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Chairman Shawn Nelson <br />Supervisor O' District <br />Orange County Board of Supervisors <br />Hall of Administration <br />333 W. Santa Ana Blvd. <br />Santa Ana, CA 92701 <br />Re: Proposed Homeless Shelter /Normandy Place <br />Dear Chairman Shawn Nelson, <br />There appears to be some confusion regarding our position on the proposed homeless shelter located at <br />1217 E. Normandy Place. I was informed of this proposal by Supervisor Nguyen in June along with one <br />of our Board members (in a separate meeting). At that time, I voiced concern about the proposed shelter's <br />proximity to Kennedy Elementary School and time potential for impacts on traffic. I was informed that <br />there would be a new substation for the Santa Ana Police Department on the premises and that there <br />would be an external contractor that would operate the facility. There was an explanation that the City of <br />Santa Ana had declared an SB2 zone in the area that limited the location of the facility. <br />At the beginning of July, I met with the City Manager of Santa Ana, and he discussed essentially time same <br />proposal that was being forwarded by the Orange County Board of Supervisors. Again, I voiced some of <br />my concerns but had the impression that this was more or less a "done deal," and the only discussion was <br />regarding issues of implementation. I was not informed as to a date for a public comment meeting. <br />1, along with several Board members, the principal of Kennedy Elementary School, and District staff <br />attended a community meeting on Tuesday night. At that time, there seemed to be statements and <br />representation of correspondence from City and County officials that seemed to suggest that we, as a <br />District, were not interested and concerned about the issue. <br />Therefore, let me attempt to clarify our position on this matter. While we are greatly sensitive to the needs <br />of our homeless citizens - - in fact, as a School District we sere 6,000 of these students and their <br />families- - -we do not see this proposal as the preferable solution. Our concerns are probably broader than <br />what I will represent here, but the following will at least give you a notion of our concerns: <br />We are concerned about the proximity of this facility being less than 1000' from Kennedy <br />Elementary School. Certainly, the school and community have voiced their concern for the safety <br />of the children and safe travel routes - -and we would agree. However, we also have a <br />functionality concern as the proposed loading of the facility was stated as 200 residents, which <br />obviously can impact the capacity and studetu- loading of this school. <br />1601 E. Chestnut Ave., Santa Ana, CA 92701, (714) 558 -5501 <br />BOARD OF EDUCATION <br />Audrey Yamagam -Noji, Ph.D., President • Jose Alfredo HemSndez, J.D., mice President <br />Rob Richardson, Clerk ^ John Palacio, Member - Cecilia "Ceci" Iglesias, Member <br />85AA -11 <br />