Dear Neighbor,
Every year, my office creates an Annual Report to keep our residents informed with what’s going on in Council District 7. My report includes information on programs delivered for each neighborhood and how to access city resources.
We are living in unprecedented times facing a global pandemic, depression-level economy, and civil unrest. Every Angeleno has felt the impact of these crises. Yet, these challenging moments present us with a unique opportunity to rethink, reimage, and reform how we deliver essential city services, public safety and investments to our youth.
Since the start of the pandemic, my team and I have been working nonstop to provide comprehensive relief and care for families, tenants, and small businesses impacted by COVID-19. From creating partnerships with nine food pantries to feed families, developing a cash assistance program to help working parents, delivering thousands of meals to homebound seniors, to partnering with local restaurants to feed the homeless, we have pursued every opportunity to support Angelenos struggling to make ends meet.
While these moments were challenging, this pandemic did not slow us down and we continued to deliver essential city services. Through my Operation Bright S.P.O.T program, we cleaned up major business corridors in all eight neighborhoods. In six months time, we repainted nearly 50,000 feet of red curbs and power washed over 18,000 feet of sidewalks.
My team and I also provided relief to unhoused Angelenos. Under my direction, the City installed portable restrooms and hand wash stations at large encampments to slow the spread of the virus. We also made sure that our homeless were housed during COVID-19. Through our partnership with service providers, we successfully housed 65 individuals at the Paxton and Bradley homeless encampment and cleared over 15,000 tons of materials and waste. Additionally, we began the construction for Summit View, a permanent supportive housing project in Lake View Terrace, which will provide 49 units of housing for homeless veterans.
I joined my colleagues in adopting a City Budget that reflects the work this moment requires of us all — to reform and rethink public safety. Policing alone has never been the lone solution to a safer city. It’s why I expanded the Community Safety Partnership program in Pacoima to increase youth services and improve community-police relations, and led the creation of the City’s Youth Development Task Force to prioritize youth leadership and development. Prioritizing investments in our youth will result in greater public safety outcomes and a stronger Los Angeles.
This next year presents us with the opportunity to expand on the good work we’ve already started over the last three years. Progress begins with the shared responsibility of us working together to help achieve even greater heights in Council District 7 (CD 7). We need your help to get through this pandemic and help build a brighter future for Los Angeles. We are one LA.