Supervisor Wong; Dorsey, Melgar, Sherrill, Mahmood BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Page 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 settled throughout the Outer and Central Sunset, establishing the neighborhood's residential and civic character; and WHEREAS, The United Irish Cultural Center of San Francisco (UICC), located at 2700 45th Avenue in the Outer Sunset, was established in 1975 as a permanent home for the Irish and Irish American community of San Francisco, built entirely by volunteer labor and community contributions; and WHEREAS, The UICC houses the Patrick J. Dowling Library, the first all-Irish special collection library and archive in the United States, holding over 6,000 titles including books, memorabilia, artifacts in both Irish and English languages, and organizational records related to Ireland, the Irish American experience, and Irish history in the Bay Area; and WHEREAS, The United Irish Cultural Center has served as the primary gathering space for the Irish and Irish American community of San Francisco for over fifty years, hosting events ranging from Gaelic sports and competitive feiseanna to céilís, concerts, lectures, and civic forums; and WHEREAS, The United Irish Cultural Center currently supports a growing range of youth-focused cultural programming, including Irish traditional music education, youth piping and drumming instruction, Irish step dance schools, and seasonal Irish cultural summer camps, serving hundreds of young people from diverse backgrounds across San Francisco each year and ensuring that the traditions of Irish music, dance, and cultural heritage continue to thrive among new generations in the City; and WHEREAS, The Sunset District is home to Irish-identified commercial establishments along the Taraval, Irving and Noriega Street corridors, and the UICC hosts ongoing Irish cultural programming including traditional Irish music sessions through Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann and competitive Irish dance instruction through various schools including the Kennelly Supervisor Wong; Dorsey, Melgar, Sherrill, Mahmood BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Page 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 School of Irish Dance, Murphy Irish Dance, and the Whelan Academy of Irish Dance, providing the District with an active and concentrated center of Irish cultural life; and WHEREAS, As the Sunset District has evolved demographically and economically over successive generations, the preservation of Irish and Irish American cultural heritage in San Francisco requires active institutional support and public recognition to ensure that living traditions, community memory, and cultural programming endure for future generations; and WHEREAS, The San Francisco Cultural Districts program, established under Administrative Code Chapter 107, reflects the City's commitment to preserving the cultural heritage of communities that have contributed to the City's diversity and identity; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the City and County of San Francisco hereby expresses its intent to establish the Sunset Irish Cultural District in the Sunset District, with boundaries to be determined through ongoing consultation with the community and relevant City departments; and, be it FURTHER RESOLVED, That in establishing the Sunset Irish Cultural District, the City and County of San Francisco intends that the District serve to acknowledge and preserve the history and legacy of the Irish and Irish American community in San Francisco; to support the cultural assets, institutions, and gathering spaces that sustain Irish and Irish American cultural life in the Sunset District; to ensure that living traditions, including traditional music, dance, the Irish language, and civic heritage, endure for current and future generations; and to strengthen the cultural and economic vitality of the District for the benefit of the Irish and Irish American community and the broader Sunset neighborhood; and, be it FURTHER RESOLVED, That the City and County of San Francisco recognizes the United Irish Cultural Center of San Francisco as a vital cultural institution of the Irish and Irish Supervisor Wong; Dorsey, Melgar, Sherrill, Mahmood BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Page 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 American community in the Sunset District and a key partner in the effort to establish the Sunset Irish Cultural District; and, be it FURTHER RESOLVED, That the City and County of San Francisco intends that the Sunset Irish Cultural District will operate in a spirit of kinship and partnership with the Sunset Chinese Cultural District and all Cultural Districts, consistent with the City's commitment to celebrating and preserving the diverse cultural communities that define San Francisco's neighborhoods. Introduction Form (by a Member of the Board of Supervisors or the Mayor) I hereby submit the following item for introduction (select only one): ? 1. For reference to Committee (Ordinance, Resolution, Motion or Charter Amendment) ? 2. Request for next printed agenda (For Adoption Without Committee Reference) (Routine, non-controversial and/or commendatory matters only) ? 3. Request for Hearing on a subject matter at Committee ? 4. Request for Letter beginning with “Supervisor inquires…” ? 5. City Attorney Request ? 6. Call File No. from Committee. ? 7. Budget and Legislative Analyst Request (attached written Motion) ? 8. Substitute Legislation File No. ? 9. Reactivate File No. ? 10. Topic submitted for Mayoral Appearance before the Board on The proposed legislation should be forwarded to the following (please check all appropriate boxes): ? Small Business Commission ? Youth Commission ? Ethics Commission ? Planning Commission ? Building Inspection Commission ? Human Resources Department General Plan Referral sent to the Planning Department (proposed legislation subject to Charter 4.105 & Admin 2A.53): ? Yes ? No (Note: For Imperative Agenda items (a Resolution not on the printed agenda), use the Imperative Agenda Form.) Sponsor(s): Subject: Long Title or text listed: Signature of Sponsoring Supervisor: (Time Stamp or Meeting Date) Wong, Dorsey, Melgar, Sherrill, Mahmood Intent to Establish the Sunset Irish Cultural District Resolution expressing the intent of the City and County of San Francisco to establish the Sunset Irish Cultural District to recognize and preserve the history, legacy, and living cultural traditions of the Irish and Irish American community in San Francisco's Sunset District. n /s/Alan Wong