S A N TA M O N I C A
REFLECTING THE CONCERNS OF THE COMMUNITY smmirror.com
January 28 – February 3, 2022 Volume CXXV, Issue 129
InSIDE
EURO InVESTMEnT FIRM BUYS SAnTA MOnICA WHOLE FOODS PROPERTY FOR OVER $50 MILLIOn PAGE 4
Report Finds That Santa Monica Spends nearly $5 Million on Homeless Outreach “I am not satisfied with what we are doing”, Councilmember says By Dolores Quintana A new report shows that the City of Santa Monica spends nearly $5 million on homeless outreach services. According to a new report, Overview of Homeless Outreach and Hygiene Services, commissioned by the Santa Monica City Council, the City has set aside $4,839,489 in the service of outreach to the unhoused, out of a total budget of $707.8 million in fiscal 202122. The 2020 homeless count showed that there were 907 people who were considered homeless and 601 who were considered unsheltered. The City’s shelter capacity is “186 interim beds for individuals, 67 interim beds for families, and 116 substance use treatment beds.” from a report issued in February of 2021 City Councilmember Phil Brock requested the report and, as quoted by The Santa Monica Lookout, said “I’m not satisfied with what we’re doing. We’re spending millions of
dollars, and we’re not seeing the results. We’ve been doing this over and over for so many years” Brock also stated that he believes that the number of the unhoused in Santa Monica may be much larger than what the official count has found and he said that the City Council had not been considering alternatives. Santa Monica City’s Homeless outreach teams are divided into generalist teams and multidisciplinary teams. These are the generalist teams: West Coast Care is managed by The Santa Monica Fire Department. It is a “nonprofit organization that provides proactive homeless outreach on the Santa Monica Pier and Beach. The team’s three outreach specialists engage people in their service area, offering essentials such as food, water, and hygiene products while providing information on Project Homecoming – the City’s family reunification program – and mainstream social services.” This plan is budgeted for $210,000 in fiscal year 2021-2022. Downtown Santa Monica, Inc. (DTSM) Ambassadors are not a service that is only intended to serve the unhoused community, but “ all Ambassadors receive specific training on de-escalation, engaging people experiencing homelessness and providing
Photo: Sam Catanzaro
referral information to local/regional social service agencies. DTSM’s Quality of Life (QOL) Ambassadors possess enhanced skills/ training and work collaboratively with the City’s outreach teams and first responders to effectively engage people experiencing homelessness while addressing disruptive and unsafe behavior in the downtown area.” This plan is budgeted for $1.3M for Tongva, Palisades, & Reed Park Ambassadors in fiscal year 2021-2022 with additional noncity funding of $2,365,434 for Hospitality
Ambassadors and $1,119,272 for Safety/ Quality of Life Ambassadors. These are the multidisciplinary teams: Homeless Multidisciplinary Street Team (HMST), operated by The People’s Concern and “services a discrete cohort of 25 chronically homeless individuals identified as the highest utilizers of local police and fire services. HMST is staffed by licensed mental health professionals, housing case managers, substance use specialists, licensed medical
Homeless, see page 6
Santa Monica named LEED Platinum City First city to achieve Platinum level certification in LEED for Cities Version 4.1. By saM CatanZaro
The U.S. Green Building Council has named the City of Santa Monica a LEED Platinum City, the first city to achieve Platinum level certification in LEED for Cities Version 4.1. Last week the City of Santa Monica announced its achievement. LEED was created by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and is the world’s most widely used green building rating system. LEED for Cities evaluated the City of Santa Monica’s performance on energy, water, waste, transportation, education, health, safety, prosperity and equitability outcomes. “For more than 25 years we have been using the power of community to enhance our resources, prevent harm to the natural environment and human health, and benefit the social and economic well-being of the
community for the sake of current and future generations,” said Shannon Parry, the City’s Chief Sustainability Officer. “This recognition is an acknowledgement of those efforts and an invitation to celebrate our successes. It is also an opportunity to look forward and identify new places to lead and to make positive change with and for our community.” According to the City, Santa Monica is the first city to achieve Platinum level certification in LEED for Cities Version 4.1 by achieving more than 80 points. The City received high scores in the Energy and Greenhouse Gas Emissions category for reducing emissions 60 percent below 1990 levels. Santa Monica also received high points in Transportation and Land Use for its transportation programs, residents’ access to transit and the overall distribution of public amenities.i also received the full 10 points available in the Innovation, Regional Priorities and Quality of Life categories. “The City of Santa Monica’s LEED certification demonstrates tremendous sustainability and climate leadership,” said Peter Templeton, President and CEO, USGBC. “LEED for Cities was created to help improve our living standard and ensure every citizen has access to healthy, green
Photo: Sam Catanzaro
and high performing places and spaces. Cities and communities that achieve LEED certification develop responsible, sustainable, and specific plans for green energy, water, waste, transportation, and many other factors that contribute to quality of life, such as equity, education, resilience, infrastructure and more. Santa Monica is a prime example of how innovative planning and collaboration can help achieve sustainability and resilience goals.”
Santa Monica is the 21st local government to certify in LEED for Cities Version 4.1 and is part of a growing group of more than 250 cities and communities to engage in USGBC’s LEED for Cities and Communities program. In addition to LEED for Cities Platinum certification, the City of Santa Monica was also recently recognized as an ‘A-List’ City by CDP as one of 95 cities across the globe that is taking bold leadership on environmental action and transparency.