[00:00:01]
THEN THAT'S IT.AND THEN MIGHT AS WELL JUST HAVE A PEN IN YOUR HAND.
INITIAL HERE AND THEN JUST SIGN IT.
YOU'RE OKAY? OKAY I'M GONNA GRAB THIS.
DID YOU FIND IT OKAY? WELL YOU'VE BEEN HERE BEFORE HUH? WHAT? YOU'VE BEEN TO THIS LOCATION BEFORE? YOU'VE BEEN HERE TO THIS LOCATION BEFORE? I DON'T REMEMBER.
I THINK A COUPLE YEARS AGO BUT NOT IN THIS ROOM.
NO, IT WAS TWO YEARS AGO BUT IT WAS IN THAT ROOM.
REMEMBER THEY HAD THE COOKING PEOPLE AND THEY HAD ALL THE FOOD.
IT'S EMPTY RIGHT NOW BUT IT'S HELPFUL THEN.
ONE'S NOT COMING TODAY AND THE DRY.
HOW DO YOU LIKE IT? NINE PEOPLE BACK AGAIN.
DID YOU TEST IT? I DID? UH, THIS ISN'T OVER BY 11 I HAVE TO LEAVE BY AT LEAST 11:15.
I MEAN IT'S OKAY I'M JUST LETTING YOU KNOW IF I HAVE TO GET UP.
[CALL TO ORDER]
GOOD MORNING EVERYBODY.I'D LIKE TO CALL THE ADVISOR OF THE COMMISSION ON AGING TO ORDER FOR OCTOBER 14TH, 2026.
[ROLL CALL]
CHINCHIA.COMMISSIONER CAVANAUGH? COMMISSIONER CAVANAUGH? OH THAT'S HERE.
[00:05:01]
HERE.FOR THE RECORD, UH, COMMISSIONER SUTHERLAND IS EXCUSED FROM TODAY'S MEETING.
AT THIS TIME, PLEASE MAKE SURE YOUR PHONES ARE SILENT.
AND COMMISSIONERS, MAY I REMIND YOU TO PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND TO MOVE, TO MAKE A MOTION OR TO SECOND ANY ITEM SO THAT WE CAN RECORD THE VOTE CORRECTLY.
COMMISSIONER CAVANAUGH, PLEASE PROVIDE THE ADMISSION STATEMENT.
ADVISORY COMMISSION ON AGING MISSION STATEMENT.
WE ADVOCATE TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF LIFE FOR LONG BEACH'S CULTURALLY DIVERSE OLDER POPULATION BY EXPANDING KNOWLEDGE AND SERVICES RELATED TO EDUCATION, HEALTH, HOUSING, PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION, SAFETY, TECHNOLOGY AND LANGUAGE ASSETS.
THANK YOU SO MUCH COMMISSIONER CAVANAUGH.
COMMISSIONER HINES, PLEASE ADVISE THE LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT.
THE ADVISORY COMMISSION ON AGING LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT.
WE, THE ADVISORY COMMISSION ON AGING RECOGNIZE THAT WE ARE ON TRADITIONAL AND SACRED LANDS OF MANY INDIGENOUS GROUPS WHO CALL THESE GROUNDS HOME.
WE THANK THEM FOR THEIR STRENGTH, PERSEVERANCE AND RESISTANCE IN THEIR SPIRIT.
MAY WE STRIVE TO ALWAYS HONOR AND RESPECT THE WISDOM OF OUR ELDERS.
[PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE]
WOULD YOU PLEASE LEAD US IN THE BLACK STATION? YES.EVERYONE WHO CAN STAND, PLEASE STAND AND FACE THE PLAQUE.
I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS, ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL.
THANK YOU SO MUCH COMMISSIONER BUTIER.
[1. 26-56421 Recommendation to approve the minutes for the Advisory Commission on Aging meeting of Wednesday, September 9, 2026. Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ]
ONE, RECOMMENDATION FOR FEW MINUTES FOR THE ADVISORY COMMISSION ON AJ MEETING ON WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9TH, 2026.WHO, WHO'S THE MOTION MOVED? DID YOU GET COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT? AND COMMISSIONER FRANCIS FOR THE SECOND.
JUST A QUICK REMINDER IF WE CAN USE OUR MICROPHONES AS WELL.
MAKE SURE TO TURN THEM ON AND PULL THEM CLOSER.
ARE THERE ANY, UH, CORRECTIONS OR QUESTIONS ABOUT THE MINUTES, COMMISSIONERS? ANYONE LIKE TO SPEAK ON THE MINUTES? PLEASE STAND.
ANYONE FROM THE PUBLIC LIKE TO SPEAK ON THE LAST MINUTES? CLERK, PLEASE CALL FOR THE VOTE.
COMMISSIONER CHANCHIA? I'M SORRY, WHAT, WHAT ARE WE VOTING? UH, VOTING FOR APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES.
COMMISSIONER FRANCIS? I APPROVE.
COMMISSIONER CAVANAGH? APPROVE.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT? APPROVED.
[2. 26-56436 Recommendation to receive and file a presentation on Adult Education from Long Beach City College. Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ]
TWO IS RECOMMENDATION TO CONSIDER FINAL PRESENTATION ON ADULT EDUCATION FROM LONG BEACH CITY COLLEGE.MAY I HAVE A MOTION AND SECOND FOR THIS ITEM? I MOVE.
UH, MOTION BY COMMISSIONER HINES.
I WILL NOW TURN THINGS OVER TO STAFF FOR THE PRESENTATION.
IF YOU ALL CAN HEAR ME, MY NAME IS SHARINA BARNES AND THIS IS MY COWORKER BIANCA GUZMAN.
WE'RE WITH LONG BEACH CITY COLLEGE'S ADULT EDUCATION DEPARTMENT AND WE ARE HERE TO LET YOU ALL KNOW ABOUT THE PROGRAMS AND CERTIFICATE PATHWAYS AND SOFT SKILLS THAT THE SENIORS CAN LEARN THROUGH OUR PROGRAMS. SO TO GET STARTED WITH OUR PRESENTATION, CAN EVERYONE HEAR ME? NOT TOO WELL.
UM, SO PART OF LONG BEACH CITY COLLEGE ADULT EDUCATION PROGRAM IS WE OFFER SHORT TERM PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL
[00:10:01]
DEVELOPMENT COURSES FOR NOT ONLY, UM, PROSPECTIVE STUDENTS, BUT WE ALSO ARE HIGHLY IN THE COMMUNITY.SO OUR COURSES ARE OPEN YEAR ROUND TO MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY THAT ARE INTERESTED IN COMING AND TAKING A COLLEGE COURSE.
UM, OF COURSE, OUR NON-CREDIT COURSES ARE DESIGNED TO IMPROVE SO THEY'RE NOT FOR ACADEMIC CREDIT.
HOWEVER, THEY ARE DESIGNED TO IMPROVE LANGUAGE SKILLS SUCH AS GED PREPARATION COURSES.
UM, WE ALSO HAVE ENGLISH IN A SECOND LANGUAGE.
WE OFFER CITIZENSHIP PREPARATION COURSES AS WELL.
AND SO A LOT OF OUR COURSES ARE MORE FOR SKILL DEVELOPMENT, EITHER PERSONAL OR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.
OUR STUDENTS ARE ALSO ABLE TO, UM, TAKE OUR COURSES AND RECEIVE CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETIONS.
SO FOR EXAMPLE, UM, WE HAVE COURSES THAT ARE OFFERED OVER AT THE SALVATION ARMY WHERE IF STUDENTS TAKE OUR COMPUTER KEYBOARDING SKILLS AND OUR COMPUTER COMPETENCY COURSE, THEY'RE ABLE TO COMPLETION IN COMPUTER LITERACY.
SO WE HAVE A WIDE VARIETY OF DIFFERENT AREAS IN NON-CREDIT THAT WE OFFER WHERE OUR STUDENTS ARE ABLE TO ALSO RECEIVE THOSE CERTIFICATE COMPLETION, ADD IT TO THEIR RESUME OR EITHER JUST, UM, UTILIZE IT AS A SKILL DEVELOPMENT GOAL.
AND ONCE YOU BECOME A STUDENT AT LBCC NON-CREDIT, YOU'RE, YOU EARN THE SAME RESOURCES ARE AVAILABLE TO YOU AS CREDIT STUDENTS.
SO YOU GET ACCESS TO OUR BASIC NEEDS DEPARTMENT.
WE PROVIDE A FREE METRO PASS SO THAT WAY YOU CAN GET TO AND FROM SCHOOL, UM, FOR THE SEMESTER AND THEN YOU ALSO HAVE ACCESS TO THE, UM, HEALTH SERVICES AND PSYCHOLOGICAL SERVICES.
AND I JUST WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT SOME OF OUR ADULT EDUCATION PROGRAMS THAT WE OFFER, UM, FOR THE COMMUNITY.
SO IN ADDITION TO THE ONES THAT I MENTIONED EARLIER, WE ALSO OFFER EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION.
SO FOR EXAMPLE, ANY COMMUNITY MEMBER THAT'S INTERESTED IN SETTING UP THEIR OWN CHILDCARE AT HOME, WE OFFER THOSE PREPARATION COURSES THAT, UM, HAVE THE KNOWLEDGE ON WHAT IT TAKES TO START DEVELOPING THAT BUSINESS.
WE ALSO OFFER, UM, OUR MOST COMMON ARE TRADES.
WE HAVE WELDING, CONSTRUCTION, FASHION DESIGN.
SO WE ALWAYS LIKE TO ENCOURAGE FOR THOSE THAT ARE LOOKING TO CREATE AN EXTRA HOBBY, MAYBE THEY'RE LOOKING TO, UM, DEVELOP THEIR SEWING SKILLS OR THEY WANT TO LEARN HOW TO TILE AT HOME.
UM, THOSE ARE WITHIN OUR TRADES.
WE ALSO HAVE OUR LIBRARY TECHNICIAN PROGRAM AND OUR BASIC SKILLS.
SO FOR EXAMPLE, UM, FINANCIAL LITERACY, MONEY MANAGEMENT, AND OUR MOST POPULAR, WHICH IS OUR COMPUTER AND OFFICE SKILLS.
SO HOW TO USE MICROSOFT OFFICE, EMAIL, UM, AS WELL AS KEYBOARDING, AND THEN AS WELL AS AI.
SO I GUESS OUR AIM IS TO, UM, CREATE A PARTNERSHIP, UM, SO THAT THAT WAY WE CAN HOST THESE CLASSES IN THE SENIOR CENTERS AND IN DIFFERENT PARTS SO THAT THAT WAY, UM, IT'S EASY, ACCESSIBLE, AND THEN TO GIVE THE SENIORS IN THE COMMUNITY SOMETHING TO DO ON THE WEEKENDS BECAUSE THE CLASSES WILL BE SCHEDULED, UM, ACCORDING TO, UM, TIMES THAT ARE AVAILABLE AND ARE APPROPRIATE FOR THE SENIORS.
SO ANY QUESTIONS? OH, IS THAT THE END OF THE PRESENTATION? THANK YOU SO MUCH.
COMMISSIONERS, DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? I HAVE A QUESTION.
SO YOU SAID YOU, YOUR GOAL IS, YOUR AIM IS TO HAVE THESE CLASSES IN LOCAL SENIOR CITIZEN ENTITIES IN LONG BEACH.
SO IF, IN OTHER WORDS, YOU DON'T HAVE THAT NOW? CURRENTLY WE DON'T.
YOU, YOU HAVE CLASSES, BUT THEY'RE NOT FROM LBCC.
HOW DO WE DO THAT? UM, THEY WOULD JUST, UM, TALK TO ME AND WE CAN GET THE PROGRAM IN OUR CENTERS AS LONG AS THEY WORK WITH OUR CURRENT PARK AND REC PROGRAMMING.
UM, AND THEY'RE NOT LIKE A DUPLICATE SERVICE OF OUR PROGRAMMING.
UM, BUT, AND, AND DEPENDING ON THE TIMES THEY'RE ABLE TO OFFER THEM AT OUR CENTER.
SO IT WOULD JUST BE A CONVERSATION, UM, WITH ME TO GET THEM IN OUR CENTERS.
UH, MY QUESTION WOULD BE IF THERE WAS A POSSIBILITY OF MAYBE DOING A CITYWIDE OR A LOCAL SURVEY TO FIND OUT WHAT SENIOR PROGRAMS MIGHT
[00:15:01]
BE, UM, NEEDED THAT ARE NOT IN EXISTENCE SO THAT WE CAN PROVIDE THEM.IS THERE A POSSIBILITY OF DOING SOME KIND OF SURVEY TO SAY, "WELL, THEY OFFER THIS AND THIS AND THIS, BUT WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE THIS AND THIS AND THIS SO THAT AT LEAST IT'S CURRENT." I'M NOT SURE WHEN THESE CLASSES WERE ESTABLISHED.
I AM A STUDENT AT LONG BEACH CITY COLLEGE.
AND SO BECAUSE OF THAT, MAYBE BECAUSE OF, YOU KNOW, CHANGES POST COVID, WHATEVER THAT LOOKS LIKE, MAYBE OUR SENIORS WANT SOME DIFFERENT TYPES OF CLASSES THAT PERHAPS WE COULD ALSO OFFER, ESPECIALLY IN THE EVENT THAT THE SENIOR CENTER MAY REMOVE SOME OF THOSE PROGRAMS THERE, MAYBE WE CAN OFFER THOSE CLASSES, LIKE WOODWORKING OR WHATEVER.
THEY WON'T BE GOING INTO THE NEW SENIOR CENTER.
MAYBE WE CAN OFFER THEM THROUGH THE COMMUNITY COLLEGE SO THEY CAN BE OFFERED THROUGHOUT THE CITY.
AND SO SHE WAS SAYING THAT HER, THEIR GOAL IS TO COME TO THE DIFFERENT SENIOR CENTERS.
SO I'M SAYING BECAUSE OF THE NEW, THE OLD SENIOR, WELL, THE OLD NEW SENIOR CENTER IS GOING TO BE, UM, CHANGED, SOME OF THE PROGRAMMING MAY LEAVE.
LET'S SAY THEY OFFERING BANJOING AT THAT CENTER.
IT MAY NOT BE A FEASIBILITY TO OFFER IT IN THE NEW CENTER THAT'S GONNA BE ON ELMAN, UM, FIRST.
SO PERHAPS BANJOING COULD BE A COURSE OFFERED AT EL DORADO PARK.
THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER HINES.
SO YOU GUYS CAN HAVE THAT CONVERSATION WITH HEIDI AFTER TODAY'S MEETING OR, OR, YOU KNOW, ON THE TELEPHONE AND THEN THAT WILL BE ABLE TO GET THAT ESTABLISHED.
YOU HAD INDICATED THAT YOUR, YOUR GOAL IS TO HOLD THE PROGRAMMING AROUND SENIORS AVAILABILITY.
DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA OF WHAT THAT WOULD CONSTITUTE? SO FOR EXAMPLE, UM, WE ARE CURRENTLY HOSTING A CLASS, A COMPUTER CLASS AT THE SALVATION ARMY, UM, FOR SENIORS.
AND THAT CLASS IS GIVEN ON SATURDAYS FROM 9:00 TO 11:00 IN THE MORNING.
UM, AND THEN IF, IF YOU DO END UP CORRESPONDING WITH PARKS AND REC ON A SURVEY, YOU MIGHT WANNA BROACH THAT SUBJECT IN THE SURVEY AS WELL.
WHAT'S THE PREFERENCE OF TIME PERIODS JUST? YES.
UM, I WAS WONDERING ABOUT THE FUNDING FOR THESE CLASSES.
HOW MUCH OF THE FUNDING MIGHT COME FROM STATE OR FEDERAL RESOURCES? I KNOW WHEN I WAS WORKING WITH THE, COLLABORATING WITH THE, UM, EMPLOYMENT DEVELOPMENT CENTER, UM, YOU KNOW, AND WE WERE A NONPROFIT, WE, A LOT OF THINGS WERE BEING, EVEN THE CHOICE OF SOME OF THOSE CLASSES, I WOULDN'T BE SURPRISED IF YOU TELL ME THAT THE FUNDING COMES FROM THE STATE PARTLY.
AND, AND SO THAT, I MEAN, THAT WOULD AFFECT THE FUTURE OF THIS PROGRAM, RIGHT? SO THAT'S THE GREAT THING ABOUT THE ADULT ED CLASSES, EDUCATION CLASSES.
THE ONLY WAY YOU WOULD PAY A FEE IS IF IT IS, UM, A NON, A CREDIT FOR NO GRADE CLASS, AND THOSE ARE BASICALLY LIKE WORKSHOPS AND, UM, THAT GOES TO ANOTHER DEPARTMENT AND NOT US.
BUT, BUT WHAT I'M ASKING IS HOW DOES LBCC FINANCE THESE CLASSES? DO THEY HAVE SPECIAL FUNDING? YES.
SO WE WORK THROUGH THE CAEP GRANT AND THAT'S HOW WE'RE FUNDED.
SO IT, UNDER THE CAEP GRANT THAT IT IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO GO OUT IN THE COMMUNITY AND REACH ADULT LEARNERS AND GIVE THO - THEM THE RESOURCES TO HELP THEM UPSKILL THEIR LIVES.
SO YOU, YOU'RE NOT, YOU DON'T KNOW IF IT, IF, IF THE PROGRAM RECEIVES STATE FUNDING OR FEDERAL FUNDING? YES, THE CAEP GRANT IS A STATE FUNDING GRANT.
MAYBE YOU COULD SPELL THAT OUT FOR ME BECAUSE I'M NOT HEARING TOO WELL.
IT'S THE ACRONYMS. IT'S C-A-E-P GRANT.
AND, AND DO YOU KNOW IF THAT'S WHERE THAT COMES FROM? SHE'S AT THE STATE.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMISSIONERS? I, I DON'T HAVE A QUESTION.
UH, YOU HAVE ONE OF THE BEST PROGRAMS IN HORTICULTURE AND I DON'T KNOW THAT YOU MENTIONED IT.
FINEST IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA, YOU DIDN'T LIST IT HERE AS ONE OF YOUR THINGS.
SO CURRENTLY IF YOU WERE TO LOOK IN THE CATALOG, WE DO HAVE A CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETION, UM, FOR A GARDENING CLASS, BUT IT'S NOT LISTED.
[00:20:01]
TAKE, UH, PUBLIC COMMENT ON THIS ITEM.IF ANYBODY WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK ON THIS ITEM, PLEASE STAND.
I'M SO GLAD YOU BROUGHT THIS TO THE COMMISSION ON AGING.
ONE OF THE CONCERNS THAT I HAVE, BECAUSE I WORK IN THE DIFFERENT SENIOR CENTER - REAL QUICK, BEFORE WE, UH, MOVE FORWARD, YOU'RE GONNA MAKE YOUR COMMENT, BUT THEY'RE NOT GONNA BE ABLE TO COMMENT.
IS THAT THERE'S A SATURATION OF EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES FOR OLDER ADULTS IN DIFFERENT SEGMENTS OF OUR GEOGRAPHICAL AREA.
LIKE OLLIE IS SATURATED, ALTHOUGH THEY'RE TRYING TO BUILD OUT, BUT THEY'RE SATURATED IN THE EAST SIDE.
SO AS YOU GO OUT, PART OF THE SURVEY THAT YOU BRING UP WOULD BE GREAT TO ADDRESS THE FACT THAT NOT ALL SENIOR CENTERS, BECAUSE THERE'S SEVERAL OF THEM, HAVE, UM, ACCESS TO THE SAME COURSES AND THEIR NEEDS MAY BE DIFFERENT IN INTEREST.
ARE THERE ANY OTHER COMMENTS FOR THE PUBLIC? OKAY.
COMMISSION? COMMISSIONERS, ARE THERE ANY OTHER FURTHER DISCUSSION ON THIS ITEM? CLARK, PLEASE CALL THE VOTE.
COMMISSIONER CHINCHILLO? ACCEPT.
COMMISSIONER KAVANAGH? ACCEPT.
[3. 26-56422 Recommendation to receive and file Superintendent’s Update on department business. Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ]
RECEIVED BY THE SUPERINTENDENT'S UPDATE ON DEPARTMENT BUSINESS.MAY I HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND FOR THIS ITEM? I MOTION.
WHO'S THE SECONDER? ALL SECONDS.
I'LL TURN THINGS OVER TO HEIDI FOR THE REPORT.
UM, SO MY REPORT TODAY, WE'RE GONNA TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT SOME OF THE PROGRAMS HERE AT THIS LOCATION.
UM, WE OFFER A WIDE VARIETY OF PROGRAMS THROUGH THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT.
UM, WE HAVE A TEEN CENTER, WE HAVE AFTERSCHOOL PROGRAMS, WE HAVE DAY CAMPS, WE HAVE SPORTS, WE HAVE OPEN GYMS, AND WE ALSO HAVE OUR SENIOR PROGRAM HERE.
UM, SO THIS IS CONSIDERED ONE OF OUR, UM, SATELLITE SENIOR CENTER SITES.
AND SO WE OFFER PROGRAMS NINE TO TWO, MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY AT THIS CENTER.
UM, MOST OF THE ACTIVITIES ARE DONE IN THIS MAIN ROOM, UM, NEXT TO US.
THEY ARE GONNA BE STARTING LIKE A ZUMBA CLASS OR EXERCISE CLASS, SO YOU MIGHT ACTUALLY HEAR SOME MUSIC.
SO YOU MIGHT ACTUALLY HEAR SOME MUSIC COMING SOON.
UM, BUT I DID PROVIDE YOU GUYS A CALENDAR OF THEIR PROGRAMS AND THIS TALKS ABOUT ALL THEIR PROGRAMS THAT THEY HAVE HERE.
UM, THEY HAVE QUITE A BIT OF FITNESS CLASSES.
THEY HAVE A ZUMBA CLASS THAT IS FAIRLY NEW TO, UM, THE SILVERADO SENIOR CENTER THAT STARTED.
THE LONGEVITY STICK CLASS IS VERY POPULAR AS WELL HERE.
UM, AND THEN WE HAVE A COOKING CLASS.
SO WE HAVE ONE OF OUR STAFF, APRIL, WHO SPECIALIZES IN DIFFERENT, UM, ETHNIC FOODS TO COOK.
AND SO SHE HAS A COOKING CLASS THAT SHE ACTUALLY DOES AT MANY OF OUR LOCATIONS IN THE CITY, UM, AND IT PROVIDES A COOKING CLASS FOR OUR SENIOR PARTICIPANTS AT THIS LOCATION AND OTHER LOCATIONS.
UM CLASS IS VERY POPULAR HERE AS WELL.
UM, OUR SUPERVISOR'S OUT IN LA RIGHT NOW PICKING UP SOME FLOWERS FOR THE CLASS THAT'S SCHEDULED TOMORROW.
UM, AND THEY DO A, UM, A ARRANGEMENT.
SO THAT'S JUST SOME OF THE STUFF.
WE DO OFFER A LUNCH PROGRAM HERE.
UM, SO HOPEFULLY YOU SEE SOMETHING THAT YOU'RE INTERESTED ON.
I DID PROVIDE YOU, UM, A COUPLE OF THE INDIVIDUAL FLYERS AS WELL FOR THE LONGEVITY STICK CLASS, AND I HAVE A FLYER AS WELL FOR YOU GUYS.
UM, SO WITH THAT, THAT'S ALL MY REPORT.
UM, SO I, IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, LET ME KNOW.
COMMISSIONERS, ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS? THANK YOU, HEIDI.
ANY QUESTIONS FOR HEIDI? COMMISSIONER HYDE.
I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THE MAKEUP OF THE, UH, PARTICIPANTS IN THE PARKS
[00:25:01]
AND THEIR, UH, UM, DIVERSITY AND, LIKE, FOR EXAMPLE, HOW DO WE ACTUALLY T - KEEP ACCOUNT OF WHO PARTICIPATES IN OUR PROGRAMMING AND AT EACH OF THE PARKS? LET'S SAY, FOR EXAMPLE, LIKE THE GUESTS MENTIONED, THERE ARE A LOT OF THINGS IN EL DORADO.LET'S SAY OUR PRIMARILY FILIPINO COMMUNO - COMMUNITY IS ON THE WEST SIDE.
WHAT IS THE MAKEUP IT LOOKING LIKE AS DIVERSITY INCLUSION GOES ACROSS CITY AREAS AND HOW DO WE INCLUDE THAT SO THAT EACH OF THESE COMMUNITIES IS LIKE EITHER AFFECTED OR IMPACTED OR INCLUDED SO THAT WE HAVE THINGS ON ALL SIDES OF THE COMMUNITIES THAT ARE REPRESENTATIVE OF WHAT LONG BEACH POPULATIONS LOOK LIKE? YES.
SO COMMISSIONERS, SO WE, UM, WE ACTUALLY TRY TO DO THAT OFTEN IN OUR, UM, DEPARTMENT.
SO WE DO HAVE OUR SIX SITES HAVE DIFFERENT DEMOGRAPHICS AND, UM, LANGUAGES OR, YOU KNOW, ETHNICITIES THAT COME TO THEM.
SO SILVERADO IS FROM, UM, A LOT OF FILIPINOS.
WE HAVE MCRISE PARK THAT HAS A LOT OF CAMBODIANS.
AND SO WE NOTICE WHEN WE DO PROGRAMMING, OF COURSE, ALL OF OUR CENTERS HAVE UNIQUE PROGRAMMING BASED ON THE, UH, WANTS OR NEEDS, UH, OF THE POPULATION THAT ATTENDS IT, YOU KNOW? UM, BUT WHAT WE TRY TO DO IS KIND OF WHAT I HIGHLIGHTED IN THAT COOKING CLASS IS THAT COOKING CLASS, SHE IS A CAMBODIAN AMERICAN, UM, UM, STAFF MEMBER WHO ACTUALLY DOES ALL HER COOKING AND THERE ARE KIND OF, UM, CAMBODIAN MEALS THAT SHE BRINGS TO ALL OF OUR CENTERS.
EL DORADO GETS THAT PROGRAM, OTHER CENTERS GET THAT PROGRAM.
SO WE BRING THE CULTURES TO DIFFERENT PROGRAMS, SO WE HIRE STAFF THAT'S REFLECTIVE OF OUR COMMUNITIES AND THAT ACTUALLY CAN BRING, UM, DIFFERENT PROGRAMMING NEEDS TO THE DIFFERENT COMMUNITIES, BUT WE DON'T STOP JUST LEAVING THEM IN THE ONE COMMUNITY THAT THEY NORMALLY ATTEND.
WE TRY TO BRANCH OUT TO OTHER COMMUNITIES.
WE'VE ALSO MADE IT A, A BIG EFFORT IN THE LAST PROBABLY LIKE THREE OR FOUR YEARS TO ACTUALLY DO GROUP EVENTS WITH ALL OF OUR SENIOR CENTERS AND OUR PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS TO WHERE WE, UM, EITHER IF IT'S LIKE A DANCE AT ONE PARK OR A NEW YEAR'S EVE EVENT AT ONE PARK OR WE DO GROUP FIELD TRIPS WHERE I TAKE 150 SENIOR CITIZENS ON FIELD TRIPS TOGETHER AT DIFFERENT PARKS AND WE TAKE SOME PEOPLE FROM EVERY SENIOR CENTER, UM, THEY SIGN UP, THEY ALL GO TOGETHER AND WE FOUND THAT THROUGH THAT, UM, SOME OF THE THINGS IS THAT ALL THE SENIORS NOW KNOW EACH OTHER WHEN THEY GET TOGETHER, RIGHT? THEY HAVE FRIENDS AT DIFFERENT CENTERS AND WE'VE SEEN THEM GO TO DIFFERENT CENTERS.
SO WE HAVE, UM, LUNCH PROGRAMS AT ALL OF OUR CENTERS.
AND SO AT MCBRIDE PARK, WHICH IS NEAR POLLY HIGH SCHOOL, THAT IS, AND THAT'S WHERE WE HAD THE MEETING LAST, UM, MONTH, THEY, UM, GET LUNCH PROGRAM TOO, BUT WE FOUND THAT COMMUNITY WON'T EAT THE AMERICAN MEALS.
AND SO WE ACTUALLY, THE FOOD PROVIDER THAT BRINGS THEM LUNCH ACTUALLY BRINGS AN ETHNIC MEAL FOR THEM, SO THEIR MEALS THERE ARE, UM, UM, CAMBODIAN MEALS THAT COME IN FOR THAT CENTER BECAUSE WHEN WE BROUGHT IN AMERICAN FOOD, THEY DIDN'T TECHNICALLY EAT IT, YOU KNOW, THEY WOULDN'T ATTEND LUNCH, SO NOW THEY ATTEND LUNCH AT THAT SITE.
AND WE FOUND BECAUSE WE'VE DONE THESE LIKE GROUP TOURS AT DIFFERENT PLACES OR WE'VE HAD EVENTS AT DIFFERENT PLACES WHEN OTHER SENIORS REALIZE THAT THEY HAVE DIFFERENT FOODS.
SO NOW SOME SENIORS FROM LIKE THE 4TH STREET SENIOR CENTER OR HOUNTON PARK GO TO MCBRIDE PARK ON CERTAIN DAYS TO EAT THAT LUNCH BECAUSE THEY LIKE WHAT'S SERVED, YOU KNOW? SO JUST STUFF LIKE THAT WE'VE NOTICED AS WE BROUGHT THEM TOGETHER.
AND SO OUR GOAL IS ALWAYS TO, EACH GROUP, LIKE YOU SAID, IS VERY UNIQUE IN WHAT THEIR WANTS ARE, BUT WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE TRY TO PROGRAM AND I HAVE A MONTHLY MEETING, UH, WITH ALL OF MY SUPERVISORS AT ALL THE CENTERS IN THE CITY TO ACTUALLY GET THEM TOGETHER TO TALK ABOUT LIKE UPCOMING PROGRAMS, WHAT WE CAN DO TOGETHER, WHAT PROGRAMS THEY HAVE GOING ON THAT MAYBE WE CAN BRANCH OUT TO THE OTHER SITES, WHAT'S WORKING TO MAKE SURE EVERY GROUP HAS THE CHANCE OF THE SAME OPPORTUNITY, UM, YOU KNOW, AT ALL DIFFERENT PROGRAMS IN THE CITY.
UM, I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT, IT IS ON, BUT YOU PROBABLY CAN'T HEAR ME.
SO I'M JUST CURIOUS ABOUT THE PROCESS FOR INSTITUTING A PROGRAM OR A CLASS AT ANY GIVEN CENTER.
SO IF A PARTICIPANT COMES TO YOU AND SAYS, "I ATTENDED A LONGEVITY CLASS AT THIS OTHER CENTER AND I'D LIKE TO BRING IT TO MY CENTER," WHAT'S THE PROCESS FOR, FOR MAKING THAT HAPPEN? SO THERE'S A COUPLE DIFFERENT ROUTES, RIGHT? SO WE DO HAVE, UM, PEOPLE WHO ARE EITHER, YOU KNOW, HAVE A SPECIALTY THAT THEY WANT TO COME IN.
WE HAVE LIKE OLD, YOU KNOW, SPANISH TEACHERS WHO HAVE RETIRED AND WANT TO TEACH AT THE CENTER AND THEY WANT TO TEACH SPANISH OR LONGEVITY STATE, WHATEVER IT IS, UM, WE ALLOW THAT.
THEY JUST HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE PROCESS OF BECOMING A VOLUNTEER WITH THE CITY.
SO AS LONG AS THEY'RE VOLUNTEER, LIKE THEN THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO TEACH A CLASS, RIGHT? AND, UM, AND THEN, UM, IF WE HAVE LIKE PARTNERSHIP ORGANIZATION LIKE, UM, THE
[00:30:01]
CITY COLLEGE OR OLLIE THAT WANT TO DO LIKE A PROGRAM.UM, IN OUR SPACES, WE CAN DO LIKE A PARTNERSHIP WHERE THEY BASICALLY CAN COME IN AND DO THE ACTIVITY AND WE, UM, YOU KNOW, GIVE THEM THE SPACE AND WE ADVERTISE OUR PROGRAM.
AND SO THAT'S PART OF JUST OUR PROGRAMMING.
UM, BUT IT ALSO GIVES THEM THE SPACE TO DO IT.
WE ALSO HAVE CONTRACT CLASSES THAT IF YOU WANT TO HAVE A FEE FOR, UH, OR GET MONEY, RIGHT? THEY'RE, UM, PRIVATE ENTITIES THAT ARE CONTRACTORS.
SO IF THEY WANT TO HAVE A CONTRACT CLASS AT ONE OF OUR SENIOR CENTERS, THEY CAN GO THROUGH THAT ROUTE.
AND SO WHAT HAPPENS THERE IS THAT PEOPLE WOULD HAVE TO PAY FOR THAT CLASS TO ATTEND.
AND THEN THERE'S A SPLIT BASED ON THE CITY AND THE, UM, CONTRACT INSTRUCTOR COME IN.
AND THEN WE HAVE, UM, STAFF LED CLASSES, UM, THAT COME IN AND DO, UM, YOU KNOW, WE, WE TRY TO HIRE STAFF THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, DO A LOT OF SKILLS.
WE'VE NOTICED IN OUR PROGRAMMING, OUR, OUR AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM, OUR STAFFING, WE CAN HIRE STAFF AND LIKE THE KIDS ALL DO THE SAME THING.
SO WE'RE GONNA GO PLAY FLAG FOOTBALL.
WE ALL GO PLAY FLAG FOOTBALL, BUT IN OUR SENIOR PROGRAM THAT DOESN'T HAPPEN, RIGHT? SO LIKE, I CAN'T BE LIKE, "WE'RE ALL GONNA GO DO THIS ART CLASS." WELL, SOME PEOPLE DON'T WANNA DO IT.
THEY WANNA DO KARAOKE, THEY WANNA DO THIS.
SO WE HAVE TO HIRE DIVERSE STAFF TO KIND OF DO DIFFERENT, UM, PROGRAMMING ACTIVITIES.
SO WE'VE DONE THIS INSTRUCTOR WHERE WE HIRE SOME INSTRUCTORS THAT TEACH LIKE CERTAIN CLASSES LIKE HAICHI.
AND WE HAVE ONE THAT GOES TO LIKE SIX CENTERS IN THE CITY AND HE TEACHES HIGH CHI AT ALL OF OUR CLASSES, KINDA LIKE THE COOKING CLASS, RIGHT? WHERE THERE'S STAFF, UM, THAT TEACHES CLASSES AND THEY GO TO THE DIFFERENT CENTERS TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE DIFFERENT PROGRAMMING.
UM, WE ALSO HAVE DIFFERENT NONPROFITS IN THE CITY THAT MIGHT HAVE ONE OFFS THAT NEED, THAT MIGHT HAVE A WORKSHOP OR, UM, LIKE SCAN INDEPENDENCE AT HOME.
THEY COME IN AND DO DIFFERENT WORKSHOPS.
MAYBE IT'S BASED ON DIABETES OR IT'S BASED ON SOME MEDICAL SITUATION THAT IS GOING ON OR FRAUD, RIGHT? SO THOSE MIGHT BE ONE OFFS WHERE WE JUST INVITE THEM IN ONE OFF.
THEY DON'T HAVE TO DO THE VOLUNTEER BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT A CONSISTENT, UM, CLASS.
IT'S JUST A ONE OFF SITUATION.
SO THERE'S A VARIETY OF WAYS WE CAN GET PEOPLE IN.
AND THEN IF A PARTICIPANT IS INTERESTED IN BRINGING A CLASS TO THEIR CENTER THAT THEY VISIT FREQUENTLY, LIKE, YOU KNOW - YEAH, THEY WOULD JUST TALK TO LIKE THE SUPERVISORS AT THE, AT THE SITE AND IF THERE'S NOT LIKE A CONFLICTING CLASS THAT'S ALREADY HAPPENING AT THE SAME, LIKE IF WE HAVE A SEWING CLASS AND THEY WANT TO BRING ANOTHER SEWING CLASS, THAT MIGHT NOT HAPPEN.
BUT IF IT'S SOMETHING DIFFERENT AND UNIQUE AND WE CAN FIT IT INTO THE SCHEDULE AT THE PARK SITE WITHIN THE HOURS OF OUR PROGRAMMING, UM, AND THAT'S THE THING, ALL OF OUR CLASSES AND PARTICIPANT, UM, OPTIONS HAVE TO BE WITHIN OUR SCHEDULED PROGRAMMING.
SO I CAN'T JUST RANDOMLY HAVE A CLASS AT LIKE, YOU KNOW, NIGHTTIME WHEN WE'RE NOT OPEN.
BUT AS LONG AS IT'S WITHIN THE TIME, IF IT'S NOT A CONFLICTING CLASS, AND AS LONG AS THEY DO, UM, GET THE VOLUNTEER, BECOME A VOLUNTEER WITH THE CITY, THEN IT SHOULD BE NO PROBLEM FOR THEM TO SEND IT.
BUT YOU GUYS WOULD SEEK OUT THE VOLUNTEERS? YEAH, SO THE CITY DOES THAT.
SO PRETTY MUCH WHEN WE PEOPLE, THERE'S A PORTAL, PORTAL ONLINE WHERE YOU CAN SIGN UP AS A VOLUNTEER AND YOU PICK WHAT, LIKE, IT, IT'S ALL KINDS OF VOLUNTEERS, SO NOT JUST SENIOR CENTERS, BUT YOU CAN PICK ON THERE AND REGISTER AND THEN WE HAVE A VOLUNTEER COORDINATOR IN OUR DEPARTMENT AND THEN THEY GET YOU FINGERPRINTED AND THEY GET YOU ALL OF THAT STUFF AND THEN YOU'RE ABLE TO COME IN.
SO IT'S NOT THAT YOU HAVE TO GET FINGERPRINTED ON YOUR OWN.
THE CITY ACTUALLY DOES FINGERPRINTING TO BRING YOU IN AS A VOLUNTEER.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMISSIONER? NOW WILL BE THE TIME FOR THE PUBLIC TO MAKE THAT COMMENT ON THIS ITEM IF YOU'D LIKE TO.
CLERK, PLEASE CALL FOR THE VOTE.
COMMISSIONER KAVANAUGH? ACCEPT.
BEFORE WE READ THE NEXT ITEM, I'D LIKE TO KNOW, UH, IS EVERYBODY OKAY WITH THE TEMPERATURE? IS IT TOO COLD IN HERE? FREEZING.
CLERK, PLEASE CALL FOR THE NEXT ITEM.
[4. 26-56437 Recommendation to receive and file a presentation on the City’s Housing Element Implementation Update from Community Development Department. Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ]
FOUR, RECOMMENDATION TO RECEIVE A FILE PRESENTATION ON THE CITY'S HOUSE AND ELEMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION UPDATE FROM COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT.MAY I HAVE A MOTION AND SECOND FOR THIS ITEM? I MOTION.
I'LL TURN THINGS OVER TO STAFF FOR PRESENTATION.
UM, THANK YOU FOR BEARING WITH US WITH SOME TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES AND THANK YOU FOR HAVING US THIS MORNING.
UM, WE'LL JUST BE GIVING A BRIEF UPDATE ON THE CITY'S HOUSING ELEMENT IMPLEMENTATION.
UM, SO WE'LL BE GOING BRIEFLY OVER, UM, WHAT THE HOUSING ELEMENT IS, UM, DISCUSS
[00:35:01]
THE NEEDS OF SPECIAL POPULATIONS AND WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE.UM, GIVE AN IMPLEMENTATION UPDATE AND DISCUSS SOME OF OUR NEXT STEPS.
I'M ONE OF THE HOUSING, UH, POLICY PLANNERS FOR THE CITY OF LONG BEACH PLANNING BUREAU, AND I'M JOINED TODAY ALSO BY, UM, ALYSSA DURBINTON, WHO IS OUR EQUITY SPECIALIST FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT.
SO WHAT IS THE HOUSING ELEMENT? UM, SO THE HOUSING ELEMENT IS ONE OF SEVEN REQUIRED ELEMENTS OR CHAPTERS OF OUR CITY'S GENERAL PLAN.
UM, IT PLAYS A VERY IMPORTANT ROLE IN HELPING THE CITY PLAN FOR HOUSING BY FIRST ASSESSING THE CITY'S HOUSING NEEDS.
AND THEN TO MEET THESE NEEDS, IT ESTABLISHES A ROADMAP FOR ACCOMMODATING PROJECTED HOUSING UNIT DEMAND FOR EXISTING AND FUTURE RESIDENTS, UM, OVER A SPAN OF THE YEARS.
UM, AND SPECIFICALLY IT DOES SET CITYWIDE GOALS, OBJECTIVES, AND POLICIES FOR MEETING THESE HOUSING NEEDS, UM, OF ITS RESIDENTS AT ALL INCOME LEVELS.
UM, THE HOUSING ELEMENT ALSO LAYS OUT THE CITY'S PLAN FOR REMOVING BARRIERS TO HOUSING PRODUCTION, UM, TO COUNTER, UH, WELL-DOCUMENTED HOUSING SHORTAGES AND ALSO HELPS ENSURE THAT THE CITY IS FOUND, IS, UH, PLANNING FOR ITS, UH, FAIR SHARE OF AFFORDABLE AND MARKET RATE HOUSING.
AS WE KNOW, HOUSING IS ESSENTIAL TO PEOPLE'S HEALTH AND SAFETY AND ALSO THEIR WELLBEING.
UM, AND MOST OF US SPEND A LOT OF TIME AT HOME.
HOUSING IS OFTEN THE BIGGEST MONTHLY EXPENSE FOR FAMILIES, UM, AND CERTAIN SEGMENTS OF OUR POPULATION ENCOUNTER MORE DIFFICULTY IN FINDING DECENT, UM, AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING DUE TO SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES AND NEEDS.
UM, AND SO AS A RESULT, YOU KNOW, SPECIALIST CONSIDERATIONS, UM, SHOULD BE TAKEN TO ENSURE THAT WE HAVE ADEQUATE HOUSING FOR POPULATIONS LIKE OUR SENIORS, OUR SENIOR PARENT, UH, SING- SINGLE PARENT HOUSEHOLDS, UM, STUDENTS, UM, AND THOSE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS.
UM, LACK OF HOUSING IS ONE OF THE CONTRIBUTING FACTORS TO HOMELESSNESS, UM, AND HOUSING IS THE NUMBER ONE SOCIAL DETERMINANT OF HEALTH HERE IN LA COUNTY.
UM, AND SO WE USE THE HOUSING ELEMENT TO UNDERSTAND THE NEED, THE HOUSING NEEDS OF OUR COMMUNITY AND THE WAYS TO ADDRESS THEM.
SO THIS IS DONE THROUGH THE VARIOUS COMPONENTS OF THE HOUSING ELEMENT.
ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT SECTIONS OF OUR ELEMENT, UM, IS THE HOUSING PLAN, WHICH LAYS OUT A JURISDICTION'S SPECIFIC GOALS AND ACTION ITEMS FOR ADDRESSING THEIR HOUSING NEEDS.
UM, AND SO HOW DO WE USE THE HOUSING ELEMENT? THINK OF IT AS THE CITY'S PLAN TO TRY TO MEET OUR HOUSING NEEDS, UM, BROKEN UP INTO GOALS, POLICIES, PROGRAMS, AND THEN SPECIFIC ACTION ITEMS. THESE COMPONENTS SET THE HOUSING POLICY AND PROGRAM DIRECTION, UM, RELATED TO HOUSING.
UM, AND WE USE THE HOUSING ELEMENT OFTEN AS A GUIDING DOCUMENT, UM, TO HELP US REVIEW DEVELOPMENT PROJECT, UM, BOTH OF THOSE THAT ARE HOUSING PROJECTS AND THOSE ALSO NOT HOUSING, NON-HOUSING PROJECTS.
UM, AND THEN ALSO, WE ALSO USE IT IN WHEN WE ARE DRAFTING FUTURE CITY ORDINANCES, UM, JUST TO ENSURE THAT FUTURE POLICY IS CONSISTENT WITH THE HOUSING ELEMENT.
THE CURRENT HOUSING ELEMENT THAT WE ARE IN, UM, IS ITS SIXTH CYCLE, WHICH SPANS FROM 2021 TO 2029.
SOME OF THE TOP ISSUES THAT WE ORIGINALLY IDENTIFIED, UM, EXCUSE ME.
SOME OF THE TOP ISSUES THAT WE ORIGINALLY IDENTIFIED WHEN PREPARING OUR 2021 UPDATE INCLUDED HOUSING COST BURDEN, RENTER ISSUES, AND OVERCROWDING.
UM, WE LEARNED THAT 43% OF ALL LONG BEACH HOUSEHOLDS ARE HOUSING COST BURDENED, MEANING THAT THEY PAID TOO MUCH FOR THEIR RENT OR MORTGAGE.
WE KNOW THAT 61% OF LONG BEACH HOUSEHOLDS ARE RENTERS, UM, AND ARE OFTEN MORE ECONOMICALLY VULNERABLE THAN HOMEOWNERS DUE TO RENT INCREASES, BAR OUTLETING INCOME.
UM, AND WE KNOW THAT INCREASING HOUSING COSTS, STAGNANT WAGES, AND LIMITED HOUSING SUPPLY, UM, CAN OFTEN LEAD TO OVERCROWDING.
STATE LAW REQUIRES US TO PLAN FOR HOUSING, UM, THAT MEETS THE NEEDS OF SPECIAL NEEDS GROUPS IN THE CITIES, SUCH AS SENIORS AND PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES.
UM, AND OUR CITY GRA - DEMOGRAPHIC DATA INDICATE A HIGH NEED FOR HOUSING CONSIDERATIONS SPECIFIC TO THESE GROUPS, GIVEN THAT AT LEAST 23% OF OUR HOUSEHOLDS INCLUDE AT LEAST ONE SENIOR AND 39% OF SENIORS ARE IDENTIFIED AS HAVING A DISABILITY.
UM, TO ADDRESS THESE CHALLENGES, THE CITY'S HOUSING STRATEGY FOR THE SIX CYCLE PLANNING PERIOD IS COVERED IN CHAPTER SIX, UM, WHICH WAS THE HOUSING PLAN AS MENTIONED PREVIOUSLY, UM, THROUGH SPECIFIC GOALS AND POLICIES OF THE PLAN.
GOAL FOUR OF THE HOUSING ELEMENT CALLS, UH, ON THE CITY TO ADDRESS THE UNIQUE HOUSING NEEDS OF RESIDENTS.
UM, SO IN THE NEXT FEW SLIDES, I'LL TOUCH ON A FEW EXAMPLES OF THESE POLICIES.
UM, ONE OF THE ISSUES WE ARE SEEKING TO ADDRESS IN THIS PLAN, UM, IS THAT CERTAIN GROUPS FACE GREATER DIFFICULTY IN FINDING DECENT AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING, UM, DUE TO THEIR SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES AND SPECIFIC NEEDS.
UM, THE HOUSING PLAN CONTAINS RELATED POLICIES LISTED ON THIS SLIDE TO ADDRESS THE UNIQUE HOUSING NEEDS OF RESIDENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS.
SUCH POLICIES INCLUDE, UH, PROVIDING EXCE - INCENTIVES FOR ACCESSIBLE AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING FOR LOWER INCOME
[00:40:01]
HOUSEHOLDS, SENIORS, AND PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES.UM, AN EXAMPLE OF THIS CAN BE OUR RECENTLY ADOPTED ENHANCED DENSITY BONUS, UM, WHICH DOES PROVIDE INCENTIVES, UM, FOR HOUSING PROJECTS THAT DO INCLUDE, UH, SENIOR HOUSING.
UM, ONE OF OUR POLICIES OR GOALS IS ACTUALLY TO ALSO PRESERVE NATURALLY OCCURRING AFFORDABLE HOUSING, UM, SUCH AS, UH, MOBILE HOME PARKS.
WE ALSO INTEGRATE AND DISPERSE SPECIAL NEEDS HOUSINGS WITHIN THE COMMUNITY, UM, IN CLOSE PROXIMITY TO TRANSIT AND PUBLIC SERVICES.
UM, SO BEFORE WE DIVE INTO AN IMPLEMENTATION UPDATE, UM, FROM OUR CURRENT HOUSING LIMIT CYCLE, WE DO WANNA UNDERSTAND, UM, SOME OF THE THINGS THAT LOCAL GOVERNMENTS DO AND DO NOT CONTROL, JUST SO THAT WE, WE CAN BEST UNDERSTAND, UM, OUR ROLE MOVING FORWARD.
SO IN CALIFORNIA, CITY GOVERNMENTS CONTROL GENERALLY, UH, PUBLICLY OWNED PROPERTIES, ZONING REGULATION IMPACT, IMPA - UH, ENTITLEMENT AND PLAN CHECK FEES, THE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT REVIEW PROCESS, LOCAL FUNDS EARMARKED FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING, AND PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENTS.
THESE ARE THE TOOLS THAT WE HAVE AT OUR DISPOSAL IN ADDRESSING OUR HOUSING CRISIS.
AND AS WE KNOW, HOUSING IS A VERY COMPLEX ISSUE AND THERE ARE MANY FACTORS THAT LOCAL GOVERNMENTS MAY NOT CONTROL.
FOR INSTANCE, FEDERAL AND STATE AGENCIES CONTROL CERTAIN REGULATIONS, TAX CREDITS, FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES, UM, IN SOME CASES ZONING LAWS, BUILDING CODES, CEQA, AND, UH, AGENCY BUDGETS.
ADDITIONAL EXTERNAL FACTORS IMPACT HOUSING MARKETS AND PRODUCTION SUCH AS MACROECONOMIC CONDITIONS, UM, THAT CAN IMPACT CONSTRUCTION COSTS, UM, INSURANCE COSTS, AND LABOR.
DESPITE THESE DIFFICULTIES, UM, THE CITY CONTINUES TO SEEK WAYS TO MEET THE CITY'S HOUSING NEEDS.
UM, TO BEST ILLUSTRATE THIS POINT, THIS GRAPH SHOWS THE HOUSING PRODUCTION OVER THE LAST 10 OR SO YEARS.
AS YOU CAN SEE, PRODUCTION HAS EBBED AND FLOWED OVER THE YEARS.
DURING THE CITY'S EMERGENCY DECLARATION ON HOMELESSNESS IN 2023, THE CITY WORKED TO STREAMLINE NEEDED AFFORDABLE HOU - AND SUPPORTIVE HOUSING OPTIONS THROUGH STRUCTURED DECISION MAKING AND UPDATES TO THE CITY'S ZONING CODE.
AS YOU CAN SEE, THE CITY RECENTLY SAW A PRODUCTIVE BUT SHORT INCREASE IN HOUSING PRODUCTION.
HOWEVER, RECENTLY, HOUSING STARTS HAVE DROPPED OFF DUE TO VARIOUS ECONOMIC CONSTRAINTS, SUCH AS THE LACK OF FEDERAL AND STATE FUNDING.
UM, AND I'LL PASS IT OVER NOW TO ALYSSA JUST TO BETTER UNDERSTAND SOME OF OUR PROGRESS.
THANK YOU, ADRIANA, AND GOOD MORNING, CHAIR AND COMMISSIONERS.
UM, SO, UM, AS YOU MENTIONED, MY NAME IS ALYSSA, I'M THE EQUITY SPECIALIST IN COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, UM, AND I'M PART OF THE TEAM THAT HAS BEEN CONDUCTING AN EVALUATION OF OUR EXISTING HOUSING PLAN.
UM, SO AS WE BEGAN THIS PROGRAM, WE REALLY, UM, SOUGHT OUT TO EXPLORE HOW WE'RE DOING ON HOUSING ELEMENT IMPLEMENTATION.
SO THE TABLE YOU SEE ON THIS SLIDE IS SOMETHING WE HAVE TO REPORT ON AND PRODUCE EVERY YEAR, UM, TO ASSESS OUR PRODUCTION GOALS AND WHETHER WE ARE MEETING THE STATE SET, UM, ALLOCATION OF HOUSING UNITS CALLED OUR REGIONAL HOUSING NEEDS ASSESSMENT OR RENA.
UM, AND THEN OUR, UH, A PROGRAM WITHIN THE HOUSING ELEMENT AS WELL IS TO EVALUATE THE PLAN AT THE MIDWAY POINT.
UM, SO IN THE PAST YEAR, OUR TEAM HAS BEEN CONDUCTING THIS EVALUATION AND I'LL NOW BE EXPLORING SOME OF THE FINDINGS THAT WE HAVE FROM THIS, UM, EVALUATION.
SO IN LOOKING AT OUR IMPLEMENTATION, UM, WE HAVE DEVELOPED A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF UNITS ACROSS INCOME LEVELS, BUT THE NEED CONTINUES TO OUTPACE THE SUPPLY, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
UM, AND THE CHART ON THE RIGHT OVER HERE SHOWS THE PROGRESS TOWARDS OUR CURRENT, UM, RENA ASSESSMENT, UH, ALLOCATION.
UM, IN THE CURRENT PERIOD, WE NEED MORE THAN 26,000 UNITS TO MEET NEED.
PART OF THAT IS TO DEAL WITH THE EXISTING OVERCROWDING IN THE CITY AND TO MEET PROJECTED FUTURE GROWTH IN OUR POPULATION.
YOU CAN ALSO SEE THAT MORE THAN HALF OF THE UNITS, UM, IN THAT DARKER GRAY BAR, UM, TOWARDS THE BOTTOM OF THE TABLE, MORE THAN HALF OF THOSE UNITS ARE AT SOME LEVEL OF AFFORDABILITY.
AND THEN ON THE COLUMN ON THE, ALL THE WAY ON THE RIGHT, YOU SEE HOW WE ARE DOING AT MEETING THE NUMBER OF BY AFFORDABILITY LEVELS.
UM, ALTHOUGH WE ARE ON PACE TO MEET THE MARKET RATE DEVELOPMENT NEEDED, WE ONLY HAVE ABOUT 6% OF THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING NEEDED AT THIS POINT IN THE HOUSING ELEMENT CYCLE.
A LOT OF THAT HAS TO DO WITH HOW MUCH IT COSTS TO BUILD AFFORDABLE HOUSING AND THE LACK OF SUBSIDIES, UM, AND PROGRAMS AVAILABLE TO FUND THOSE PROJECTS.
UM, THE CITY HAS ADDED PROGRAMS TO HELP WITH HOME BUYER ASSISTANCE, UH, THE, UH, FOR INSTANCE, WITH THE CONSTRUCTION OF ACCESSORY DWELLING UNITS OR ADUS, INCLUDING FOR PEOPLE WITH AFFORDABLE HOUSING VOUCHERS, BUT FUNDING THERE IS LIMITED.
UM, AND THEN AS PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED, THE CITY'S HOMELESSNESS EMERGENCY DECLARATION HELPED US LOOK AT WHAT REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS
[00:45:01]
AND, UH, PROCESS IMPROVEMENTS WERE NEEDED TO INCREASE PRODUCTION OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING.OUR HOUSING NEEDS ALSO INFORMED THE CITY'S OVERHAUL TO THE CITY'S ZONING CODE, WHICH WE ARE CURRENTLY, UM, CONDUCTING AT THIS TIME.
SO AS I MENTIONED, WE ARE NOW DOING, UM, A MIDTERM EVALUATION, UM, AND REALLY TAKING AN EQUITY-CENTERED APPROACH TO LOOKING AT HOW WE'VE BEEN DOING ON IMPLEMENTATION, UM, PARTICULARLY LOOKING AT OUR PROGRESS TOWARDS FAIR HOUSING GOALS OUTLINED IN THE ELEMENT.
UM, AND THIS, UH, THE RESULTS OF THIS STUDY WILL BE USED TO INFORM FUTURE, UM, IMPLEMENTATION AND THE UPDATE FOR THE SEVEN CYCLE HOUSING ELEMENT.
SO OUR TEAM DEVELOPED A MULTI-PRONGED EVALUATION WITH ROBUST COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, INCLUDING A PUBLIC SURVEY TO UNDERSTAND RESIDENTS' EXPERIENCES WITH HOUSING.
SO WE SAW THE NUMBERS THAT WE HAVE ABOUT HOUSING PRODUCTION, BUT IT WAS IMPORTANT TO OUR TEAM TO ALSO EXPLORE WHAT IS THE RESIDENT, WHAT ARE OUR RESIDENTS' EXPERIENCE LOOKING FOR HOUSING, ARE THEY FINDING THE HOUSING THAT THEY NEED, UM, WHAT ARE THOSE THINGS THAT WE MAY NOT BE PROVIDING FOR WITHIN OUR CURRENT HOUSING POLICIES AND PROGRAMS? UM, SO THIS SURVEY WAS AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC AND WE CONDUCTED TARGETED OUTREACH IN AN EFFORT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE REACHING THE PEOPLE WHO ARE MOST IMPACTED BY OUR HOUSING POLICIES AND PROGRAMS. SO AT ANY OF OUR EVENTS, UM, DURING THE FALL AND INTO THE SPRING OF THIS YEAR, UH, FALL OF 2025, SPRING OF 2026, WE, UM, POSTED THE SURVEY AND ENCOURAGED OUR, UM, ATTENDEES TO TAKE THAT.
WE ALSO WENT DOWN TO THE MULTI-SERVICE CENTER AND CANVASED, UM, PARTICIPANTS THERE AS WELL AS AT OUR MOBILE ACCESS CENTER.
UM, AND WE DID A COUPLE OF PUBLIC EVENTS IN COLLABORATION WITH OUR OFFICE OF HOMELESS STRATEGIES AND PARTNERSHIPS, UM, AS WELL AS DOING ONLINE EMAIL OUTREACH THROUGH CITY AND NONPROFIT PARTNERS.
UM, UH, AS AFTER CONDUCTING OUR OUTREACH, WE RECEIVED 548 TOTAL RESPONSES TO THE SURVEY.
UM, THAT'S PEOPLE WHO WERE NOT DUPLICATED, UM, OR WHO WERE, UH, BOTH EITHER RESIDENTS IN THE CITY OR, UM, OR USING OUR CITY HOUSING PROGRAMS. UM, AND SO WE LOOKED AT SOME OF THE DEMOGRAPHIC DATA THAT WE RECEIVED TO THIS SURVEY TO IDENTIFY WHERE SOME OF THE INEQUITIES IN OUR HOUSING PROGRAMS MAY BE.
UM, A MAJOR DISPARITY THAT WE IDENTIFIED IS THAT 49% OF RESPONDENTS TO OUR SURVEY IDENTIFIED AS HAVING A PERMANENT OR LONG-TERM DISABILITY.
IN THE CENSUS DATA ASSESSING OUR ENTIRE CITY-WIDE POPULATION, THEY ONLY FOUND 7.9% OF RESIDENTS UNDER AGE 65 HAS, HAVE A DISABILITY.
SO THERE'S A MUCH HIGHER, UM, INSTANCE OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES RESPONDING TO OUR SURVEY THAN EXIST IN OUR CITY OVERALL.
AND ANOTHER DISPARITY WE LOCATED WAS, WERE THAT, UH, ABOUT 21% OF RESPONDENTS WERE AGE 65 OR OLDER, WHEREAS CITY-WIDE, THE ESTIMATE IS CLOSER TO 13.5%.
SO COLLECTING AND REVIEWING DEMOGRAPHIC DATA LIKE THIS IS IMPORTANT FOR EFFORTS, UM, TO ASSESS HOUSING PROGRESS.
UM, AS WE MENTIONED, MANY POPULATIONS HAVE SPECIFIC NEEDS WITHIN HOUSING, UM, AND THIS, DOING, UH, ANALYSES LIKE THIS HELP US TO UNDERSTAND SPECIFIC VULNERABILITIES WITHIN OUR HOUSING SYSTEM, UM, AND WHERE WE MIGHT NEED TO MAKE ADJUSTMENTS IN FUTURE POLICY AND PROGRAMMING EFFORTS.
SO MANY OF THE RESPONDENTS TO OUR SURVEY USE CITY, UM, HOUSING AND HOMELESSNESS PROGRAMS, SUCH AS OUR HOUSING CHOICE VOUCHER PROGRAM, UM, AND THESE DEMOGRAPHIC DATA SHOW HOW PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES AND OLDER ADULTS ARE PARTICULARLY VULNERABLE TO THE IMPACTS OF THE HOUSING CRISIS AND NEED ADDITIONAL SUPPORT RESOURCES TO REMAIN HOUSED.
WE ALSO ASKED A SERIES OF QUESTIONS ABOUT, UM, WHAT IT WAS LIKE THE LAST TIME OUR RESPONDENTS, UH, LOOKED FOR HOUSING.
AND SO WE SET OUT A BUNCH OF CRITERIA FOR THINGS THAT YOU MIGHT WANT IN A POTENTIAL FUTURE HOME AND ASKED RESIDENTS TO RANK FROM VERY DIFFICULT TO VERY EASY, WHAT IT WAS LIKE FOR THEM THE LAST TIME THEY LOOKED FOR HOUSING.
UM, ON AVERAGE, YOU CAN SEE IN THE LIGHT AND DARKER BLUE THAT, UH, IT'S PRETTY DIFFICULT TO FIND HOUSING IN LONG BEACH.
UM, PARTICULARLY, UM, THE HIGHEST INSTANCE OF VERY DIFFICULT RESPONSES WERE FOR HOUSING THAT IS HIGH QUALITY, AFFORDABLE, HAS ACCESSIBILITY FEATURES, AND ACCEPTS PETS.
WE ALSO ASKED RESPONDENTS WHO ARE USING CITY HOUSING ASSISTANCE SERVICES ABOUT THEIR EXPERIENCE.
UM, WE ARE COLLECTING RESPONSES FROM PEOPLE USING PROGRAMS WITHIN HOMELESS SERVICES, THE HOUSING AUTHORITY, AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, UM, AND WE USE THE SAME SCALE FROM VERY DIFFICULT TO VERY EASY.
UM, AND WE CAN SEE THAT MOST RESPONDENTS INDICATED THAT USING OUR HOUSING PROGRAMS IS VERY DIFFICULT, UM, AND THERE WERE GREATEST LIMITATIONS IN VOUCHER USE AND MOBILITY, SO USING THEIR VOUCHERS TO GO TO DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE CITY.
WE ALSO ASKED WHAT OUR RESPONDENT'S TOP CONCERNS WERE ABOUT HOUSING ACCESS IN THE CITY, AND THE OVERWHELMING MAJORITY
[00:50:01]
OF THESE RESPONSES RELATED TO HOUSING SUPPLY AND AFFORDABILITY.SO PEOPLE CAN'T FIND HOUSING AND THEY CAN'T FIND IT THAT'S WHEN AFFORDABLE TO THEM.
UM, THIS IS CONSISTENT WITH THE CHALLENGES IDENTIFIED IN OUR PREVIOUS QUESTIONS WHERE AVAILABILITY AND AFFORDABILITY WERE THE GREATEST CHALLENGES WHEN FINDING HOUSING.
AND THEN ANOTHER SIGNIFICANT PORTION OF THE SURVEY WAS TO IDENTIFY RISK FACTORS THAT MOST CONTRIBUTE TO, UH, RESIDENTS HAVING TO MOVE.
UM, IT'S INCREDIBLY COMMON FOR RESPONDENTS TO EXPERIENCE THESE DISPLACEMENT RISKS.
UM, 84% OF RESPONDENTS HAD EXPERIENCED AT LEAST ONE RISK AND 60% EXPERIENCED MULTIPLE RISK FACTORS.
THERE WERE 14 TOTAL ITEMS FOR RESPONDENTS TO SELECT RANGING FROM FINANCIAL INDICATORS SUCH AS RENT INCREASES OR LOSS OF INCOME TO INTERPERSONAL FACTORS SUCH AS HOUSEHOLD LANDLORD DISPUTES.
THE CHART ON THIS SLIDE SHOWS THE TOP SIX MOST COMMON RISK FACTORS.
YOU WILL NOTICE THAT FIVE OF THEM ARE FINANCIAL IN NATURE, SHOWING HOW WIDESPREAD AND IMPACTFUL THE COST OF LIVING CRISIS IS ON OUR RESIDENTS.
SO WHAT WE TAKE FROM ALL OF THIS DATA THAT WE JUST WENT THROUGH IS THAT OUR RESIDENTS ARE VERY IMPACTED BY OVERARCHING TRENDS IN THE HOUSING MARKET AND MACROECONOMIC IMPACTS.
UM, IN THE WRITTEN COMMENTS THAT WE RECEIVED ON OUR SURVEY, THE DATA INDICATE RESIDENTS NOTED CHALLENGES ACCEPTING S - A- ACCESSING SAFETY NET RESOURCES DUE TO LONG WAIT TIMES, COMPLICATED PROCESSES, AND LIMITED SUPPLY OF RESOURCES, AS WELL AS A LACK OF PROGRAMS AND RESOURCES FOR GROUPS SUCH AS SENIORS AND PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.
THE DATA ALSO INDI- INDICATE THAT ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS HAVE NOT KEPT UP WITH THE INCREASED COST OF LIVING, ESPECIALLY FOR VULNERABLE POPULATIONS SUCH AS SENIORS, PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES, AND BLACK RESIDENTS.
THIS ALSO SHOWS THE ONGOING NEED FOR HOUSING INTERVENTIONS THAT ADDRESS ROOT CAUSES OF HOUSING INSTABILITY, SUCH AS AFFORDABILITY AND MAKING THOSE EQUITY CONSIDERATIONS FOR GROUPS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS.
SO FOR OUR NEXT STEPS IN THE COMING MONTHS, WE'LL BE RELEASING THE COMPLETED MID-CYCLE EQUITY ANALYSIS WITH THE FULL ANALYSIS OF THE SURVEY RESULTS THAT WE DISCUSSED IN PART TODAY.
UM, THIS EFFORT, AS I MENTIONED, WILL INFORM OUR NEXT UPDATE, UM, TO THE HOUSING ELEMENT, WHICH WE ESTIMATE TO BEGIN IN JANUARY.
UM, AND YOU CAN SIGN UP TO RECEIVE UPDATES ON THE HOUSING ELEMENT AND RELATED PROGRAMS, UH, THROUGH OUR SIGNUP SHEET OR BY, UM, SIGNING UP THROUGH LINK LB, WHICH THE LINK IS ON THE LAST BULLET POINT ON THE SCREEN.
FIRST QUESTION IS, UH, UM, WE, WE HAVE A LACK OF HOUSING.
I WAS JUST CURIOUS, DO YOU GUYS, DO WE TAKE VACANT WAREHOUSES AND CONVERT THEM OVER FOR POTENTIAL HOUSING? YEAH, THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION.
SO, UM, IN THAT INSTANCE, WE WOULD CONSIDER SOMETHING LIKE THAT TO BE WHAT WE CALL LIKE AN ADAPTIVE REUSE PROCESS.
UM, FIRST WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE, IT'S IN AN AREA THAT PERMITS HOUSING.
UM, SO, YOU KNOW, WE CAN TAKE LIKE A VACANT STOREFRONT AND POSSIBLY, YOU KNOW, A- A- ADAPT RE - UH, REUSE IN, INTO, UH, HOUSING.
UM, NOW WE DO HAVE A PROCESS, UM, AND IT DOESN'T REQUIRE TYPICALLY FOR IT TO GO TO HEARING DEPENDING ON THE CIRCUMSTANCES, UM, WHICH, YOU KNOW, CAN HELP KIND OF REMOVE SOME OF THOSE BARRIERS, UM, AND EXPENSES.
HOWEVER, IT IS, WE DO NEED FOR THE PRIVATE, YOU KNOW, SECTOR, FOR THE PRIVATE DEVELOPERS AND APPLICANTS, THEY NEED TO GO THROUGH THAT PROCESS, SO THEY'LL NEED TO KIND OF GO THROUGH AND, AND MAKE THAT INVESTMENT.
WE DO SEE THOSE PROJECTS COME THROUGH.
WE DON'T ALWAYS SEE THEM EVEN WHEN THEY DO GET, UM, THE REQUIRED APPROVAL, WE DON'T ALWAYS EVEN SEE THEM BUILT.
SO IT JUST DEPENDS ON, IT'S JUST ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT IT'S REALLY JUST THE IMPACTS OF, OF THE ECONOMY ARE REALLY STARTING TO IMPACT THE ENTITLEMENTS OF THE PERMIT THAT WE'RE SEEING COME THROUGH FOR THINGS LIKE THAT.
ARE WE CURRENTLY LOOKING AT A, AT THIS KIND OF CONVERSION FROM A WAREHOUSE TO LIVING FOR FUNDS? WE HAVE VARIOUS PROJECTS AND I DON'T HAVE ANY SPECIFIC MAYBE ON THE TOP, OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD.
UM, LIKE FOR EXAMPLE, YOU KNOW, WE'LL SEE LIKE VACANT STOREFRONTS, UM, IN MIXED USE AREAS, UM, THAT CAN BE CONVERTED INTO HOUSING.
UM, SO LIKE, YOU KNOW, EVEN THINGS LIKE, YOU KNOW, BANKS AND, AND, UM, OFFICE BUILDINGS WE CAN SEE THAT COME DOWN THE LINE.
YEAH, THAT'S WHAT I WANNA KNOW.
WHAT IS IN THE, WHAT IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW? HOW MANY OF THOSE ARE - OH, WE DON'T HAVE ANY DATA ON THE SPECIFICS OF ADAPTIVE USE.
I HAVE BEEN TRYING TO GET THAT.
IT'S JUST, UM, PART OF THE ISSUE IS THAT OUR, JUST OUR, OUR SYSTEM, OUR LAND USE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IS SO, LIKE, IT'S JUST OUTDATED.
WE'RE UP DOING, GOING, UNDERGOING AN, AN UPDATE RIGHT NOW, UM, JUST TO MAKE IT A LITTLE BIT EASIER FOR US TO MAKE THOSE COUNTS AND PULL THAT DATA.
UM, RIGHT NOW, BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE JUST KIND OF ENTER IT IN A, IN A PRODUCT DESCRIPTION, IT'S JUST DIFFICULT TO, LIKE, PULL THAT AS OPPOSED TO IF SOMEBODY WAS CHECKING A BOX THAT THIS IS AN ADAPTIVE REUSE PROJECT.
SO ON THE SLIDE THAT SAYS, UH, THAT'S ENTITLED HOUSING NEEDS SUMMARY.
CAN WE GO TO THAT ONE? HOUSING NEEDS SUMMARY.
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HOUSING NEEDS SUMMARY.AND THEN SEE HOW IT SAYS OVERCROWDING RATES BY RACE, ETHNICITY, 2017.
SO THIS IS SOME OF THE, BASICALLY THE HOUSING NEEDS SUMMARY IS A COMPONENT OF OUR HOUSING ELEMENT.
SO THIS DATA'S GONNA BE, UM, KIND OF PREVIOUSLY TO THE ADOPTION OF OUR CURRENT HOUSING ELEMENT FROM 2021 TO 2029.
AS WE GEAR UP FOR THE NEW UPDATE, UM, WE WILL BE GATHERING NEW DATA TO CREATE A NEW HOUSING NEEDS SUMMARY TO UNDERSTAND OUR CURRENT CONDITIONS.
SO WE MAY SEE THESE NUMBERS FLUCTUATE, UM, OR, YOU KNOW, EVEN INCREASE.
ANOTHER ONE, UH, LAST QUESTION.
WELL, MAYBE NOT THE LAST QUESTION, BUT RENT CONTROL FOR LONG BEACH.
WHAT IS IT? WE DO NOT CURRENTLY HAVE, UM, ANY RENT CONTROL ORDINANCES IN LONG BEACH.
SO A LANDLORD CAN JUST GO UP? UM, I MEAN, THERE ARE STATE - A MILLION TIMES.
YEAH, THERE ARE, LIKE, STATE RESTRICTIONS, BUT WE DON'T HAVE ANY LOCAL CONTROL OVER THAT.
UH, WE DON'T HAVE A CURRENT LOCAL ORDINANCE THAT WOULD, UM, MITIGATE THAT, NO.
'CAUSE I THOUGH IT WAS ON ONE OF THE SLIDES UNDER LONG BEACH, THE CITY OF LONG BEACH JURISDICTION.
IT WAS LISTED, UH, LIKE, ON THE BOTTOM OF ONE OF THE SLIDES THAT ALICIA WAS DOING.
AND THEN THAT'S SOMETHING THAT GOVERNMENTS CAN CONTROL.
IT'S JUST, WE DON'T HAVE A CURRENT - I SEE.
COMMISSIONERS, ANY QUESTIONS? I HAVE A QUESTION.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US.
THAT WAS AN EXCELLENT PRESENTATION.
I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT HOUSING ELEMENT IMPLEMENTATION PRO- PROC - PROGRESS.
UM, I AM A HOMEOWNER IN LONG BEACH AND IT TALKS ABOUT HOME BUYER ASSISTANCE, ADA, ADU CONSTRUCTION SUPPORT.
UH, YOU KNOW, I'VE OFTEN THOUGH ABOUT AN ADU, BUT MORE FOR AN EXTENDED CLOSET THAN
BUT, UM, HOW DOES THAT WORK? I MEAN, WHAT IS THE PROGRAM? IS THERE SOMEWHERE I CAN GO ONLINE AND APPLY? HOW DOES THAT WORK? YEAH.
WELL, SO FOR THE SPECIFIC PROGRAM THAT WE MENTIONED EARLIER, UM, THAT, UH, ESSENTIALLY, UH, HELPS HOMEOWNERS BUILD ADUS, THAT ONE IS CALLED OUR BACKYARD BUILDERS PROGRAM.
AND SO WHAT THAT ONE IS, IT'S FIRST ITERATION, UM, IT HAS, LIKE, WE'VE DONE NOW, WE'RE IN KIND OF OUR SECOND ITERATION OF IT, AND WE RECEIVED STATE FUND - STATE FUNDING IN ORDER TO HELP US WITH THIS PROGRAM.
THE FIRST ITERATION, UM, I BELIEVE IT HELPED, UM, HOMEOWNERS BUILD ADUS AND WHO AGREED TO RENT THEM TO FOLKS WITH VOUCHERS.
IN THE SECOND ITERATION, NOW WE ARE, UM, HELPING PROVIDE LOW INTEREST, UM, LOANS TO FOLKS WHO ARE, UM, PERHAPS, UM, LOW, LOWER INCOME HO- HOMEOWNERS.
SO THAT WAY THEY'RE ABLE TO KIND OF, LIKE, BUILD THAT EQUITY, UM, OR, AND PROVIDE, YOU KNOW, HOUSING MAYBE FOR THEIR EXTENDED AND GROWING FAMILIES.
UM, SO THAT'S THE BACKYARD BUILDERS PROGRAM.
I'M NOT SURE WHAT STAGE IT'S AT RIGHT NOW, BUT I DO KNOW, I WANNA SAY THAT IT RECENTLY, UM, UH, WAS OPENED.
I WANNA SAY THE APPLICATION PROCESS WAS RECENTLY OPENED.
NOW, IF YOU WANTED TO DO AN ADU IN GENERAL, UM, THAT IS JUST, YOU WOULD NEED TO, UM, SUBMIT, UM, A PERMIT APPLICATION, UM, WITH OUR PERMIT CENTER, AND IT GETS CHECKED BY, UM, CITY PLANNERS, UM, AND BUILDING ENGINEERS, UM, JUST TO ENSURE THAT IT MEETS, LIKE, BUILDING AND ZONING CODES AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
WELL, SO IF THE, IF YOU GUYS SUPPORT OR HELP SUPPORT BUILDING THE ADU, THEN MYADU GOES ON A LIST OF SOME SORT OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING FOR PEOPLE THROUGH THE CITY, WHICH IS FINE.
IN THE FIRST ITERATION OF THE BACKYARD BUILDERS PROGRAM THAT HELPED PROVIDE, UM, UH, PROVIDE SUPPORT FOR FOLKS WHO WANTED TO BUILD ADUS, THAT WAS, LIKE, IN THE FIRST ITERATION OF IT WAS, UM, YES, THEY WOULD PROVIDE THEM, PUT THEM, PUT THEM ON THE LIST.
IN THE SECOND ITERATION NOW, IT'S TARGETED TOWARDS, UM, UH, LOWER INCOME HOMEOWNERS NOW.
UM, SO THEY DON'T HAVE ANY RESTRICTIONS, I BELIEVE, ON WHO THEY RENT IT TO.
UM, IT'S KIND OF MEANT TOWARD, TO OPEN IT UP NOW TO, LIKE, FOLKS WHO, YOU KNOW, MAYBE WANT TO, UM, YOU KNOW, JUST BUILD EQUITY OR, YOU KNOW, HELP THEIR GROWN FAMILIES.
COULD YOU JUST REPEAT WHERE THE LINK IS FOR GETTING HOUSING ELEMENT UPDATES? I COULDN'T FIND IT.
AND THAT'S GONNA BE LONGBEACH.GOV/LINKLEE.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR, THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION.
UM, MY QUESTION HAS TO DO WITH, UM, IS THE CITY WORKING IN ANY WAY WITH THE OWNERS OF RENTAL HOUSING SO THAT THEY ARE MORE LIKE...
[01:00:01]
VOUCHERS SO THAT THEY ARE MORE LIKELY TO ADD FEATURES FOR ACCESSIBILITY TO SENIORS AND THOSE WITH DISABILITIES.SO THAT IS A QUESTION THAT THE STAFF AT OUR HOUSING AUTHORITY WOULD PROBABLY BE BETTER SUITED TO ANSWER.
SO OUR DEPARTMENT MANAGES A LOT OF THE CONSTRUCTION SIDE PROGRAMS RELATED TO HOUSING, AND THEN THE HOUSING AUTHORITY IS DEALING DIRECTLY WITH, UM, VOUCHER RECIPIENTS AND USERS.
UM, SORRY, CAN YOU REPEAT THE QUESTION? UM, WELL, WE HAVE PEOPLE WHO ARE LOOKING FOR HOUSING AND MANY OF THEM ARE HAVING A VERY DIFFICULT TIME, ESPECIALLY SENIORS, THOSE WITH DISABILITIES.
UM, BUT THE OTHER SIDE OF IT IS THE PEOPLE WHO PROVIDE THE RENTAL HOUSING.
AND SO, UM, THE VOUCHERS THAT SAID YOU, YOUR REPORT SAID THAT VOUCHERS ARE NOT ACCEPTED OFTEN.
DO THE PEOPLE WHO PROVIDE THE RENT, RENTAL HOUSING UNDERSTAND THE VOUCHER PROGRAM? IS THERE ANYTHING TO ENCOURAGE THEM TO MAKE THEIR HOUSING MORE AVAILABLE TO PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES THAN WITH SENIORS? SO I THINK THAT THAT'S ONE OF THEM WHERE WE GO BACK TO...
SO DOES SOMEONE PICK UP THE PHONE OR DOES SOMEONE TALK TO THE HOMEOWNER TO LET THEM KNOW HOW THEY CAN CASH IN THAT VOUCHER, I THINK IS THE BOTTOM LINE.
YES, I BELIEVE OUR, OUR HOUSING AUTHORITY STAFF ARE ABLE TO WALK THE HOMEOWNERS THROUGH THIS PROCESS, BUT THIS IS WHERE, UM, WE DON'T OFTEN HAVE CONTROL OVER THESE ELEMENTS AND THE LANDLORD WOULD HAVE TO FIRST EXPRESS INTEREST IN, IN ACCEPTING, UM, VOUCHER RECIPIENTS.
AND DOES THE VOUCHER HAVE THAT INFORMATION ON IT SO THAT THEY KNOW HOW TO REACH OUT TO WHOEVER'S PROVIDING THE VOUCHER TO KNOW HOW TO...
YEAH, WE, WE WOULD HAVE TO ASK OUR, UM, HOUSING AUTHORITY STAFF AND, UM, WE CAN PROBABLY PROVIDE SOME FOLLOW-UP INFORMATION.
WE DEFINITELY NEED FOLLOW UP ON THAT.
A HOMEOWNER NEEDS TO KNOW HOW DO THEY ACCEPT THE VOUCHER SO THAT THESE FOLKS CAN LIVE IN THEIR BACK HOUSE OR WHEREVER THEY WANT TO COME.
ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT FOR THE BACKYARD BUILDERS PROGRAM OR JUST IN GENERAL? WELL, EITHER.
I MEAN, I'M, I'M THINKING OF A, A, A FAMILY THAT MIGHT LIVE IN A DUPLEX, THEY LIVE IN ONE UPSTAIRS OR DOWNSTAIRS, AND THERE'S ANOTHER ONE THAT'S FOR RENT.
THEY MAY NOT REALLY KNOW ABOUT THE VOUCHER PROGRAM AND IF THEY'RE APPROACHED BY SOMEONE, THEY MIGHT BACK OFF NOT REALLY UNDERSTANDING IT, THE IMPORTANCE OF IT AND HOW IT WORKS.
WE WILL FOLLOW UP AND, UM, PROVIDE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.
I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WHOEVER IS CONTACTING, UM, THEY MAKE AN OWNER FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH ACCEPTING A VOUCHER, THAT IT, THIS IS A LEGITIMATE THING.
IT WILL BE HAPPENING EVERY MONTH.
YOU'RE NOT GONNA HAVE THESE PEOPLE STUCK IN YOUR HOUSE, NOT PAYING RENT.
WE WILL PROVIDE THIS, THE FUNDS FOR YOU.
I DON'T KNOW HOW WE FOLLOW UP WITH THAT, HEIDI.
I'M NOT QUITE SURE HOW WE FOLLOW UP WITH THAT INFORMATION.
THEY WILL PROBABLY BE ABLE TO, UM, EMAIL US AND WE CAN EMAIL IT OUT TO YOU GUYS, UM, WHAT INFORMATION.
AND THEN IF THERE'S A CHANCE WE ALREADY MADE NOTE TO GET THE HOUSING AUTHORITY HERE, MAYBE THEY CAN TALK MORE ABOUT THE VOUCHERS IN A PRESENTATION IN THE NEXT YEAR TOO.
COMMISSIONERS, ANY MORE QUESTIONS? COMMISSIONER POITIER? UH, I GUESS I'M LOOKING FOR A LITTLE BIT OF CLARITY ON SLIDE 14, HOUSING ELEMENT IMPLEMENTATION PROGRESS.
I WANNA MAKE SURE I'M UNDERSTANDING THE, THE DATA POINTS YOU PROVIDED AND THE PRESENTATION WAS AMAZING, SO THANK YOU FOR COMING OUT TODAY.
UM, SO DOES THAT INDICATE THAT THE SUBTOTAL OF AFFORDABLE, WHAT, IF MY MATH IS RIGHT, WE HAVE BUILT 974 IN THE LAST FIVE YEAR, FOUR YEARS? UM, SO THE SUBTOTAL IS AN AGGREGATE NUMBER OF THE VERY LOW, LOW, AND MODERATE, UM, COLUMNS OR ROWS ABOVE IT.
WHEN IT SAYS 6%, THAT'S 6% OF 1535346 THAT HAVE BEEN COMPLETED, IS THAT...
SO A LITTLE BIT UNDER A THOUSAND.
DO YOU THINK, UH, DOES YOUR GROUP ANTICIPATE THAT THEY WILL MEET THAT, UM, GOAL WITHIN THE NEXT, WHAT, 2029, NEXT THREE YEARS? UM, SO THAT'S A, IT'S A TRICKY QUESTION AND PART OF IT IS BECAUSE OF, UM, AFFORDABLE HOUSING IS FUNDED THROUGH A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT SOURCES.
SOME OF THEM, SOME OF THESE PROGRAMS CAN COME THROUGH THE STATE, SOME OF THEM CAN BE FEDERAL.
[01:05:01]
IN, IN GENERAL, UM, AND THEN IN PARTICULAR, UM, FUNDING HAS NOT BEEN CONSISTENT, UM, FOR THOSE PROGRAMS. UM, SO WE DO PROVIDE A CERTAIN NUMBER OF, UH, LOANS FOR CONSTRUCTION, BUT, UM, THAT OFTEN DOESN'T MEET THE ENTIRE, UM, AMOUNT NEEDED TO CONSTRUCT AN AFFORDABLE DEVELOPMENT.UM, SO IT, IT PARTIALLY DEPENDS ON, UM, SOME OF THE THINGS WE TALKED ABOUT OVER HERE THAT WE DON'T ENTIRELY HAVE CONTROL OVER, UM, WHERE WE CAN, AS WE'VE DISCUSSED, WE'VE CREATED PROGRAMS TO TRY TO CREATE AFFORDABLE HOUSING, BUT, UM, JUST GIVEN THE NEED, UM, WITHIN OUR JURISDICTION, IT'S CHALLENGING TO ALWAYS ANTICIPATE, UM, HAVING THE RESOURCES TO MEET ALL THOSE NEEDS.
UM, AND THEN ADDITIONALLY, THE CYCLE THAT WE'RE IN, UH, IS THAT INDEXED ANNUALLY BASED ON INFLATION OR HOW THE MARKET'S CHANGING? 'CAUSE I IMAGINE IF THIS DATA WAS PULLED FOR THE CURRENT CYCLE, UH, THOSE ECONOMIC CONDITIONS ARE DEFINITELY DIFFERENT THAN TODAY'S.
YEAH, SO WE ACTUALLY HAVE TO DO AN ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT EVERY YEAR TO THE STATE.
UM, SO THAT'S PUBLICLY AVAILABLE AND WE ALSO MAKE THAT AVAILABLE, UM, ONLINE AS WELL.
SO I'M HAPPY TO SHARE THAT INFORMATION, UM, OUT FOLLOWING THIS, THIS MEETING.
BUT YEAH, WE DO, UH, AN APN OR, UH, OR EXCUSE APR, ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT TO, UH, HCP, HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT.
AND THEN THAT ADU, WE NEED THAT INFORMATION FOR, FOR OUR COMMISSIONERS AS WELL.
YEAH, ON THE BACKYARD BUILDERS PROGRAM? ABSOLUTELY.
WE WANT A BIGGER CLOSET, SO WE NEED TO KNOW HOW, WHO DO WE CONTACT TO MAKE SURE WE CAN GET THAT INFORMATION.
THANK YOU FOR THE INFORMATION.
AND IT'S TERRIBLE BASED ON PROBABLY SOME OTHER FACTORS.
SO WE STILL HAVE SUCH A CRISIS IN THE HOUSING MARKET.
FEDERAL FUNDS BEING SNATCHED AWAY SO WE CAN'T BUILD THINGS.
UM, STATE FUNDING THAT'S, YOU KNOW, FLEXIBLE BUT NOT, NOT REALLY AVAILABLE.
IT'S A LOT, BUT PEOPLE ARE STILL ON THE STREET EVEN MORE SO.
MY CONCERN IS NOT SO MUCH THAT WE KNOW WHAT THE BIGGER PICTURES, WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO ABOUT IT AND HOW.
FOR EXAMPLE, IF I WAS A DEVELOPER AND I CAME TO LONG BEACH, I WANNA BUILD THE BUILDING AND YOU'RE GONNA GIVE ME ALL OF THESE CREDITS AND STUFF TO BUILD AN AFFORDABLE UNIT.
I'M GONNA BUILD AN AFFORDABLE BUILDING, BUT THEN I'M GONNA HAND IT OVER TO A, A TRADITIONAL LEASING AGENT THAT'S GONNA RENT IT AT MARKET VALUE.
SO I BUILT IT, YOU PAID ME TO BUILD IT, BUT NOW IT'S $3,000 FOR A 600 SQUARE FOOT STUDIO BECAUSE I'M NOT THE LEASING AGENT.
SO MY CONCERN IS HOW DO WE LOOK AT...
AND THEN THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN LOW INCOME, AFFORDABLE, AND MARKET VALUE RATES.
THAT'S THE BIG QUESTION, BECAUSE PEOPLE AREN'T LOOKING AT THE FACT THAT AFFORDABLE DOESN'T MEAN AFFORDABLE FOR YOU.
IT MEANS AFFORDABLE BASED ON THE DEFINITION OF AFFORDABLE.
SO IF WE THINK YOU GOT AN OCEANFRONT PROPERTY ON, ON, ON OCEAN AND YOU'RE LIVING THERE AND IT'S SAY ONE OF THOSE OLD CONVERTED, UM, LIKE THE OLD MOTELS, BUT IT'S NOT ONE OF THE HIGH RISES, AFFORDABLE BECAUSE YOU'RE LOOKING AT WATER IS NOW $5,000 A MONTH BECAUSE YOU'RE BY THE WATER, BUT YOU'VE ALWAYS BEEN BY THE WATER AND NOW YOU CAN NO LONGER AFFORD TO STAY IN THE PLACE THAT YOU WERE BECAUSE IT'S ESCALATED.
HOW DO WE GET AFFORDABLE, LOW INCOME, WHICH USUALLY MEANS EVERYBODY IN THERE'S ON A VOUCHER OR SOME KIND OF SECTION EIGHT OR SOMETHING, AND THEN WE GET TO MARKET VALUE AND HOW DO WE NOT HAVE IT BUILT AND THEN HAVE IT MARKET VALUE BASED ON OUR LONG BEACH LOCATION SO THAT WE DON'T START PAYING MONEY? WELL, WE ALREADY DOING THAT, LIKE NEWPORT AND, AND, AND COSTA MESA AND PLACES LIKE THAT.
HOW DO WE KEEP IT BASED ON WHERE WE ARE AS LONG BEACH AND HOW IS THAT GOING TO AFFECT? YES, THESE NUMBERS ARE BAD, BUT...
AND I KNOW WE DON'T HAVE ANSWERS BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, MONEY COMES FROM SOMEWHERE ELSE, BUT WHAT CAN WE DO TO HELP PEOPLE BECOME HOUSED? I'LL START WITH THE FIRST POINT.
SO, UM, FOR AFFORDABLE UNITS, WE THINK THERE IS AN AFFORDABILITY COVENANT THAT WE ESTABLISHED TO MAKE SURE THAT THE UNIT IS HELD, UM, AS AN AFFORDABLE UNIT, UM, FOR A PERIOD, A CERTAIN SPECIFIC PERIOD OF TIME.
TYPICALLY, THEY'VE BEEN LIKE 55 YEARS, UM, BUT THEY CAN'T BE LONGER.
UM, SO THEY MUST BE HELD AT AN AFFORDABLE RATE FOR THAT PERIOD OF TIME.
HOWEVER, THAT RATE DOES CHANGE BECAUSE THE DEFINITION, AS YOU SAID, OF LIKE LOW INCOME, UH, YOU KNOW, UH, UM, VERY LOW INCOME WAGES, IT'S TIED TO LA COUNTY'S DEFINITIONS, UM, AND THEIR CALCULATIONS FOR AREA MEDIAN INCOME.
SO IF THE AREA OF MEDIAN INCOME IS, IS SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER IN SOME AREAS AS OPPOSED TO MAYBE OUR CITY, THEN THAT CAN OBVIOUSLY CAUSE, UM, A LOT OF DIFFICULTIES.
SO WHEN YOU SAY YOU'RE DOING THE AGGREGATE FOR AFFORDABLE,
[01:10:01]
SO THE COUNTY DECIDES THAT? CORRECT.SO WE'RE BASING LONG BEACH RENT ON BEVERLY HILLS? WE COULD BE...
WE'RE BASING IT KIND OF LIKE ON A, YEAH, LIKE AN AGGREGATE OF THE COUNTY IN TOTAL, YES.
AND SO, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE OBVIOUSLY A LOT OF NEEDS FOR THINGS LIKE THE UNITS THAT ARE DEEPLY AFFORDABLE.
WE DO HAVE A VERY HIGH DEMAND FOR, UM, FOR HOUSING CHOICE VOUCHERS, BUT THE, THE NUMBER THAT WE RECEIVE JUST, IT BASICALLY DEPENDS ON THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT THOUGH.
NOW THE SECOND QUESTION, WHEN YOU LOOK BACK AT THE CHALLENGES THAT PEOPLE SAYING WE CAN'T FIND PLACES, IT'S NOT EASY TO FIND PLACES, THEN THEY'RE NOT AFFORDABLE, UM, WELL, ALL THE BLACK, VERY DIFFICULT, VERY DIFFICULT, UM, CLOSE TO SCHOOLS AND, AND, AND JOB.
BUT IF WE'RE SENIORS, MOST AREN'T WORKING IN THAT RESPECT, BUT THEY STILL WANT CLOSE TO PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION.
VERY DIFFICULT TO FIND A PLACE WITH PEOPLE WHO ACCEPT MY PET, BUT THAT'S A VERSION OF SOMEONE WHO HAS A LEVEL OF EMOTIONAL DISABILITY OR STABILITY AND NEEDS TO HAVE THE ANIMAL WITH THEM AS A PART OF THEIR, UM, HEALTH AND WELLNESS.
WHY IS IT DIFFICULT TO FIND A PLACE THAT ACCEPTS PETS WHEN IT'S ILLEGAL TO DISCRIMINATE AGAINST THEM BECAUSE THEY HAVE THEM? WHAT'S, WHAT'S THE ANSWER? SO THE, THE SURVEY DOESN'T DISTINGUISH BETWEEN SERVICE ANIMALS AND, UM, AND JUST A PET THAT YOU HAVE.
AND WE, AGAIN, WE DIDN'T, UH, WE WERE ASKING RESIDENTS WHAT THEIR EXPERIENCE IS, SO, UM, WE CAN'T REALLY DISTINGUISH AT WHAT POINT, UM, THE RESIDENTS ARE EXPERIENCING DISCRIMINATION FOR A SERVICE ANIMAL.
UM, TH- THIS IS JUST KIND OF LOOKING ACROSS, LIKE, DOES YOUR FAMILY HAVE A PET, AND WHEN YOU WERE LOOKING FOR A HOME, WERE THEY ACCEPTING THAT PET? BUT ON THE FLIP SIDE, UNDER THE ADA GUIDELINES, THERE IS NO DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTIC THAT YOU NEED TO SHOW THAT THAT'S A SERVICE ANIMAL ANYWAY.
SO ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS SAY, "I HAVE A DOG." I DON'T HAVE TO PROVE TO YOU BY ANY METHOD THAT THIS IS A SERVICE ANIMAL BECAUSE N - WE ARE NO LONGER ASKING FOR THAT DEFINITION TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT IS IN FACT A SERVICE ANIMAL.
ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THAT, THEY SAY THAT THEY, SMALL, MY DESIRED PART OF THE CITY, WAS THAT IDENTIFIED AS TO WHAT WAS A DESIRABLE PART OF THE CITY THEY WANTED TO LIVE IN, OR WAS THAT JUST THAT QUESTION? THAT WAS JUST THAT QUESTION.
UM, WE HAVE A LITTLE BIT MORE VISIBILITY.
UH, SO, SO WE ACTUALLY, AS PART OF THIS PROGRAM, DID RELEASE, UM, A PUBLICLY ACCESSIBLE MAP TOOL, UM, AND WE LOOKED AT SORT OF WHERE OUR VOUCHER USERS ARE LIVING, BROKEN UP BY CENSUS TRACT.
UM, AND THERE'S, UM, MOST OF OUR RESIDENTS ARE IN THE SORT OF NORTH, UH, WEST AND CENTRAL AREAS OF LONG BEACH.
UM, SO WE HAVE SOME ABILITY TO MAKE ROUGH EQUIVALATION, OR, UM, ROUGH EQUIVALENCIES OF WHERE PEOPLE ARE EXPERIENCING CHALLENGES MOVING ACROSS THE CITY.
UM, BUT AGAIN, THIS, THIS IS THE, THE DATA THAT WE HAVE ON THAT QUESTION AND WE CAN'T, UM, DESEGREGATE IT FURTHER.
AND NOW, MOVING FORWARD INTO 2027 WITH HR1 BILL WHERE PEOPLE WILL BE DIRECTLY AFFECTED WHO ARE RECEIVING CALFRESH AND/OR MEDI-CAL BENEFIT, MORE PEOPLE WILL BE DIRECTLY AFFECTED IF THEY LOSE THOSE BENEFITS AND THEY BECOME UNHOUSED, AND THE INDUSTRY THAT SUPPORTS IT, LIKE THE IHSS WORKERS WHO ACTUALLY TAKE CARE OF THE PEOPLE WHO ARE RECEIVING THOSE VOUCHERS, HAVE WE IMPLEMENTED SOMETHING AS AN ANTICIPATORY, LIKE, REGULATORY...
LIKE WHAT CAN WE LOOK FORWARD TO AS IT'S GONNA DIRECTLY BE IMPACTED BY THE NEW, UH, HR1 BILL THAT'S, UH, FEDERALLY, UM, OUTLINED AND IT'S GONNA TAKE EFFECT IN JANUARY? SO, UM, TH- THIS PART OF THE REASON THAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO THESE TYPES OF EVALUATIONS IS TO ASSESS WHERE SOME OF THE GREATEST NEEDS ARE.
UM, THAT WAY, AS WE PREPARE FOR FUTURE UPDATES TO OUR HOUSING ELEMENT, WE CAN DESIGN PROGRAMS THAT SORT OF MEET THOSE NEEDS.
THAT'S HOW WE GOT TO PROGRAMS LIKE THE FIRST TIME HOME BUYER ASSISTANCE PROGRAM AND BACKYARD BUILDERS, UM, SO THAT WHEN FUNDING DOES BECOME AVAILABLE, WE CAN, UM, USE IT, UM, FOR PROGRAMS THAT WOULD MEET THOSE NEEDS.
UM, I, I THINK WE'RE JUST GONNA EXPERIENCE A, A CHALLENGE OF RESOURCE CONSTRAINTS, UM, AND, AND CONTINUE TO PROMOTE AND USE THE PROGRAMS THAT WE HAVE AVAILABLE, UM, AND, AND SEEK ADDITIONAL FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE.
NOW I KNOW, UM, COMMISSIONER MENTIONED ABOUT REUSE OF COMMERCIAL SPACES, BUT HAS THERE BEEN ANY FURTHER EMPHASIS IN REUSE OF JUST HOTEL SPACES AS LOCATIONS BECAUSE THEY ALREADY DO HAVE A BED AND A TOILET AND A BATHROOM AND ALL THAT, AS OPPOSED TO JUST TRYING TO BUILD OUT A COMMERCIAL SPACE THAT'S PURCHASING OR BUILDING MORE HOUSING UNITS THAT LOOK LIKE HOSTELS
[01:15:01]
OR HOTELS OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT SO WE CAN AT LEAST PUT PEOPLE IN SOMETHING THAT'S FAMILIAR WITH WHAT WOULD BE CALLED A HOME.I MEAN, UM, I KNOW THAT THERE ARE PROGRAMS LIKE HOME KEY AND THINGS LIKE THAT THAT KIND OF HELP FOLKS KIND OF DO CONVERSIONS.
UM, IT JUST, AGAIN, IT KIND OF GOES BACK TO, LIKE, THE DR.
IT, IT DEPENDS ON WHO'S, WHO CAN KIND OF STEP IN AND SORT OF MAKE THAT HAPPEN IN TERMS OF DEVELOPERS.
UM, THE CITY DOESN'T, LIKE, DEVELOP ITS OWN, UH, HOUSING AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
SO, UM, THAT'S KIND OF WHERE THE GAP, THE GAP IS, IS WE NEED FOLKS TO KIND OF STEP IN.
AND HOME KEY IS A STATE FUNDED PROGRAM, SO WHEN THOSE FUNDS WERE AVAILABLE, YOU KNOW, WE, WE APPLIED FOR THEM AS SOON AS WE CAN.
UM, TH- THIS PARTIALLY GETS INTO THE ZONING QUESTION, AND THOSE PROPERTIES, UM, AREN'T FIT FOR PERMANENT RESIDENTS, SO WE USE THEM AS TRANSITIONAL PROPERTIES, UM, TO GIVE PEOPLE SHELTER AND A DECENT PLACE TO LIVE WHILE THEY LOOK FOR PERMANENT HOUSING.
UM, SO THAT'S SOME OF THE CHALLENGES WITH THESE PROGRAMS THAT WE DON'T CONTROL LOCALLY IS, UM, WE DON'T ALWAYS HAVE THE ABILITY TO CONVERT IT INTO, LIKE, AN APARTMENT THAT YOU COULD LIVE IN FOR AN INDEFINITE PERIOD OF TIME.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION.
VERY GRIM STATISTICS, BUT I'M GLAD THAT WE ARE MADE AWARE OF JUST HOW DIRE THE SITUATION IS.
I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT EXISTING APARTMENT BUILDINGS THAT ARE VACANT, ABANDONED.
UM, DO YOU KNOW IF THE CITY'S LOOKING INTO THOSE? I DON'T THINK WE HAVE ANY DATA, UNFORTUNATELY, ON VACANCY RATES, UM, IN APARTMENT AND RENTAL UNITS.
UM - LIKE, THAT ARE COMPLETELY...
I ASKED BECAUSE THERE'S AN APARTMENT BUILDING NEAR WHERE I LIVE.
IN THE PAST SEVEN YEARS, IT'S BEEN...
I THINK THERE'S ABOUT 20 UNITS COMPLETELY VACANT THE LAST SEVEN OR EIGHT YEARS.
IT CAN BE REALLY DIFFICULT TO GET THAT DATA.
IT'S DEFINITELY ONE THING THAT WE'RE EXPLORING AND TRYING TO ATTAIN IS, LIKE, VACANCY RATES.
SO, WHO COULD SHE GET THAT INFORMATION TO SO THAT THE CITY POSSIBLY COULD...
YEAH, COULD LOOK INTO CONTACTING THE PROPERTY OWNER? UM, I DON'T THINK THAT THE CITY WOULD HAVE, UNFORTUNATELY, ANY CONTROLS TO THEN, UH, KIND OF SPUR THAT, THE, THE, THAT OWNER INTO, INTO, YOU KNOW, PROVIDING THOSE RENTALS OR REDUCING THEIR, THEIR RENTS OR, YOU KNOW, MAKING IT SO THAT THEY CAN...
IT'S EASIER FOR THEM TO KIND OF RENT IT OUT.
UM, YEAH, WE WOULDN'T RENT NECESSARILY - AND MAYBE THEY, MAYBE THEY WOULD DO IT IF THEY KNEW THE VOUCHER, UH, PROGRAM SITUATION.
AND, LIKE, WE'LL GET THAT INFORMATION, UM, TO YOU GUYS AS WELL, UM, ABOUT REDUCTION.
AND THESE ARE, AGAIN, THESE ARE UNITS THAT ARE COMPLETELY EMPTY.
THERE'S NO HABITATION WHATSOEVER.
OTHER THAN SQUATTERS FROM TIME TO TIME.
IF I WAS MOVED FROM A BUILDING FOR MY BUSINESS TWICE, ONE ON PINE WHERE THE FEDERAL BAR BUILDING IS, AND THE OPPOSITE WE WENT OVER TO WHERE THE SALVATION ARMY BUILDING WAS.
WE WERE ALL REMOVED BECAUSE THEY SAID THEY WERE CONVERTING THOSE BUILDINGS, AND NOW THEY'RE LOOKING AT THE BUILDING AT LA OPERA, RES- RESIDES IN, TO REMOVE ALL OF THE COMMERCIAL BUSINESSES OUT OF THERE TO CONVERT THEM FOR HOUSING.
AND NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE IN THOSE COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS EITHER.
AND SO THAT'S, THAT'S SOMETHING WE'VE MENTIONED EARLIER TOO, RIGHT? WHERE THE BUILDING MAY HAVE GONE THROUGH, LIKE, THE ADAPTIVE REUSE PROCESS AND GAINED THE NECESSARY APPROVALS, BUT PERHAPS FUNDING FELL THROUGH.
UM, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'RE SEEING VERY OFTEN IS THAT THEY, THEY MIGHT HAVE EVERYTHING KIND OF LINED UP AND THEN GET TO GET TO, LIKE, JUST THE CONSTRUCTION PHASE.
THEY DON'T, THEY, THERE'S NO MONEY FOR THEM TO DO IT.
SO THAT'S, THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WE ARE, UM, STARTING TO SEE.
ANY MORE QUESTIONS, COMMISSIONERS? PUBLIC.
ARE THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS? SURE.
HI, I'M GRETCHEN SWANSON, AND, UM, I LIVE IN CB2.
UM, I WORK WITH THE AGENT SERVICES COLLABORATIVE, UM, ON MANY ISSUES.
I THINK THIS IS A VERY INFORMATIVE TOPIC, AND I'M PLEASED, IN A TRAGIC SORT OF WAY, OF ALL YOUR INTERESTS, BECAUSE IT'S A TRAGEDY.
WE HAVE A HOUSING TRAGEDY HERE IN LONG BEACH.
UM, TRYING TO SIMPLIFY IT JUST NEGATES IT.
I WOULD, IF THIS IS A SUGGESTION, IS THAT I THINK YOU'RE A VERY IMPORTANT BODY IN OUR CITY.
OUR CITY MAY NOT ALWAYS REALIZE IT.
UH, I THINK THAT YOU CAN, MIGHT, SHOULD
[01:20:01]
PUT FORWARD SOME VERY POINTED POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS BASED ON WHAT YOU'RE HEARING TODAY.AS, UH, COMMISSIONER SALCEDO SAID, "THIS IS DIRE.
WE'RE, WE'RE ON THE BRINK." AND NOT JUST TALKING ABOUT HOUSING AFTER THE PERSON LOSES THEIR HOUSING, WHICH IS DOWNSTREAM STUFF, BUT UPSTREAM.
HOW CAN WE PREVENT? THERE ARE PEOPLE ALREADY BEING HOUSED.
HOWEVER, THE RENT IN MARKET RATE GOES UP, AND THERE'S NO, NO CONTROL OVER THAT.
UH, WE LEARNED TODAY SOCIAL SECURITY IS GOING TO GIVE US $75 MORE A MONTH.
THAT IN NO WAY ADDRESSES A SIX OR 10% INCREASE IN AN ANNUAL BASIS, PLUS EVERYTHING ELSE.
SO I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO CONSIDER SENDING A MESSAGE TO CITY COUNCIL AND THE MAYOR ABOUT RENT CONTROL.
MAKE IT CLEAR AND MAKE IT SO THAT IT'S NOT PUNITIVE FOR, UH, PERSONS WHO...
WITH DISABILITY OR OLDER ADULTS CITY-WIDE.
THAT WAY, LANDLORDS WILL NOT DISCRIMINATE BETWEEN POTENTIAL, UM, TROUBLESOME RENTERS.
REQUIRE SAFETY AND ACCOMMODATION.
HAVING BEEN A PHYSICAL THERAPIST 50 YEARS, MOST OF IT HERE IN THE CITY OF LONG BEACH, THERE ARE MASSIVE LACK OF SAFETY AND ACCOMMODATION ISSUES, AND THAT'S BECAUSE THE LANDLORD SEES IT AS A HASSLE AND THEY ARE PUNITIVE TOWARDS THE RENTER.
SO WE HAVE A LOT OF SAFETY AND ACCOMMODATION ISSUES HERE THAT ARE LEFT UNDONE BECAUSE PEOPLE DON'T WANNA LEAVE THE APARTMENT THAT THEY HAVE.
AND FINALLY, ENCOURAGE THE CITY TO ESTABLISH A HABITABILITY ORDINANCE THAT ALL RENTAL PROPERTIES ARE SAFE IN CERTAIN WAYS.
I'M FAMILIAR WITH WHAT COMMISSIONER SALCEDO IS TALKING ABOUT.
THAT BUILDING EITHER SHOULD BE CONDEMNED IN PART OR REHABILITATED, BUT WE DON'T HAVE AN ORDINANCE THAT REQUIRES THAT.
I THINK YOU'RE A POWERFUL GROUP.
I THINK YOU VOICED A LOT OF IMPORTANT THINGS, AND I ENCOURAGE YOU TO DO THAT.
ANY MORE COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC? AT THIS TIME, COMMISSIONERS, DO WE HAVE ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS? DID WE GET A...
WHAT'S NEXT STEPS FROM YOUR ORGANIZATION? YEAH.
SO WE WILL BE, UM, RELEASING THE FULL REPORT.
UM, WE'RE ANTICIPATING, UM, BY THE END OF THE YEAR, UM, AND SO THAT WILL BE MADE, UM, MADE AVAILABLE.
SO ALL OF THAT SURVEY DATA, UM, AS WELL AS PROGRESS ON OUR SPECIFIC PROGRAMS WILL BE MADE AVAILABLE AS WELL.
PLEASE CALL FOR THE NEXT ITEM.
[5. 26-56450 Recommendation to review, discuss, and, if appropriate, approve the transmittal of the City of Long Beach Advisory Commission on Aging 2026 Visibility Plan from the 2026 Visibility Plan Ad Hoc Committee to City Council. Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ]
TO REVIEW, DISCUSS, AND IF APPROPRIATE, APPROVE THE TRANSMITTAL OF THE CITY OF LONG BEACH ADVISORY COMMISSION ON AGING 2026 VISIBILITY PLAN FROM THE 2026 VISIBILITY PLAN AD HOC COMMITTEE TO CITY COUNCIL.MAY I HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND FOR THE SIDE? I SO MOVE.
COMMISSIONER CHINCHILLA MOVED.
UM, WE'LL NOW TURN IT TO STAFF FOR PRESENTATION.
IN YOUR PACKET, WE HAVE, UM, THE LETTER, AND I KNOW, UM, THIS WAS POSTPONED.
UM, SORRY, NOT THE LETTER, THE VISIBILITY, UM, PLAN, UM, THAT WAS DRAFTED BY THE AD HOC COMMITTEE.
SO HOPEFULLY YOU GUYS HAD A, HAD A CHANCE TO REVIEW IT AND, UM, YOU GUYS CAN GO AHEAD AND, UM, CONVERSATE ON IT, UM, IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS.
IT'S ACTUALLY, UM, NUMBER FIVE.
IT'S THE BIGGEST, THE, UM, LONG BEACH ADVISORY COMMISSION ON AGING VISIBILITY PLAN.
IT HAS THE DIFFERENT, UM, TOPICS OF CROSS - YES.
[01:25:01]
YOU FIND IT? OKAY.IT'S AFTER THE PRESENTATIONS, YES.
SO THEN YOU GUYS CAN HAVE A DISCUSSION ON IT.
UM, WELL, UM, I THINK WE WERE HOPING THAT, UM, FOLKS WOULD FIND A NICHE ON THESE, UM, DIFFERENT...
SIGN UP FOR DIFFERENT PARTS OF...
AND SOME OF YOU HAVE OF THE, THE LIST OF THE AD - UH, UH, FOCUS, THE, THE DIFFERENT EMPHASES.
UM, WE DO HA - ALREADY HAVE A CROSS COMMISSION COLLABORATION AD HOC COMMITTEE COMPOSED OF PHYLLIS, SYLVIA, AND ME.
AND, UH, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE ORIGINALLY TALKED ABOUT WAS COLLABORATING WITH THE DIS - COMMISSION ON DISABILITIES AND THE COMMISSION AND THE HOMELESSNESS COMMISSION.
SO AS A RESULT OF THE REPORT TODAY, I THINK IT MIGHT BE GOOD FOR OUR AD HOC COMMITTEE TO MEET AND GIVE A REPORT NEXT TIME.
UM, THOSE, THOSE OTHER COMMISSIONS HAD ALREADY INT - UH, INDICATED INTEREST IN SPONSORING SOME KINDS OF PUBLIC PROGRAMS ABOUT THE CRISIS AND, AND JUST FIT RIGHT IN WITH THE REPORT TODAY.
BUT THERE IS ALSO, UH, A PROPOSED, UH, EMPHASIS ON OTHER AREAS THAT MIGHT INTERSECT WITH TODAY.
I THINK OVER HERE, ISN'T THERE SOMETHING ON HOUSING? AND, UM, SO ANYWAY, MY, UH...
I, I PROMISE TO, UM, ACTIVATE THAT COMMISSION IN THE MEANTIME AND GIVE A REPORT NEXT MONTH.
AND I'D LIKE TO HEAR IF ANYBODY ELSE HAS MOVED TO ACTION ON THE VISIBILITY PLAN.
COMMISSIONERS, ANYBODY? UM, OKAY.
GIVEN THE RECENT, UM, CHALLENGES WE'VE HAD CONCERNING WEATHER, UM, I WAS VERY INTERESTED TO SEE THAT ONE OF THE SUGGESTIONS WAS EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS AND CLIMATE RESILIENCE.
AND I THINK THAT'S ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT FOR SENIORS AND FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES IN TERMS OF, UM, BEING INCLUDED IN ANY RE - IN ANY PARTS OF THOSE PLANS.
SO IF ANYONE ELSE IS INTERESTED IN, UM, WORKING WITH ME ON THAT, YOU ARE.
SO IS THAT GONNA BE ANOTHER AD HOC, UH...
SO, UM, THIS IS KIND OF JUST GOING OVER THE VISIBILITY PLAN.
WE DO HAVE IN THE, THE AGENDA ON NUMBER SEVEN TO ADD AD HOC COMMITTEES, SO THAT'S WHERE WE WOULD ADD IN AD HOC COMMITTEES.
OR IF, UM, THERE'S SOMETHING ON THE, UM, VISIBILITY PLAN THAT YOU WANT TO CREATE AN AD HOC COMMITTEE IN, THAT'S WHERE WE WOULD DO THAT AS WELL.
AND HEIDI, CAN YOU PLEASE REMIND ME, HAS THIS VISIBILITY PLAN BEEN FINALIZED BECAUSE LAST WEEK...
I WASN'T AT THE LAST MEETING, BUT THE ONE BEFORE, WE ASKED FOR INPUT FROM THE OTHER COMMISSIONERS BEFORE WE FINALIZED THIS.
SO THIS HAS NOT BEEN FINALIZED, THAT'S WHY IT'S ON THE AGENDA TODAY.
BECAUSE WE, WE HELD IT OVER, UM, SINCE, UM, YOU WEREN'T HERE LAST, UH, MEETING TO BRING IT TO THIS ONE, SO THERE HASN'T BEEN A CONVERSATION.
I THINK SOME OF THE INPUT THAT WAS RECEIVED HAS, UM, POSSIBLY TAKEN PLACE OR WE DIDN'T GET ANY INPUT ON ANY, ANY CHANGES.
UM, THIS IS WHERE WE'RE, UM, SEEING IF YOU GUYS WANNA FINALIZE IT, AND THEN WE WOULD SEND THIS TO, UM, THE CITY COUNCIL WITH A MEMO TO THEM, SHOW, TELLING THEM THIS IS THE VISIBILITY PLAN BASED ON THE AGING COMMISSION'S RECOMMENDATION.
I, I DON'T, I DIDN'T RECEIVE ANY FEEDBACK REGARDING...
THANK YOU, YES, MODIFYING IT IN ANY WAY.
SO I'M OKAY WITH PROCEEDING TO FINALIZE IT IF EVERYONE ELSE IS.
DO WE TAKE A VOTE ON THAT, MADAM CLERK? ARE WE FINALIZING IT BASED ON WHAT IT SAYS OR...
YEAH, WHAT'S - OH, ONLY ON THE - BECAUSE IT WAS, IT WAS PROVIDED, A COPY OF THIS VISIBILITY PLAN WAS PROVIDED A FEW MONTHS BACK AND YOU ASKED FOR FEEDBACK.
I'M JUST SAYING ON THIS ONE, ON THE TRANSPORTATION, I BELIEVE IT'S MYSELF AND PHYLLIS AND I THINK JUDY.
I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT'S CORRECT.
NO, THIS IS JUST, UM, WE WILL, UM, THE AD HOC COMMITTEES, UM, WILL KEEP TRACK OF THAT A DIFFERENT WAY, BUT IN TERMS OF CONTENT, DOES THIS LOOK OKAY? I'M SAYING THIS NEED TO INCLUDE THE OTHER COMMISSIONER THAT'S ON OUR, ON OUR - THE, UM, ALL THE AD HOC COMMITTEES AREN'T INCLUDED ON THIS PLAN.
I THINK THEY, YOU CAN HAVE SEPARATE AD HOC COMMITTEES AS WELL.
SO UNLESS YOU WANNA INCLUDE THEM ALL IN THIS, BUT FOR AD HOC COMMITTEES.
[01:30:01]
WHERE YOU, UM, HAVE THEM FOR A CERTAIN THING.AND THEY DON'T TECHNICALLY HAVE TO BE IN THIS, SO IT MIGHT BE OUTRIGHT SOMEWHERE.
SO CAN I MAKE A SUGGESTION THEN FOR THE VISIBILITY PLAN, WE DON'T INCLUDE NAMES, JUST - YEAH.
THE TOPICS AND THEN WE CAN DO SOMETHING SEPARATE WITH THE ASSIGNMENTS.
OH, YOU MEAN BECAUSE IT'S GONNA BE SENT TO THE CITY COUNCIL? OH, OKAY.
BUT FOR OUR OWN PURPOSES, IT'D BE GOOD TO KEEP A LIST OF PEOPLE - YES.
INTERESTED IN DIFFERENT AREAS BECAUSE THEY HAVEN'T, THEY HAVEN'T ALL MANIFESTED IN AD HOC COMMITTEES.
SO FOR, I KNOW COMMISSIONER KAVANAUGH EXPECT AN INTER - EXPRESSED AN INTEREST IN HEALTH AND THEN COMMISSIONER FRANCIS JUST EXPECT...
SO WE CAN HAVE OUR SEPARATE, UH, LIST OF WHO'S INTERESTED.
SO WE, WE DO HAVE THAT ON NUMBER SEVEN AND THAT'S OUR AD HOC COMMITTEE.
SO THE CROSS, UM, COMMISSION COLLABORATION, YOU ARE LISTED ON THAT AD HOC.
UM, I GUESS I WOULD JUST NEED DIRECTION IF YOU ARE GONNA...
I KNOW ORIGINALLY THE COMMISSIONERS GAVE US THIS DOCUMENT, SO IF YOU WANT TO REMOVE THE NAMES AND SEND IT TO US AND IF THE MOTION WOULD BE TO APPROVE IT WITH THE NAMES RE- REMOVAL AND THEN THE AD HOCS, ALL THESE THINGS COULD BE THEIR OWN AD HOC COMMITTEE IF YOU GUYS CHOOSE TO DO THAT.
I'LL SEND YOU A COPY WITH THE NAMES REMOVED.
WE, WE CAN ALSO KEEP OUR OWN COPY WITH NAMES OF INTEREST.
SO CAN I MOVE THE ADOPTION OF THE VISIBILITY PLAN? CLERK? WILL WE TAKE...
SO IT WOULD BE A FRIENDLY TO THE ITEM, UH, TO NOT INCLUDE THE NAMES ON THE VISIBILITY.
SO - BECAUSE YOU'RE THE, THE MOTION, THE ORIGINAL MOTION HERE AND THEN IS THE SECONDARY.
SO THAT FRONT HAS BEEN AMENDED.
SO I, I MOVE THAT WE ADOPT THE VISIBILITY PLAN WITH THE NAMES REMOVED AND, UM, SEND A COPY TO THE CITY COUNCIL.
TOGETHER WITH THE LETTER FROM DEPARTMENT OF PARK REC.
BECAUSE THEY'RE THE ONES THAT ACTUALLY - YEAH, TOGETHER WITH THE LETTER FROM PARKS AND REC.
CALL FOR THE VOTE, MADAM? I'M SORRY.
IS THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMENT ON THIS ISSUE? SEE NONE.
CLERK, CALL FOR THE VOTE? YES.
COMMISSIONER CHANGIA? APPROVE.
COMMISSIONER FRANCIS? APPROVE.
COMMISSIONER CAVANAUGH? COMMISSIONER POTIERREZ? ACCEPT.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT? APPROVE.
OKAY, SO PLEASE READ THE NEXT ITEM.
[6. 26-56448 Recommendation to review, discuss, and if appropriate, approve the transmittal of a letter from the Fares for Seniors on LB Transit Ad Hoc Committee to City Council outlining free Long Beach transit fare for all ages over 50. Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ]
TO REVIEW DISCUSS AND IF APPROPRIATE, APPROVE THE LETTER OF A LETTER, SORRY TO APPROVE THE TRANSMITTAL OF A LETTER FROM THE FAIRS FOR SENIORS ON LB TRANSIT AD HOC COMMITTEE.THE CITY COUNCIL OUTBOUND, OUTLINED FREE LONG BEACH TRANSIT FAIR FOR ALL AGES OVER 50.
MAY I HAVE A MOTION AND A SECONDER FOR THIS? I'LL MOVE.
COMMISSIONER SMITH HAS MOVED VICE CHAIR SAUCEDO AS SECOND.
UM, WE'LL TURN IT TO THE COMMISSION TO JUST, TO LEAD THE DISCUSSION ON THIS ITEM.
SO THIS LETTER, EVERYBODY HAS IT.
THIS WILL GO BEFORE, UM, THIS WILL BE SENT TO OUR LONG BEACH CITY COUNCIL.
WE ARE WRITING TO YOU ON BEHALF OF THE ADVISORY COMMISSION ON AGING COMMISSION.
WE ARE ASKING FOR THE LONG BEACH TRANSIT TO CONSIDER FREE TRANSIT FOR ALL AGES OVER 50 WITH LESS THAN 7% OF YOUR BUDGET COMING FROM FAIRS.
HOW CAN WE HELP MAKE THIS POSSIBLE? AND THEN THEY LIST SOME CITIES AND THEY SAY THAT THEY HAVE FREE TRANSIT.
THE CONCEPT IS NOT NEW WITH, UH, CIRCUIT AND PASSPORT ON WEEKENDS.
WE NEED TO COVER ALL LONG BEACH, NOT JUST THE BEACH AND DOWNTOWN AREAS.
WE KNOW THE NEED GETS MORE PRESSING AS AUTO POLLUTION, AUTOMOBILE POLLUTION BECOMES MORE DEVASTATING.
[01:35:02]
CAN WE SAY CLIMATE CHANGE ADDS TO THE URGENCY TO CONSIDER WAYS TO GET PEOPLE AROUND? WE, AS THE ADVISORY COMMISSION ON AGING, WOULD LIKE THE CITY TO CONTACT LONG BEACH TRANSIT AND OPEN A DIALOGUE TO SEE HOW WE CAN AFFECT OUR PROPOSED CHANGE.THAT'S THE LETTER THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT TO GO BEFORE OUR CITY COUNCIL.
CAN WE PROVIDE SOME FEEDBACK? I JUST NEED TIME TO TAKE A LOOK AT IT AND COME BACK WITH SOME FEEDBACK.
IS THAT POSSIBLE? HEIDI? YEAH, YOU, I MEAN, YOU CAN TAKE A LOOK AT IT AND PROVIDE FEEDBACK FOR SURE.
WE WOULD PUT IT THEN ON THE NEXT AGENDA TO, UM, MOVE FORWARD BECAUSE WE DO NEED APPROVAL FROM, UM, THE COMMISSION TO ACTUALLY - AND THIS WAS IN THE PACKET.
THIS, THIS ISN'T THE FIRST TIME WE'VE SEEN IT.
NO, THIS LETTER WAS NOT IN THE PACKET.
UNFORTUNATELY, IT WASN'T READY FOR THE PACKET.
SO THAT'S WHY WE PROVIDED TODAY, UM, TO YOU.
UM, SO THEN, UM, YEAH, IF YOU WANNA TAKE A LOOK AT IT, YOU CAN MOVE IT TO THE NEXT MEETING, UM, IF YOU WANT.
UM, BUT WE WOULD NEED SOME, A VOTE FOR THIS TO BE APPROVED TO BE GIVEN TO THE CITY COUNCIL.
COMMISSIONERS, ANY QUESTIONS? UH, MAY WE ASK A QUESTION ABOUT THE CONTENT OF THE LETTER? UM, MY QUESTION HAS TO DO WITH THE CITIES THAT ARE LISTED AS HAVING FREE TRANSIT.
IS THAT FREE TRANSIT FOR AGES OVER 50 OR DO THEY HAVE FREE TRANSIT FOR EVERYONE? THOSE CITIES HAVE FREE TRANSIT FOR EVERYONE.
BUT I THOUGH JUST TO START WITH LONG BEACH, JUST TO START AT 50 AND MOVE TO, UH, OH.
JUST WANTED TO START SOMEWHERE.
WE'D LIKE TO TAKE PUBLIC COMMENT AT THIS TIME SINCE WE HAVE NO MORE COMMENTS FROM THE COMMISSION.
RAINA? UH, I HAVE A PREPARED STATEMENT.
FIRST OF ALL, I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE AND COMMEND THE DECISION TO ADVANCE A FAIR FREE PROGRAM FOR SENIOR CITIZENS.
MY MOTHER IS A SENIOR AND SHE RIDES THE BUS DAILY.
SHE RECEIVES 20 FREE FARES THROUGH THE LIFE PROGRAM ALREADY, BUT THAT LIMITS HER CAPACITY TO GO OUT AND SHE MUST PLAN AROUND HER ACCESS TO FREE RIDES.
A FULLY FREE SYSTEM WOULD GIVE HER MORE FREEDOM, AND I'M REALLY THANKFUL, UH, FOR YOU ALL, UH, FOR ALL OF YOU FOR CONSIDERING THIS.
THE BUS IS A FORM OF PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION, A PUBLIC GOOD THAT SHOULD BE OFFERED TO EVERYONE FOR FREE AT THE POINT OF USE.
WHEN YOU VISIT A PUBLIC PARK, YOU AREN'T CHARGED TO SIT ON THE GRASS OR LET YOUR CHILDREN PLAY IN THE PLAYGROUND.
OUR TAX DOLLARS PAY TO BUILD AND MAINTAIN THE PARK, AND EVERYONE HAS FREE AND EQUAL ACCESS TO IT.
UNFORTUNATELY, YOU MUST PAY A FARE TO RIDE THE BUS, WHICH IS ALREADY FUNDED BY OUR TAX DOLLARS.
THIS MEANS WE PAY TWICE FOR THE BUS, ONCE WITH TAXES AND AGAIN AT THE FAIR BOX.
FAIRS PROVIDE ONLY ABOUT SIX TO 7% OF LONG BEACH TRANSIT FUNDING, A VERY SMALL PROPORTION OF THE, OF THE SECOND LARGEST TRANSIT SYSTEM IN LOS ANGELES COUNTY.
WE HAVE PROGRAMS THAT PROVIDE LIMITED FREE ACCESS TO THE BUS FOR CERTAIN GROUPS OF PEOPLE, STUDENTS BEING ONE SUBGROUP.
HOWEVER, THESE PROGRAMS COME AT A COST INCURRED BY THE SCHOOLS WHO SPEND MONEY OUT OF THEIR BUDGETS TO PAY FOR THOSE FARES.
IN MY OPINION, IS A WASTEFUL USE OF MONEY MEANT TO EDUCATE OUR CHILDREN.
A BETTER AND MORE SUSTAINABLE SOLUTION IS TO MAKE THE BUS FARE-FREE FOR EVERYONE.
A STUDY BY THE FEDERAL TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION FOUND THAT MORE PEOPLE RIDE THE BUS WHEN IT IS FREE THAN WHEN IT WAS DISCOUNTED.
IN FACT, ONLY FARELESS BUS ACCESS HAS STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT RESULTS.
WE KNOW THAT TRANSIT AUTHORITIES RECEIVE FUNDING FROM MANY SOURCES, INCLUDING COUNTY AND STATE FUNDS, WHICH MAKE UP THREE QUARTERS OF THE FUNDING OF LONG BEACH TRANSIT.
STATE FUNDING IS DEPENDENT ON THE SIZE AND DEMAND OF TRANSIT SYSTEMS. AN INCREASE IN RIDERSHIP WOULD IMPROVE LONG BEACH TRANSIT WITH MORE STATE FUNDING.
COUN - UH IS DEPENDENT ON TAXES COLLECTED BASED ON THE HEALTH OF THE LOCAL ECONOMY.
FAIR-FREE BUSES WOULD SAVE PEOPLE HUNDREDS OR THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS YEARLY TO SPEND ON THE LOCAL ECONOMY, THUS PROVIDING A STABLE FUNDING SOURCE FOR LONG BEACH TRANSIT, WHICH IS ABOUT 50% ACCORDING TO AN EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR LONG BEACH TRANSIT, MICHAEL.
BEYOND OUR FUNDING CONCERNS, A FAIR-FREE SYSTEM ALSO IMPROVES SERVICE BY VIRTUE OF BEING FAIRLESS.
IN A FAIR-FREE SYSTEM, RIDERS COULD SIMPLY GET ON THE BUS AND JUST REDUCE HOW LONG THE BUS STAYS STOPPED AT EACH STOP, WHICH MEANS FASTER SERVICE.
WHEN MORE PEOPLE TAKE THE BUS, LESS PEOPLE DRIVE THEIR CARS, FREEING UP TRAFFIC AND PROVIDING YET ANOTHER IMPROVEMENT TO THE SPEED OF BUSES.
LESS CARS ALSO MEANS THE ROADS WILL BE SAFER FOR SENIORS CROSSING THE STREET.
INCREASED RIDERSHIP ALSO IS CORRELATED WITH SAFER BUSES FOR PASSENGERS.
MORE RIDERS MEANS LESS INCIDENTS ON THE BUS AND MORE PEOPLE TO KEEP OUR SENIORS SAFE.
FURTHERMORE, IT IS SAFER FOR DRIVERS TOO, AS MOST ALTERCATIONS OCCUR AT THE FAIR BOX, WHICH WOULD BE ENTIRELY ELIMINATED IF THERE WAS NO FARE.
THAT I HAVE MADE CLEAR THE BENEFITS OF A UNIVERSAL FAIR FREE PROGRAM AND IMPLORE YOU TO CONSIDER PUSHING FOR A TRANSIT SYSTEM THAT NOT ONLY IMPROVES THE LIVES OF SENIORS, BUT ALL MEMBERS OF OUR COMMUNITY.
[01:40:01]
THANK YOU.COMMISSIONERS, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? UM, I DON'T...
CHAIR CLARK, I- I DON'T KNOW HOW TO HANDLE MINE, BUT IS THERE ANY WAY WE CAN INCLUDE SOME OF THIS DATA IN OUR, IN OUR LETTER, UM, WHEN WE VOTE ON IT OR, UM - YES.
CAN I ADDRESS IT DIRECTLY? UH, I DON'T THINK SO, NO, UNFORTUNATELY.
UM, VICE CHAIR SASIDO HAS ASKED THAT WE DIGEST THIS AND COME TO THE NEXT MEETING WITH THE PROPOSAL FOR THE NEW LETTER THAT WILL BE ADDRESSED TO OUR LONG BEACH CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS.
SO WE HAVE ALL THIS TIME TO INCORPORATE SOME OF THOSE ITEMS INTO OUR LETTER, AND THEN WE'LL LOOK AT IT NEXT WEEK, NEXT MONTH, AND MOVE IT FORWARD.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? LET'S CALL FOR THE VOTE.
CHAIR CLARK, JUST TO CONFIRM FOR ITEM SIX, UH, WITH OUR MOTIONER, UH, COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT, UH, DO YOU, UH, ARE YOU OKAY WITH US LAYING OVER THIS ITEM FOR THE NEXT MEETING, UH, TO ALLOW TO REVIEW, UH, THE LETTER? SINCE YOU ARE THE MOTIONER, COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT? I GUESS I DIDN'T HEAR.
YOU ARE THE MOTIONER OF THIS ITEM? YES.
ARE YOU OKAY WITH LAYING THE ITEM OVER, UH, TO...
SO THEY CAN REVIEW THE LETTER? YES, I'M WILLING TO ADD TO IT OR AMEND IT.
IS THAT WHAT YOU'RE ASKING? YES, THAT'S WHAT SHE'S ASKING.
YES, THAT'S WHAT SHE'S ASKING.
SHE WANTS TO MAKE EDITS TO THE LETTER, TO THE CURRENT LETTER.
SO YOU'RE SAYING YES COMMISSIONER SMITH? SHE'S ON THE MOTION.
DO YOU APPROVE THAT, COMMISSIONER SMITH? YES, I DO.
PLEASE CALL FOR THE NEXT ITEM.
UH, I'LL GO AHEAD AND TAKE THE VOTE, UH, CHAIR PARK.
COMMISSIONER FRANCIS? APPROVE.
COMMISSIONER CAVANAUGH? COMMISSIONER POTIER? APPROVE.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT? APPROVE.
[7. 26-56423 Recommendation to receive and file a report from current Ad Hoc Committees; discuss anticipated Ad Hoc Committees for upcoming projects; and, if appropriate, take action to dissolve or create Ad Hoc Committees. Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ]
RECOMMENDATION TO RECEIVE AND FILE A REPORT FROM CURRENT AD HOC COMMITTEES, DISCUSS ANTICIPATED AD HOC COMMITTEES FOR UPCOMING PROJECTS, AND IF APPROPRIATE, TAKE ACTION TO DISSOLVE OR CREATE AD HOC COMMITTEES.OKAY, SO WE'RE GONNA TURN THIS OVER TO THE COMMISSION FOR DISCUSSION.
SO EVERYBODY HAS, UH, A COPY OF OUR AD HOC.
I WANT TO SUGGEST THAT WE ELIMINATE...
WELL, LET'S LOOK AT THE AD HOC COMMITTEE.
UH, 2026 VISIBILITY PLAN AD HOC COMMITTEE.
ONCE WE ACCEPT, UH, ONCE WE...
ONCE WE ACCEPT, UH, THOSE TWEAKS, THEN THAT AD HOC COMMITTEE, THEN WE'LL MOVE TO ELIMINATE THAT AD HOC COMMITTEE.
AND THAT'D BE AT THE NEXT MEETING.
COMMISSIONER HINES AND SMITH, UM, DO WE STILL NEED THIS AD HOC? ARE WE WORKING ON ANYTHING? YES.
DO YOU HAVE A REPORT? ANY REPORTING? NOT CURRENTLY, NO.
FAIRS FOR SENIORS WE DISCUSSED AND WE WILL, UH, BE INCORPORATING...
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT WILL JUST SPEAK, REACH OUT TO RAINA AND INCORPORATE THOSE ITEMS INTO OUR LETTER.
UM, WE'RE GONNA MAKE CONTACT AND HAVE HER EMAIL US AS NEW STAFF AND THEN WE WILL PROVIDE YOU, UM, THEIR INFORMATION AND THEN, UM, WE'LL ALSO MAKE SURE YOU GUYS HAVE THE LETTERS SO YOU CAN MAKE CHANGES.
OKAY, COMMISSIONER, UH, COMMISSION COLLABORATION AD HOC COMMITTEE.
UH, COMMISSIONER CHINCHILLA - WAIT, WAIT.
CAN WE GO BACK TO TRANSPORTATION?
[01:45:01]
OH, OKAY.IT WAS THE AD HOC, CORRECT? YES, IT'S FAIRS FOR SENIOR ON LONG BEACH TRANSIT AD HOC COMMITTEE.
OKAY, JUST - JUDY CLARK, CAROLYN.
I'M SAYING IT'S JUST FAIRS FOR SENIORS IS JUST THE AD HOC ITEM, CORRECT? FAIRS.
ON OUR AGENDA TODAY? NO, JUST FOR THE AD HOC.
THE AD HOC COMMITTEE IS ONLY ABOUT FAIRS.
AND THEN THE COMMISSION COLLABORATION AD HOC COMMITTEE.
DO WE NEED TO CONTINUE WITH THAT? YES.
OKAY, COMMISSIONERS, DO WE HAVE ANY DISCUSSION OF THIS ITEM? COMMISSIONER HO? I HAVE A DISCUSSION ABOUT THE AD HOC COMMITTEES, BUT I ALSO WANT TO JUST INCLUDE THAT I THINK ALL COMMISSIONERS SHOULD PARTICIPATE ON SOME LEVEL, EITHER ON THE AD HOC COMMITTEE, I KNOW IT CAN ONLY BE THREE, OR EITHER ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF SOMETHING OTHER THAN THAT SO THAT EVERYBODY IS PARTICIPATING AND IT'S NOT WEIGHING ON SIX, SEVEN PEOPLE OR TWO PEOPLE OR FIVE PEOPLE.
THEY FIND AN ISSUE THAT WE ALL CAN AGREE ON AND AT LEAST PARTICIPATE IN IF THEY DON'T EVEN BEGIN AN AD HOC COMMITTEE, SOMETHING THAT THEY'RE INTERESTED IN.
I THINK ALL COMMISSIONERS SHOULD PARTICIPATE.
IS THAT IN THE POLICY RULES FOR THEIR AD, UH, THIS ADVISORY COMMISSION THAT WE HAVE TO PARTICIPATE ON THE AD HOC COMMITTEE? NO, I DIN SAY JUST AD HOC.
I SAID AT ANY LEVEL WHERE THERE'S SOMETHING, THEY'RE WORKING ON THE VISIBILITY, HELPING WITH THAT, OR SOMETHING OTHER THAN JUST SHOWING UP AT THE MEETINGS.
ALSO, FINDING AN ISSUE THEY'RE PASSIONATE ABOUT AND WORKING ON THAT.
EVEN IF THEY CREATE A NEW AD HOC OR THEY DON'T.
SO IN THE, UM, BYLAW, YOU CAN ONLY HAVE, UM, THREE PEOPLE ON AN AD HOC COMMITTEE.
UM, SO THAT'S WHERE KIND OF, I GUESS IT GETS, UM, TRICKY.
WE CAN'T HAVE EVERYONE PARTICIPATE, AND THAT'S WHY THESE AD HOC COMMITTEES ARE FORMED FOR CERTAIN, UM, SITUATIONS OR POINTS THAT YOU GUYS WANNA FIGURE OUT AND MAKE, UM, RECOMMENDATION TO THE CITY COUNCIL.
AND THEN ONCE THAT, YOU KNOW, IS COMPLETED, THEN THE AD HOC COMMITTEE DISSOLVES.
SO, UM, THAT'S WHERE THE COMMITTEE THEN BRINGS IT BACK TO YOU GUYS AT THE COMMISSION MEETING.
THEN YOU GUYS CAN HAVE THOSE PUBLIC DISCUSSIONS AND FIGURE OUT WHERE WE WANNA GO FOR THAT.
SO THERE'S NOT ABILITY TO HAVE EVERYONE ON THE DIFFERENT COMMITTEES.
I'M NOT SURE IF THAT'S WHAT YOU WERE ASKING COMMISSIONER HEINZ.
HEIDI? THAT WASN'T WHAT I WAS ASKING.
I MEAN, YOUR QUESTION WAS, I UNDERSTAND YOU CAN ONLY HAVE X NUMBER OF PEOPLE ON AN AD HOC, BUT EVEN FOR THE NEXT ROUND OR FOR THE FUTURE, THAT ALL COMMISSIONERS PARTICIPATE IN AN ISSUE THAT THEY AGREE TO.
AND SO LET'S SAY SIX OF US ARE ON AD HOC, AND THEY ARE THE THREE, THEN THEY CREATE ANOTHER ISSUE THEY'RE PASSIONATE ABOUT AND THEY CREATE AN AD HOC.
SO WE CAN HAVE MORE THINGS BEING IN THE WORKS OF HOW WE DEVELOP THINGS THAT ARE ACTUALLY STRATEGICALLY WORKING ON IMPROVEMENTS OR BETTERMENTS FOR THE CITY, BECAUSE MAYBE THEY'LL WORK ON, YOU KNOW, HOW THEY'RE BALLOONING, BUT THAT'S SOMETHING THAT IS THE AD HOC, THAT'S THE ISSUE, AND THEY'RE, THEY'RE WORKING ON THAT, AND EVERYBODY'S WORKING ON SOMETHING TO PARTICIPATE AS THE COMMISSION.
ARE THERE ANY COMMISSIONERS THAT HAVE SOMETHING THEY'RE PASSIONATE ABOUT THAT THEY'D LIKE TO AD HOC, UH - I'D LIKE TO SAY - ONE MOMENT, PLEASE.
COMMISSIONER, COMMISSIONER POITIER.
MIKE? IN LIGHT OF, UM, WHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT HOUSING, I DO BELIEVE THAT HOUSING STABILITY AND AGING IN PLACE SHOULD BE BOUGHT, BROUGHT BOARD AS AD HOC, BECAUSE I DIDN'T HEAR THAT AS AN OPTION.
UM, I'D BE WILLING TO PARTICIPATE ON THAT.
SO BEFORE WE MOVE FORWARD, UM, WE CURRENTLY DO HAVE FOUR AD HOC COMMITTEES.
WE NEED TO CLOSE OUT A FEW AD HOCS BEFORE WE START CREATING MORE AD HOCS.
UM, I UNDERSTAND THAT THERE ARE DIFFERENT TOPICS AND DIFFERENT, UM, GOALS THAT YOU WANT TO MEET AS A COMMISSION.
HOWEVER, WHEN WE CREATE MULTIPLE AT THE SAME TIME, WE RUN THE RISK OF HAVING, UH, SERIAL COMMUNICATION, ESPECIALLY WITH, LIKE, UH, COMMISSIONER HINES SAID, MORE OFTEN THAN NOT, IT'S THE SAME COMMISSIONERS THAT ARE, UM, THAT ARE MEMBERS OF THESE AD HOC COMMITTEES.
SO THEREFORE, WE WANT TO PREVENT, YOU KNOW, VIOLATING ANY BROWN ACT VIOLATIONS JUST BECAUSE COMMUNICATION THEN GETS LEAKED THROUGH DIFFERENT MEMBERS WHO ARE PARTICIPATING IN ALL OF THESE AD HOC COMMITTEES.
UM, SO I SUGGEST THAT WE FIRST WRAP UP THE VISIBILITY PLAN AD HOC AND THE LV TRANSIT AD HOC ONCE THE LETTERS AND THE VISIBILITY PLAN ARE APPROVED AT THE NEXT MEETING, THAT WAY WE CAN DISSOLVE THOSE AD HOCS AND THEN MOVE FORWARD WITH THE NEXT SET OF GOALS THAT YOU
[01:50:01]
HAVE AS A COMMISSION AND CREATE NEW AD HOC COMMITTEES AT THAT POINT.AND THEN KEEP IN MIND THAT YOU SHOULDN'T NECESSARILY BE PARTICIPATING IN EVERY SINGLE AD HOC COMMITTEE.
UM, THE RECOMMENDATION FROM THE CITY ATTORNEY HAS BEEN TO ONLY PARTICIPATE IN ABOUT TWO COMMITTEES, UM, FOR THE MOST PART PER COMMISSIONER.
UM, SO THAT IS STRONGLY SUGGESTED WHEN YOU GUYS ARE, UM, THINKING ABOUT JOINING ALL OF THESE AD HOC COMMITTEES TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU'RE NOT PAR - OVER-PARTICIPATING AND THEN NOT ALLOWING FOR OTHERS TO PARTICIPATE AS WELL.
WE JUST WANT TO PUT THAT OUT THERE.
PARTICIPATING IN AN AD HOC COMMITTEE IS NOT THE ONLY WAY TO PARTICIPATE ON THE COMMISSION.
FIRST OF ALL, WE DID GO THROUGH THIS QUESTION OF HOW MANY PEOPLE COULD PARTICIPATE, UH, HOW MANY AD HOC COMMITTEES WE COULD HAVE, AND WE DID NOT, WE DID NOT COME TO A CONCLUSION THAT WE COULD ONLY HAVE TWO OR THREE.
WE, WE GOT AN AGREEMENT WHEN WE ASKED THE CITY ATTORNEY AND WE SAID, YOU KNOW...
AND DIFFERENT AD HOCS FUNCTION AT DIFFERENT RATES AT DIFFERENT TIMES.
SOMETIMES IT TAKES A YEAR, SOMETIMES IT TAKES A MONTH.
SO I, I UNDERSTAND THE, THE CONCERN, BUT THAT'S NOT, THAT'S NOT WHAT'S BEING DISCUSSED HERE.
WHAT'S BEING DISCUSSED HERE IS WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT WAYS IN WHICH COMMISSIONERS CAN BE ACTIVE, WHETHER IT'S ON AN AD HOC OR INDEPENDENT.
AND I THINK WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO GET TO IS THE, THE INDEPENDENT PART.
I DON'T KNOW WHAT KIND OF AD HOC COMMITTEE THAT MIGHT RESULT IN, BUT I'M A NEW COMMISSIONER.
I WANT MY NAME PUT NEXT TO HOUSING.
THERE'S NOTHING PROHIBITING THAT.
WE'VE ALWAYS DONE THAT AND WE...
THERE'S, THERE SHOULD BE NOTHING PROHIBITING THAT NOW.
IT'S A WAY OF GETTING INVOLVED IN THE COMMISSION'S WORK BEFORE YOU KNOW EXACTLY WHAT A SPECIFIC, UH, ACTION MIGHT BE.
AND IT'S THE WAY WE ALL GOT INVOLVED IN THE BEGINNING.
UM, SO I REALLY WANT US TO AFFIRM THE RIGHT TO ASK PEOPLE TO SIGN UP FOR DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE VISIBILITY PLAN IF, IF, IF THEY WANT TO, IF THEY SHOW INTEREST.
AND EVENTUALLY, WE CAN MAKE INDIVIDUAL REPORTS TO THE...
WE CAN PUT INDIVIDUALLY THINGS ON THE AGENDA.
SO FOR EXAMPLE, IF COMMISSIONER KAVANAUGH IS FOLLOWING HEALTH, SHE'S ALREADY SAID SHE'S INTERESTED IN THAT AREA.
SHE HAS A BACKGROUND IN THAT AREA.
SHE INDIVIDUALLY CAN PUT THINGS ON OR MAKE ANNOUNCEMENTS REGARDING HEALTH, JUST LIKE WE USED TO.
THAT DOESN'T VIOLATE ANY, ANY BROWN ACT OR ANYTHING.
SO SEPARATE THE CONVERSATION ABOUT PEOPLE SIGNING UP FOR INTEREST AREAS OR INDICATING INTEREST IN HELPING THE COMMISSION IN CERTAIN AREAS VERSUS THE RULES REGARDING AD HOCS.
ANY OTHER COMMENTS, QUESTIONS? UM, I JUST WANT TO CLARIFY THAT, UM, WE'RE GONNA MOVE FORWARD WITH THE AGING VISIBILITY PLAN, BUT WE ALSO HAVE THE BROCHURE AND THE MISSION STATEMENT.
CAN WE INCLUDE THOSE THREE COMPONENTS IN ONE, LIKE, UM, THE AD HOC COMMITTEE TO MOVE FORWARD SO WE CAN CLOSE THAT ONE? UM, IT'S THE...
I THINK THE BROCHURE, SORRY, THE MARKETING BROCHURE WASN'T AN AD HOC COMMITTEE.
IT WAS JUST, UM, SOMETHING THAT WE ARE MOVING FORWARD WITH.
UM, SO I CAN PUT THAT ON THE AGENDA NEXT MONTH.
UM, SO WE CAN FINALIZE THAT BROCHURE SO WE CAN GET THAT INFORMATION OUT THERE.
THAT WAS JUST A SEPARATE, UM, AGENDA ITEM.
AND HOW ABOUT THE MISSION STATEMENT? IS THAT ALSO JUST A SEPARATE ITEM? I THINK THAT WAS APPROVED.
AND THEN SEE IF IT WAS FINALIZED.
OKAY, COMMISSIONERS, ANY MORE QUESTIONS? COMMENTS? I HAVE A QUESTION.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT? UH, UNDER THE BROWN ACT, WE CAN'T MEET AS A QUORUM, UH, WITHOUT, YOU KNOW, PERMISSION, OBVIOUSLY.
BUT A COMMITTEE COULD BE AS MANY AS FOUR PEOPLE INSTEAD OF THREE, BECAUSE FIVE WOULD BE A QUORUM.
SO I JUST WONDERED WHY WE'VE SAID THREE ON A COMMITTEE WHEN WE COULD LEGALLY, I THINK UNDER THE BROWN ACT, HAVE FOUR ON A COMMITTEE IF WE NEEDED TO.
YES, THAT IS CORRECT, BECAUSE THERE'S NINE OF US.
SO IF THERE'S FOUR ON AN AD HOC COMMITTEE, THAT'S PERFECTLY FINE.
AND WE KEEP SAYING THREE WHEN WE COULD REALLY HAVE ONE.
I, I THINK THAT WE SAY THREE BECAUSE THAT'S HOW MANY WE HAVE EXISTING RIGHT NOW.
BUT ONE CAN BE ADDED TO EACH ONE OF THOSE.
SO WE COULD HAVE FOUR AND THERE WOULD BE NO PRACTICE.
I'M SORRY, I THOUGHT IT WAS AN ODD NUMBER SO THAT IF THERE WAS A VOTE -
[01:55:01]
OH.SO WE CAN MOVE FORWARD WITH THE ITEM BECAUSE IF YOU HAVE FOUR, IT'S TWO AND TWO OR FOUR OR WHATEVER.
ALWAYS WITH AN ODD NUMBER, IT'S GONNA BE TWO TO ONE.
SO THAT'S WHY I GUESS WE STUCK WITH THE THREE, BECAUSE WE CAN'T GO TO FIVE, BECAUSE THAT WOULD BE A QUORUM.
OKAY, SO THAT'S WHY WE HAVE THREE ON THE AD HOC.
UH, CLERK, WHAT, WHAT ARE WE DOING NOW? UH, WE CAN...
IF YOU'RE DONE WITH YOUR DISCUSSION, WE CAN CALL FOR A PUBLIC COMMENT.
PUBLIC COMMENT ON THIS ITEM? SEE NONE? COULD I GET BACK TO THE LETTER A MINUTE OR IS THAT...
OH, WE'RE GOING TO, UH, DISCUSS THE LETTER NEXT MONTH.
I THINK I JUST SEE ONE AMEN - A CHANGE AND IT COULD GO AS, AS IT IS.
WELL, WE GONNA DISCUSS IT NEXT.
BUT I WANNA TALK TO YOU IF YOU WOULD.
YEAH, WE'RE GOING TO, UH, THAT WILL BE ON THE AGENDA NEXT MONTH TO FINALIZE THAT LETTER.
AND THEY CAN SEND IT TO YOU TYPED OUT.
UH, CLERK, CALL FOR THE VOTE? OR DO WE NEED TO VOTE? YES.
WHAT ARE WE VOTING ON? THE AD HOC COMMIT - THE AD HOC COMMITTEES.
WHAT, WHAT ARE WE VOTING ON ON THE AD HOC COMMITTEES? SHOULD WE EVEN FILE THE AD HOC REPORTS? THE NUMBER SEVEN ITEM? UH, CORRECT.
IS THAT- THAT THERE WERE NO REPORTS UPDATES.
REPORTS FROM THE EXISTING AD HOC COMMITTEES.
SO WE DIDN'T CREATE ANY NEW COMMITTEES.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT? APPROVE.
[PUBLIC COMMENT Opportunity to address the Advisory Commission on Aging on non-agenda items. Each speaker is limited to three minutes to make their comments unless extended by the Chair.]
TIME, WE'LL TAKE NON-AGENDA PUBLIC COMMENTS.ANYBODY WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK ON NON-AGENDA ITEMS? NOW IS THE TIME.
I'M SORRY? COURT? I SAY NONE FOR PUBLIC COMMENT.
[ANNOUNCEMENTS]
ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS FROM THE COMMISSIONERS? NOT TODAY.I'M SORRY? THE MISSION STATEMENT.
HEIDI'S GONNA CHECK TO SEE IF IT WAS APPROVED.
UM, IF NOT, WE'LL, NEXT MONTH, WE'LL, WE'LL FINALIZE IT ALL.
AND IF IT'S APPROVED, WE'LL MAKE SURE TO GIVE YOU THE MO- MOST UP-TO-DATE COPY.
ARE THERE ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS, COMMISSIONERS? YES, COMMISSIONERS.
ANY, ANY UPDATE ON OUR LETTER TO THE CITY MANAGER? I HAVE NOT RECEIVED ANY UPDATE FROM THE LETTER TO THE CITY MANAGER.
IT WAS SENT THROUGH OUR DEPARTMENT.
YOU KNOW, WE'VE WORKED A LONG TIME IN THE HOUSING COMMITTEE ON, UH, SAFE HOUSE.
WELL, WE DON'T HAVE A SAFE HOUSE, BUT WE HAVE A SAFE APARTMENT IN THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA, A TWO BEDROOM APARTMENT, WHICH IS UNDER WISE AND HEALTHY AGING MILES NEELY, AND HE'LL BE SPEAKING TO US IN JANUARY.
AND IT'S OUR FIRST STEP COUNTYWIDE IN GETTING SOMETHING FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE INVOLVING SENIORS.
AND IT'S THE FIRST TIME WE'RE GONNA HAVE SOMETHING IN THE COUNTY.
AND, UH, HE'LL TELL MORE ABOUT IT.
BUT IT SAYS THEY SAY TWO BEDROOMS IN, UH...
BUT IT'S AVAILABLE TO ANYONE IN THE COUNTY WHO NEEDS IT.
ANY OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS? OKAY.
[ADJOURNMENT]
OBJECTION, I DECLARE THIS MEETING ADJOURNED AT 11:55 AM.WHAT? THANK YOU, RAINA, FOR SITTING.