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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCORRESPONDENCE - 75B_SACRED June 111h, 2013 Dear City Manager O'Rourke, Mayor Pulido and Councilmembers Amezcua, Benavides, Martinez, Reyna, Sarmiento, and Tinajero, SACReD, the Santa Ana Collaborative for Responsible Development, believes strongly in the importance of openness, transparency, and participation in city government. Throughout the budget forums and education established by the Sunshine Ordinance, community members have had the opportunity to learn and participate in our city's budget process. We greatly value this opportunity for civic engagement, and appreciate the efforts put in by City staff to educate us and answer our questions. We hope that City staff and officials also value our input and participation. Toward this end, we would like to convey to you our specific questions and concerns about the proposed budget for Fiscal Years 2013-2015, as well as the general objectives that we believe are most important to the well-being of Santa Ana and its residents. A Budget that Reflects the Needs of Santa Ana Residents Much has been said on the issue of public safety, as Santa Ana's proposed budget allocates a significant majority of spending to the Police and Fire Departments, even while crime in the city has noticeably decreased. SACReD's budget recommendations on public safety and in general are informed by three strongly held beliefs: (1) We believe that better living conditions and more opportunity include: community resources for youth, libraries, parks, job training, and safe and affordable housing, are crucial factors in maintaining a safe city. We believe these factors are being neglected in the budget and are particularly important in areas with low average incomes and many unemployed families. (2) We believe in the importance of participation, transparency and accountability in city government. We should continue the efforts of the Sunshine ordinance to create a budgeting process that is open to the community and accountable to their desires and participation. (3)We believe that cooperating with federal immigration enforcement through Secure Communities, 287(g) and the subsidization of a jail used by ICE undermines Santa Ana's attempt to create a safe city in which residents have a positive and trusting relationship with police and government. The City should respect Santa Ana's undocumented population and actively work towards building a relationship of trust between law enforcement and undocumented residents. Therefore, we urge the Council and Staff to take a second look at the budget of the Police Department and consider the following questions and concerns. - Police Spending: Over the next two fiscal years, the Police Department budget gpCRoo j will increase disproportionately more than the budgets of the Fire Department or Parks and Recreation Department. Why is spending on Police growing so much faster than spending on other integral community needs, particularly SANTA ANA COLLABORATIVE FOR RESPONSIBLE DEVELOPMENT ~CCM " -13 Colaborativo cle S;uila Ana piu-a el Des urollo Resporisalble 75B given the city's decreasing crime rate? Why are additional police vacancies slated to be filled, while other city staff and programs are being cut? Community Policing: We want to see a reorientation of Police Department activities toward community- oriented policing. o First, the Police Department's PAAL Program's coordinator should not be funded through Community Development Block Grant funds. CDBG money should be used for other needs that the community has raised. Second, the Police Department should develop a community-oriented policing program that involves walking street officers, community meetings, and more youth outreach programs. Public safety is a community concern - it is also something in which community must be involved. - Funding of the Santa Ana Jail: The proposed budget provides for increased spending on jail operations over the next two years, continuing a pattern of spending increases. We have been told that the city is still analyzing the Jail to determine how much of Santa Ana's money is lost through the subsidization of a jail used for federal - not local - activities. o Until the analysis is complete, expenditures on jail operations should NOT increase. o After the analysis is complete, ANY Santa Ana funding that directly or indirectly supports the work of Immigration and Customs Enforcement must be redirected away from public safety and towards programs that support strong and vibrant communities. o The excess money that has been spent on the Jail - both the projected increase and any future redirection of funds, should go toward the Community Resources and Development priorities outlined in the following section of this letter. - Community Resources, Development Priorities, and a Strategic Plan for Our City: Santa Ana desperately needs to have equitable distribution of funds, particularly for neighborhoods where a high quality of life is hardest to achieve. o In the cities budget presentation on May 28th, one of the largest "additional funding priorities" for the Public Works Department was over $250,000 in funds directed to the Floral Park Historic Street Light Retrofit. Floral Park is one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in the city. Rather than invest in retrofitting historic lighting, we believe that investment should be made in long neglected neighborhoods where needs are most acute. Investment should take particular consideration neighborhoods where high percentages of families live below the poverty line, there is high crime rates and violence, high density of population and renters, and areas with deteriorating infrastructure. If we invest first in the communities with the greatest needs, we believe it will have the greatest in improving quality of life for all in Santa Ana. o Example of neighborhoods that meet this criteria include Lacy, Chestnut, gpCR@~ Jackson, Minnie-Standard-McFadden, Harbor & 5th, W Myrtle St., Townsend, Cedar/Evergreen and Durant & 17th o A robust and thoughtful strategic plan will help tie together the many needs of the diverse population of Santa Ana. In the current budget, y: SAN'T'A ANA COLLABORATINTE FOR RESPONSIBLE DEVELOPMENT Colaborati~~o do Simla Ana piu-a cl Des u-i-olio ResponSahic $250,000 is allocated towards this strategic planning process. A thoughtful strategic plan must include participation of the people impacted by the plan. We should assure that sufficient resources are directed towards creating a strategic plan process that can truly include the voices of perspectives of residents. This vision is worth investing in. o Provide on-going funding for the new community center on 4th st for programming and community activities. Estimates are that this would require an on-going investment of $300,000 from the city. SACReD worked hard to make sure that this community center was developed, and now it is essential that funding is provided to make sure that is able to serve the community. o New Capital Improvement Projects of parks and recreation facilities to allow families and youth a safe and healthy place to play, socialize and build their community ties. o Job training and employment programs that target youth and homeless residents in particular. o An emphasis on education: more funding for recreational, after-school/summer/weekend programs for youth, and more funding for libraries and library programs. The libraries' programs for teens are especially successful and should be emulated and expanded. o Development of affordable housing, and staffing of code enforcement positions for existing multifamily properties. Through our conversations with code enforcement staff, we have learned that only one enforcement officer is currently available for multifamily properties, but the city has decided to fill an additional 7 positions for code enforcement. We applaud the city's efforts to increase code enforcement for the well-being or residents, however we want encourage the city to assure that the focus of these new code-enforcement officers is on health and safety in multi- family housing in high need neighborhoods and to coordinate with the County Health Department. o Bike lanes and pedestrian sidewalks should be developed in areas where people are likely to use them, particularly given Santa Ana's large population of children. The area by Ross and Washington is in particular need. - A local focus on health, arts, culture, and economic development initiatives o City residents want options for healthy and affordable food: grocery stores, farmers markets, and community gardens. o The city should preserve, promote and prioritize local Santa Ana artists in city expenditures on public art, art promotion or art education. The city should recognize that art in Santa Ana is not limited to art that is looked at, but includes art that is participatory, tangible, usable, edible. o Provide additional funding targeted at supporting some of our greatest assets in Santa Ana - local cultural and art centers, arts classes and dance schools that already exist in our non-profit community, and athletic programs and activities for our youth like the pCR@ Santa Ana Boxing Club. O o The city should only provide economic incentives that support locally- owned small businesses and entrepreneurs, or businesses that SAN'T'A ANA COLLABORATIVE FOR RESPONSIBLE DEVELOPMENT CWahorativo fle Santa Arai Jmra el Desarrollo Rcsporisah1e demonstrate a commitment to hiring Santa Ana residents. o Programs to promote employment and job training for youth and those who are homeless should be a high priority. o Community health education initiatives should focus on prevention and be intended for a multicultural population. Budget Transparency o A citizens commission like that formerly administered by the Human Relations Commission should be reinstated to advise and decide on allocation of CDBG funds, as a way to involve citizen participation in community development. Bowers Museum Issue o At the budget forum, we heard perspectives both in support of the city's funding for the Bowers Museum, and in opposition. Even within SACReD's membership, we acknowledge benefits and drawbacks to this investment. However we all agree that access to this subsidized museum should be increased for residents of Santa Ana. The Bowers Musuem should heighten and expand their outreach, relevance, and accessibility to local community members who subsidize it's programs and activities. o Musuems goal of providing free days for residents is not reaching the community. We encourage the Bowers Musuem to expand access to the residents of Santa Ana to more than just one day per month. o In the long term, we believe important questions need to be asked about the Bowers Museum funding and subsidy in Santa Ana. Why are we subsidizing this museum? What benefits does it provide to the city and city residents? What are our priorities for supporting art and culture in the city? Can money be used to more effectively support art in Santa Ana? Further Questions Regarding the Budget - The General Fund Reserves are forecasted to decrease dramatically over the next two fiscal years, from roughly $3 million to $180,000. Where are these reserves being allocated? Are there any plans to replenish them in future years? - We notice cuts to the budgets of non-departmental affairs, the City Attorney, City Manager and City Clerk. What kinds of services will we see reduced as an effect? SACReD remains deeply committed to a participatory budget process in Santa Ana, and OXCR940 we appreciate the work done by staff and Council to engage with the community and answer budget questions. Sincerely, SANTA ANA COLLABORATIVE FOR RESPONSIBLE DEVELOPMENT' Colaborilivo de S Yila Arta para el Desw-rollo Resporlsable SACReD Residents gp?CReO SANTA ANA COLLABORATIVE FOR RESPONSIBLE DEVELOPMENT Colaboralivo do .S Pita Asia pia-a cl Dcsx-iollo Respwisable