Item 26 - Santa Ana Climate and Public Health Emergency Resolution

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WHEREAS, only 4% of the City of Santa Ana's land is dedicated for parks and recreation,' and the City of Santa Ana ranks 85th out of 100 US cities due to lack of access to parks, amenities and acreage. WHEREAS the City of Santa Ana's Open Space Element Policy 1.3 calls for the City to achieve a minimum park standard of two acres of parkland per 1,000 residents. The City currently does not meet this per -resident standard, and the parkland deficiency is projected to increase further: the total "parkland deficiency" would increase from 107.56 acres to 299.48 acres with increased development projected in the General Plan Update. WHEREAS parks, playgrounds, greenways, trails, community open spaces and community gardens help keep people and their communities healthy. Exposure to nature in parks, gardens, and natural areas can improve psychological and social health. Parks provide children with opportunities for play, critical in the development of muscle strength and coordination, language, and cognitive abilities. Parks build healthy communities by creating stable neighborhoods and strengthening community development.4 WHEREAS, the City of Santa Ana is committed to providing and upkeeping access to clean water and cooling centers to the whole community — and especially to those experiencing houselessness to stop preventable deaths due to heatwaves; and WHEREAS, a study from the University of Notre Dame found that the City of Santa Ana was the city with the highest climate change risks and one of the lowest climate change readiness in the United States5; and WHEREAS, the economic and job opportunities presented by a clean energy transition far outweigh the opportunities presented by an economy supported by expanding fossil fuel use and extraction; and WHEREAS, the City of Santa Ana government recognizes the importance of any measures taken to decarbonize the local economy and uplift frontline communities being permanent, long term solutions; and WHEREAS, our community is committed to an equitable and just energy transition, environmental remediation projects to reduce exposure to lead and other environmental toxins, and to appropriate investments that offset the impacts of evolving industries and employment, as well as ambitious investments in green infrastructure and industries that will create jobs, decarbonize our economy, halt and reverse lead proliferation, and reduce future climate change; and WHEREAS, pursuant to the general police powers granted to the City of Santa Ana empower and authorize the City of Santa Ana to adopt land use controls to provide for the regulation of land uses within the City of Santa Ana and to provide that such uses shall be consistent with s Trust for Public Land Park Score. TPL 2020 Park Score. www.tpl.org a Gies, Erica. The Health Benefits of Parks: How Parks Help Keep Americans Fit and Healthy https://www.tpl.org/sites/default/files/cloud.tpl.org/pubs/benefits_HeaIthBenefitsReport.pdf 5 University of Notre Dame, "Climate Vulnerability of UAA Cities." <https://gain-uaa.nd.edu/matrix/>