H-16 Correspondence – Elsa Tung
From: Elsa Tung [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Tuesday, February 8, 2022 3:54 PM
To: CityClerk <[email protected]>
Subject: Public Comment for 2/8/2022 Item 16 re: Housing Element (2021-2029) Adoption
-EXTERNAL-
Dear City Clerk, please include the attached community letter as public comment for Item 16, Housing Element adoption.
Thank you,
Elsa
Elsa Mei Tung
(She/Her/Hers)
Land Use Program Manager
Long Beach Forward
425 Atlantic Ave
Long Beach, CA 90802
562.270.6011 (Google Voice)
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---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Elsa Tung <[email protected]>
Date: Tue, Feb 8, 2022 at 3:50 PM
Subject: Re: Community Letter re: Housing Element (2021-2029) Adoption; Community Process and Partnerships; Comprehensive Housing Justice Solutions
To: Mayor Robert Garcia <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>, Mary Zendejas <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>, Suzie Price <[email protected]>, Daryl Supernaw <[email protected]>, Stacy Mungo <[email protected]>, Suely Saro <[email protected]>, Roberto Uranga <[email protected]>, Al Austin <[email protected]>, Rex Richardson <[email protected]>, Tom Modica <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>
Cc: Connor Lock <[email protected]>, Barbara Moore <[email protected]>, Jack Cunningham <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>, Chork Nim <[email protected]>, Celina Luna <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>, Patricia Diefenderfer <[email protected]>, Alison Spindler-Ruiz <[email protected]>, Alejandro Sanchez-Lopez <[email protected]>, Elise Roberts <[email protected]>, Long Beach <[email protected]>, Lian Cheun <[email protected]>, Gaby Hernandez <[email protected]>, Susana Sngiem <[email protected]>, Grecia Lopez- Reyes <[email protected]>, James Suazo <[email protected]>
I apologize for the misspelling of Director Orci's name. It has been corrected in the attached PDF letter. Thank you.
On Tue, Feb 8, 2022 at 3:46 PM Elsa Tung <[email protected]> wrote:
Dear Mayor Garcia, Members of the City Council, City Manager Tom Modica, and Development Services Director Oscar Orsi:
In light of the anticipated adoption of the Housing Element (2021-2029) at City Council tonight, February 8, 2022, please find attached and below a community letter regarding Housing Element adoption, community process and partnerships, and comprehensive housing justice solutions.
Sincerely,
Long Beach Residents Empowered (LiBRE)
Long Beach Immigrant Rights Coalition
Long Beach Coalition for Good Jobs and a Healthy Community Long Beach Forward
Khmer Girls in Action
United Cambodian Community
------------------------
February 8, 2022
RE: Housing Element (2021-2029) Adoption; Community Process and Partnerships; Comprehensive Housing Justice Solutions
Dear Mayor Garcia, Members of the City Council, City Manager Tom Modica, and Development Services Director Oscar Orsi:
As Long Beach community-based organizations (CBOs) and advocates, we recognize the City staff’s and City Council’s leadership in updating the Housing Element (2021-2029). We appreciate the City’s partnership and investment in community-driven capacity building on the very complex Housing Element, although that investment started at the end of the public engagement process, instead of at the beginning. Nonetheless, as a result of the City’s community capacity-building investment and the years of housing justice organizing on the ground, for the first time, the Housing Element reflects some specific community priorities, language, and needs of the majority of Long Beach residents who are renters and who live concentrated in the lower-income Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) neighborhoods of Central, West, and North Long Beach. To be clear, we believe the Housing Element does not go far enough to advance and invest in housing justice solutions, but the important process and outcomes of the CBO/community capacity- building effort will benefit your constituents and current and future equitable City planning efforts for years to come.
The last two years of the COVID pandemic have been traumatic to say the least. Our renter and BIPOC communities have rightfully focused on survival individually and collectively. Those of us
who have survived now struggle onward to try to protect our rights and improve our communities and city. Some key lessons learned and recommendations are as follows:
1. CBOs that have trust and relationships in marginalized BIPOC communities serve as critical, positive partners with the City, especially when involved from the very beginning of City processes.
2. City resources are a necessary investment in any community partnership to provide for equity-based community participation, capacity building, and power building.
3. City staff at all levels of responsibility and leadership are necessary participants in equity-based community participation, especially to keep ears to the ground and learn from community members with lived expertise and needs.
4. Engaging marginalized communities in land use planning processes must be mutually supportive and beneficial, instead of extractive and tokenizing. This means meeting the immediate needs of people by collecting and sharing resources and potentially offering direct services throughout the engagement process. Housing-related direct services may include rental assistance application support, housing counseling, and legal assistance.
5. While Long Beach is certainly a unique and important identity to us all, significant issues such as housing and land use policies are more effective when analyzed and linked to Los Angeles County initiatives as well as City of Los Angeles policies.
Long Beach residents deserve a proactive, comprehensive, and just approach to housing, which is at the root of racial, spatial, and health inequities. Such an approach requires robust and sustained City investment of funds, staffing, and courageous leadership not only to implement the Housing Element’s stated goals, policies, and programs over the next eight years, but also to dismantle generations of discriminatory housing policies, speculative market forces, and NIMBY (Not In My Backyard) culture rooted in racism and xenophobia.
We in the community stand ready to support and meaningfully partner with the City to execute these lessons learned, implement the Housing Element programs, and co-create comprehensive housing justice policies, plans, programs, and processes.
Sincerely,
Long Beach Residents Empowered (LiBRE)
Long Beach Coalition for Good Jobs and a Healthy Community Long Beach Immigrant Rights Coalition
Long Beach Forward
Khmer Girls in Action
United Cambodian Community
Elsa Mei Tung
(She/Her/Hers)
Land Use Program Manager
Long Beach Forward
425 Atlantic Ave
Long Beach, CA 90802
562.270.6011 (Google Voice)
Connect / Share / Tweet / Donate
February 8, 2022
RE: Housing Element (2021-2029) Adoption; Community Process and Partnerships;Comprehensive Housing Justice Solutions Dear Mayor Garcia, Members of the City Council, City Manager Tom Modica, and DevelopmentServices Director Oscar Orci:
As Long Beach community-based organizations (CBOs) and advocates, we recognize the Citystaff’s and City Council’s leadership in updating the Housing Element (2021-2029). Weappreciate the City’s partnership and investment in community-driven capacity building on thevery complex Housing Element, although that investment started at the end of the publicengagement process, instead of at the beginning. Nonetheless, as a result of the City’scommunity capacity-building investment and the years of housing justice organizing on theground,for the first time, the Housing Element reflectssome specific community priorities,language, and needs of the majority of Long Beach residents who are renters and who liveconcentrated in the lower-income Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) neighborhoods ofCentral, West, and North Long Beach.To be clear,we believe the Housing Element does not gofar enough to advance and invest in housing justice solutions, but the important process andoutcomes of the CBO/community capacity-building effort will benefit your constituents andcurrent and future equitable City planning efforts for years to come.
The last two years of the COVID pandemic have been traumatic to say the least. Our renter andBIPOC communities have rightfully focused on survival individually and collectively. Those of uswho have survived now struggle onward to try to protect our rights and improve ourcommunities and city. Some key lessons learned and recommendations are as follows:
1. CBOs that have trust and relationships in marginalized BIPOC communities serve ascritical, positive partners with the City, especially when involved from the very beginningof City processes.
2. City resources are a necessary investment in any community partnership to provide forequity-based community participation, capacity building, and power building.
3. City staff at all levels of responsibility and leadership are necessary participants inequity-based community participation, especially to keep ears to the ground and learnfrom community members with lived expertise and needs.
4. Engaging marginalized communities in land use planning processes must be mutuallysupportive and beneficial, instead of extractive and tokenizing. This means meeting theimmediate needs of people by collecting and sharing resources and potentially offeringdirect services throughout the engagement process. Housing-related direct services mayinclude rental assistance application support, housing counseling, and legal assistance.
5. While Long Beach is certainly a unique and important identity to us all, significant issuessuch as housing and land use policies are more effective when analyzed and linked toLos Angeles County initiatives as well as City of Los Angeles policies.
Long Beach residents deserve a proactive, comprehensive, and just approach to housing, whichis at the root of racial, spatial, and health inequities. Such an approach requires robust andsustained City investment of funds, staffing, and courageous leadership not only to implementthe Housing Element’s stated goals, policies, and programs over the next eight years, but also todismantle generations of discriminatory housing policies, speculative market forces, and NIMBY(Not In My Backyard) culture rooted in racism and xenophobia.
We in the community stand ready to support and meaningfully partner with the City to executethese lessons learned, implement the Housing Element programs, and co-create comprehensivehousing justice policies, plans, programs, and processes.
Sincerely,
Long Beach Residents Empowered (LiBRE)Long Beach Coalition for Good Jobs and a Healthy CommunityLong Beach Immigrant Rights CoalitionLong Beach ForwardKhmer Girls in ActionUnited Cambodian Community