TO: HONORABLE MAYOR FROM Rosalynn Hughey
AND CITY COUNCIL Rob Lloyd
SUBJECT: COVID-19 RECOVERY DATE: November 16, 2022
TASK FORCE REPORT
Approved Date
11/18/2022
RECOMMENDATION
(a) Accept the COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report.
(b) Accept the COVID-19 Recovery Task Force recommendation to advance implementation of the COVID-19 Task Force Report:
(1) Authorize expenditure from the $2.0 million COVID-19 Recovery Task Force appropriation in the American Rescue Plan Fund to implement the 10 recommendations listed in Figure 4;
(2) Direct staff to provide semi-annual status reports to the Community and Economic Development Committee on implementation of the COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report; and
(3) Incorporate relevant recommendations into the City’s Children and Youth Services Master Plan process.
(c) Direct staff to evaluate and consider other COVID-19 Recovery Task Force recommendations as part of future annual budget processes. (d)
Determine that Fiscal Year 2022-2023 City Initiatives Roadmap item “COVID-19 Recovery Task Force” is completed.
OUTCOME
The COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report (Report) is the culmination of a year-long process of working with community-based organizations, residents, and businesses to disseminate information about recovery resources and to develop other strategies to help stabilize and strengthen families, workers, and small businesses. Acceptance of the Report, attached to this memorandum, will enable City staff and community partners to develop a framework for implementation including work plans to move recommendations forward. The implementation framework will be built upon the three implementation categories assigned to each recommendation:
COUNCIL AGENDA: 12/6/22
FILE: 22-1794
ITEM: 3.4
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
November 16, 2022
Subject: COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report
1 = Already underway/included in a department work plan 2 = City Council policy decision
3 = Additional evaluation and/or resources required
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The COVID-19 pandemic has been painful and traumatic for many in the San José community, making clear and exacerbating many existing social, racial, and economic inequities. To address these community and economic recovery needs, in September 2021, the City Council established the COVID-19 Recovery Task Force (Task Force) comprised of 55 organizations.
To effectively complete its roles and responsibilities, the Task Force established nine committees: 1) Childcare, Early Care and Education, and Youth Development; 2) Community Engagement; 3) Community Health and Wellness; 4) Data and Budgeting; 5) Housing; 6) Just Recovery for Airport, Hotel, and Arts Workers; 7) Steering Committee, 8) Supporting Small Businesses, and 9) Workers’ Health, Safety, and Rights. The committees identified key needs and impacts related to each issue, reviewed relevant reports and data, and considered feedback from the community engagement process to develop 88 recommendations. The Task Force decided that 10 of the 88 recommendations should be advanced with the $2.0 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARP) funding that was set aside by the City Council in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2022-2023 Budget.
After the year-long process, the final Task Force Report reflects the values, goals, and concerns shared among Task Force members and community members to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
BACKGROUND
On March 16, 2021, the City Council approved the City Roadmap (Roadmap) for FY 2021-2022.
The Roadmap is a tool and process for prioritizing and implementing strategic and complex change initiatives. The FY 2021-2022 Roadmap was organized along eight Enterprise Priorities, including “COVID-19 Pandemic Community & Economic Recovery”.
The initiatives driving the COVID-19 Pandemic Community & Economic Recovery Enterprise Priority were community needs arising in real time from the pandemic:
1. Housing Stabilization;
2. Re-Employment and Workforce Development;
3. Small Business Recovery;
4. Food and Necessities Distribution;
5. Digital Equity;
6. Child Care; and
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
November 16, 2022
Subject: COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report
7. The Build Back Better COVID-19 Recovery Task Force
During the March 16, 2021, Roadmap City Council Study Session, City Council also approved direction on the formation of the Task Force as proposed by Councilmember Raul Peralez:
“Utilizing the Greater Downtown San José Economic Recovery Task Force and the Health and Racial Equity Task Force as models, create and staff a Citywide, cross- sector, community-based Task Force that would provide recommendations to the City Council on matters of COVID-19 economic and social recovery. The Task Force should be convened for no more than a year.”1
On September 21, 2021, City Council approved the Task Force’s membership of 55 community- based organizations, along with the scope of working with the community to “think about the future” as it relates to strengthening and stabilizing families, workers, and small businesses. The roles and responsibilities of the Task Force were to:
• Advise and monitor progress on the Roadmap’s Recovery initiatives • Develop a community engagement and communications plan • Disseminate information to constituencies and share community feedback with the Task Force on establishing and evaluating projects and programs • Develop new recommended actions for recovery to be considered by the City Council
Task Force membership was intended to be inclusive of a wide array of community interests, including health, affordable housing and homeless services, workforce training/development, small business support, education, and childcare/family support; digital inclusion; equity and cultural competence; social services; and arts and culture. Additionally, staff considered Task Force member organizations’ existing reach and engagement in serving neighborhoods and residents most impacted by the pandemic.
In completing the nomination process, staff contacted each organization to obtain the names of the primary and alternate representative to serve on the Task Force. Staff issued an Information Memorandum on October 27, 2021,2 to inform the City Council of the final Task Force membership.
The City Council-approved Roadmap for FY 2022-2023 carried forward the “COVID-19 Pandemic Community & Economic Recovery” Enterprise Priority. The FY 2022-2023 objectives for this Enterprise Priority are 1) Invest in Our Most Vulnerable Residents, Families, Small Businesses, and Non-Profits; 2) Empower Our Community with Resources that Build Resiliency, and 3) Stabilize and Improve Equitable Outcomes for All.
1 City Council Meeting of March 16, 2021, item 3.5, Supplemental, NP8:
https://sanjose.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=52&clip_id=12226 2 Information Memorandum of October 27, 2021: https://www.sanjoseca.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/79041
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
November 16, 2022
Subject: COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report
The initiatives driving this Enterprise Priority are:
1. Housing Stabilization;
2. Re-Employment and Workforce Development;
3. Small Business Recovery; and
4. COVID-19 Recovery Task Force.
The ARP Act included $212.3 million in Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (CSLFRF) for direct local recovery assistance for the City, of which $106.1 million was received in May 2021 and the remainder was received in June 2022. Through actions approved by the City Council with the FY 2021-2022 Adopted Budget and the FY 2022-2023 Adopted Budget, the full $212.3 million of CSLFRF resources was allocated to meet Roadmap objectives, including a $2.0 million set aside for Task Force recommendations.
Staff from the City Manager’s Office; Office of Economic Development and Cultural Affairs; Housing Department; Department of Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services; Department of Planning, Building, and Code Enforcement; and Library Department provided strategic support to the Task Force.
ANALYSIS
The COVID-19 pandemic has been extremely painful and traumatic for many of the City’s most vulnerable residents. The year-long endeavor of closely partnering with the community on community and economic recovery from COVID-19 affirmed the need for the City’s existing recovery programs and services and highlighted areas of improvement and opportunities to plan critically for the future. San José residents shared their fears and hopes, as well as their most urgent issues such as economic security, mental health, childcare, job opportunities, small businesses survival, and continued engagement.
Task Force Process
The Task Force process commenced in fall 2021 with staff developing a work plan, including a Recovery Task Force webpage
3 to provide information on the Task Force and keep members and the public informed. Materials and resources were posted to the webpage including City Council memoranda, the list of Task Force members, and Task Force meeting agendas, presentations, and correspondence.
As a body subject to California’s Brown Act, Task Force meetings were open to the public and consistent with State law and City policies. Twelve Task Force meetings were held from November 2021 to November 2022. Meetings were held virtually via an internet
3 Recovery Task Force Webpage: https://www.sanjoseca.gov/your-government/departments-offices/office-of-the- city-manager/community-and-economic-recovery-task-force
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
November 16, 2022
Subject: COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report
communications platform and live simultaneous interpretation were available in Spanish and Vietnamese. Figure 1 provides the Task Force meeting dates and topics.
Figure 1: Recovery Task Force Meeting Schedule
Meeting Date Meeting Purpose
November 4, 2021 Kick-off and orientation
December 9, 2021 Presentation on City Roadmap COVID-19 Community and Economic Recovery Initiatives
January 13, 2022 Ideas for Task Force Committees
February 10, 2022 Survey results on Committees; Committee Framework and Approach March 10, 2022 Task Force Committee process; Breakouts for first Committee meetings
April 14, 2022 Community Engagement Plan update
May 12, 2022 County of Santa Clara and City of San José Emergency Operation Centers panel discussion; approval of Community Engagement Plan June 9, 2022 Approval of Community Survey and Engagement Toolkit; Presentations on Joint Venture Silicon Valley’s Lighthouse Initiative, and Diabetes, COVID-19, and Community Well-Being
August 11, 2022 Community Engagement activities update; Workers Health, Safety and Rights panel discussion
September 15, 2022 Presentation of Community Engagement Report October 13, 2022 Presentation and review of draft recommendations and budget allocations
November 10, 2022 Accept final set of recommendations and budget allocations; review potential outcome metrics and approach for implementation
To effectively complete its roles and responsibilities, the Task Force established committees on topics that address key community issues. Each committee had latitude in designing its respective meetings, membership, and approach. Figure 2 lists the nine Recovery Task Force committees as well as the overarching goal for each committee.
Figure 2: Task Force Committees and Goals
Committee Name Committee Goal
Childcare, Early Care and
Education, and Youth
Development
Expand access to affordable, equitable, and high-quality programming in childcare, early care and education, and youth development.
Community Engagement Educate and connect families on various community resources and conduct deep community engagement about
what is needed for recovery.
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
November 16, 2022
Subject: COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report
Committee Name Committee Goal
Community Health and Wellness Proactively foster community health, safety, and wellness in San José by incorporating the social determinants of health into the City’s programming and decision-making.
Data and Budgeting Gather data, work with each committee to develop impact metrics, and compile tools to be used across all committees for Recovery Task Force-wide understanding and decisions.
Housing Ensure all members of the San José community have access to affordable and stable housing.
Just Recovery for Airport, Hotel
& Arts Workers
Revitalizing hospitality, travel (i.e., the airport), and the arts for these industries and workers.
Steering Committee Serve as a leadership and coordinating body by identifying and voting on agenda items for Recovery Task Force
meetings and by providing feedback to the City staff and consultant team on the higher-level Recovery Task Force strategy, timeline, and draft report.
Supporting Small Businesses Support small businesses to recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic by providing necessary assistance
tailored to San José small businesses' specific needs.
Workers’ Health, Safety, and
Rights
Promote workplace health, safety, and justice to ensure a full and fair return to work for San José businesses and workers.
Development of Task Force Recommendations
To organize committee ideas, the Task Force created a recommendation framework consisting of goals, strategies, and actions. A recommendation template was shared with all committees.
Strategies were defined as the approaches to address inequities and achieve progress toward reaching the respective committee’s goal. Within each strategy, committees developed multiple recommended actions, which were defined as the specific tasks to help implement the strategy.
Two committees – the Data and Budgeting Committee and the Steering Committee – did not develop their own set of recommendations as they served a support and organizing role for the working committees.
Over the course of nine months, committees worked an iterative process to draft recommendations by reviewing and incorporating information from secondary data, regional recovery reports, and their subject matter expertise. Throughout this process, City staff from various departments shared information about existing City initiatives and programs and provided feedback to support committees in crafting recommendations.
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
November 16, 2022
Subject: COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report
Community Engagement
Meaningful, equitable community engagement was the cornerstone of the Task Force process.
Engaging residents and small businesses were an important purpose of the process as the community feedback informed the recommendations developed by the Task Force. In May 2022, the Task Force, supported by the Community Engagement Committee, staff and the consultant team developed a Community Engagement Plan4 (Plan) that focused on connecting with and gathering input from the individuals, families, workers, and business owners in San José who have been most impacted by the pandemic. The Plan included five components:
1) Lived Experience Group: Through a robust recruitment and selection process that involved key insights and references from Task Force members and community leaders, nine dedicated community leaders with lived experience related to the COVID-19 pandemic were assembled to assist in conducting deep engagement with their communities. Each member of the Lived Experience Group was expected to plan and carry out up to three community engagement activities between June and August of 2022.
These events included focus groups with neighbors, community workshops, and other community engagement events.
2) Community Survey: City of San José staff, the consultant team, and the Task Force co- created a comprehensive community survey that was distributed to the Task Force in June 2022. Task Force members were asked to share among their networks via email newsletters, social media, and other platforms. Flyers with links and QR codes, including printed copies of the survey, were created to share the survey at various in-person pop-up engagements. The Community Survey was translated and available digitally and in print in Spanish, Vietnamese, and Tagalog.
3) COVID-19 Recovery Report and Survey Consolidation: City staff and the consultant teams alongside Task Force members reviewed and incorporated main findings from a variety of reports that assessed COVID-19’s impact on the community. Such review and analyses were interwoven within the committee discussions and helped to inform the main community engagement findings in addition to the formation of recommendations by each committee. Examples of other reports consulted during this process included, but were not limited to, the Silicon Valley Recovery Roundtable’s “Building a Better Normal” report, and recommendations from the Greater Downtown San José Economic Recovery Task Force and the Health and Racial Equity Task Force.
4) Storytelling Project: The Task Force recommended incorporating storytelling into the engagement process to provide a qualitative element. Throughout various engagement activities, including pop-ups and large workshops, staff and volunteers conducted quick interviews with community members. This created a more vivid picture of the reality of COVID-19 impacts. Community members were asked the following three questions:
4 https://www.sanjoseca.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/85627/637877036355930000
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
November 16, 2022
Subject: COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report
1. How has the COVID-19 pandemic impacted you and your family?
2. What support do you need now? / What do you need to be resilient?
3. How have you built resiliency? / How have you grown during the pandemic?
5) Engagement Toolkit: The Engagement Toolkit served as a guide for both the Lived Experience Group and Task Force members to conduct a variety of engagement activities with corresponding questions. This process ensured committees would be provided with input and data that could directly relate to the subject matter for which they would be providing recommendations.
The Plan’s approach and strategy responded to the many needs and requirements of San José’s diverse communities, paying careful attention to cultural sensitivity, disability accommodations, language access, childcare, technology skills, and other accessibility concerns. The Plan’s aim was to move toward a recovery grounded in equity, dignity, empathy, and action. Other key community engagement activities included:
Community Resource Fair: COVID-19 Recovery engagement efforts culminated in a large Community Resource Fair organized by City staff with guidance and support from the consultant team, the Task Force, and Lived Experience Group. The fair was held at the Seven Trees Community Center on August 20, 2022, and attracted approximately 500 attendees. Twenty-eight tables staffed by community organizations provided a variety of resources, including COVID-19 testing kits, feminine hygiene products, bike helmets, and collateral on public health and public safety. Free backpacks and notebooks were also distributed to coincide with the start of the school year, alongside complimentary food and beverages.
Promotores Pilot: On November 30, 2021, the City Council approved the allocation of $500,000 in Community and Economic Recovery budget adjustments to pilot and implement a Promotores model as a tool for community engagement through the Task Force. The goal is to identify the recovery needs of the hardest-to-reach community members by hearing and understanding their stories and to connect them with existing programs and services in the City’s Recovery Initiatives, as well as services provided by other government agencies and community partners.
Promotores are uniquely qualified to address the needs of under-resourced communities because they reach community members where they are. They speak the same language, share a common culture, and connect with people in their homes, at markets, in restaurants, at parks, at work, at places of worship, and other neighborhood locations.
Working in conjunction with the Task Force Community Engagement Committee, staff identified community-based organizations with existing Promotores programs and similar resident leadership development programs. This allowed the City to more quickly recruit and train individuals to engage with and provide outreach on existing Recovery resources offered by the City and community partners. The City awarded grants to three
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
November 16, 2022
Subject: COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report
community-based organizations to deliver these services: 1) Community Health Partnerships, 2) CommUniverCity, and 3) ¡Sí Se Puede! Collective (Amigos de Guadalupe, Grail Family Services, School of Arts and Culture, SOMOS Mayfair, Veggielution).
As of November 2022, 21 Promotores have been hired, trained, and have started community outreach and engagement in the areas most impacted the pandemic, specifically in zip codes 95111, 95112, 95116, 95122, and 95127. The FY 2022-2023 Adopted Operating Budget allocated an additional $500,000 to continue this pilot program through FY 2022-2023.
Community Feedback Highlights
Issues pertaining to economic security, mental health, childcare, and recovery of the workforce and small business ecosystem featured prominently in community conversations. People talked about the impacts of facing these issues both individually and at a community level. Across the board, outreach and engagement surfaced as a prevalent need, with most people indicating that they were either unaware or did not know how to access existing resources. Below is a summary of some of the key findings of the Community Engagement Report
5. • Economic Security: Renters continue to struggle with paying still-rising rents alongside back-rent accrued during the height of pandemic. Many individuals have seen their savings dwindle while some have borrowed from third parties to pay their landlords.
Community members who participated in engagement events called for continuation and easier access of rental assistance programs, with nearly half of survey respondents indicating rental assistance among the top three kinds of support they would like to see the City provide. Food insecurity was also a prevalent issue, with many citing food distributions as indispensable to their families in times of economic need throughout the pandemic.
• Mental Health: A lack of access to affordable recreation and other services aimed at preserving mental health in the community was a common theme during the engagement process. Across the board, respondents were most concerned about how the pandemic affected the mental health of children and youth. Parents talked about previously active children prior to the pandemic who are now lethargic and disengaged. High school students talked about persistent depression and anxiety paired with inadequate therapy and recreation program availability.
• Childcare: The unaffordability and shortage of childcare options was also a common point of discussion in community conversations. Parents of children with disabilities were particularly impacted by pandemic-related cuts in services that are ongoing. Many shared their inability to join the workforce due to childcare necessities which could not be provided for elsewhere, with one in two survey respondents indicating that childcare was
5 https://www.sanjoseca.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/89455/637986826894530000
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
November 16, 2022
Subject: COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report
the main challenge preventing them from returning to work.
• Workers and Small Businesses: Many are still struggling to recover from the economic impacts of the pandemic, whether it is seeking a new job, finding assistance to restart a micro business, or coping with the stresses of being a frontline worker, with two in five survey respondents indicating that they were not currently working. People indicated the need for more programs to help identify jobs and the need to keep and strengthen existing COVID-19-related worker protections, particularly as COVID-19 surges are anticipated to continue. Additionally, community members indicated the need for improved health and safety conditions in the workplace, with two in five survey respondents indicating this was among the biggest challenges they faced during the pandemic.
• Outreach and Awareness: Community members were often surprised when hearing about existing resources. By practicing deep engagement, leveraging the strength of existing community networks, and meeting community members where they are, and in languages and spaces most accessible to them, the City and community partners could amplify the reach of their messages in a manner that is more efficient and cost-effective than traditional outreach approaches. This is especially true when the target audience consists of communities such as undocumented families, people with disabilities, the LGBTQ+ community, the unhoused, and artists.
Final Recommendations
After the results from the Task Force community engagement process were available in September 2022, committees incorporated community feedback into their draft recommendations. After review by the Steering Committee, the final recommendations were approved by the Task Force on November 10, 2022. There are a total of 88 recommendations; the Attachment includes the Task Force Report and recommendations.
The overarching themes of the recommendations directly connect to the scope of the Task Force’s work: Stabilizing and strengthening families and supporting small businesses and workers. Recommendations focus on providing services and resources, and better outreach to equity-priority communities, including undocumented individuals, women, Black/African Ancestry, Latina/o/x, Asian, people with disabilities, youth, older adults, non-English speakers, and the LGBTQ+ community.
After an initial analysis of the recommendations, staff determined that many are already underway and are part of a department work plan. Others are policy items that require City Council consideration. Lastly, some recommendations require additional evaluation and/or may require resources. Each recommendation has been categorized into these three categories shown below in Figure 3.
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
November 16, 2022
Subject: COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report
Figure 3: Categorizations of Recommendations
Category # Category Description # of
Recommendations
1 Already underway/in a department work plan 43
2 City Council policy decision 13
3 Additional evaluation and/or resources required 39
Seven of the 88 recommendations include more than one specific item; therefore, more than one category has been assigned to them. While nearly half of the recommendations are already underway and are part of a department work plan, more than half of the recommendations will require additional staff evaluation in order to advance in the implementation phase.
The Task Force decided that 10 of the 88 recommendations should be advanced with the $2 million in one-time ARP funding that was set aside by the City Council in the FY 2022-2023 Budget. These decisions were made based on the feedback gathered during the community engagement process, committee priorities, and staff input on the feasibility of implementing.
Figure 4 below details the 10 recommendations with $2.0 million in ARP funding. City Council’s acceptance of the Task Force report authorizes the Administration to spend ARP resources on the programs and services identified below.
Figure 4: Ten Task Force Recommendations with $2.0 Million in One-Time ARP Funding
Action # Recommendation Amount
from FY
22-23 City
Council
Approved
$2M
4.3 Childcare, Early Care and Education, and Youth
Development Committee
Expand childcare, early care, and out-of-school time programs in zip codes most impacted by COVID-19.
$200,000
1.1 Community Engagement Committee
Continue and expand the COVID-19 Recovery Task Force’s pilot Promotores program to build awareness of recovery resources offered by the City and community-based organizations. Resource information to disseminate includes workforce development programs, childcare, housing, community health clinics, and to the Filipino, Vietnamese, Asian, Latino/a/x, and African Ancestry communities.
$100,000
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
November 16, 2022
Subject: COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report
Action # Recommendation Amount
from FY
22-23 City
Council
Approved
$2M
1.3 Community Engagement Committee
The City should host an annual recovery resource fair and/or other engagement activity to directly connect residents with Recovery resources. Activities should be in different areas/neighborhoods that have been impacted the most by the pandemic.
$15,000
2.6 Community Health and Wellness Committee
Provide additional funding through the City's Senior Health and Wellness Grant Program to support an increase of chronic disease education, especially diabetes management and prevention. $200,000
4.1 Housing Committee
Fund local community-based organizations to conduct outreach on renters’ rights and existing housing programs and services. $130,000
4.2 Housing Committee
Develop a multi-platform online Tenant Resource Center. $130,000
2.4 Just Recovery for Airport, Hotel, and Arts Workers Committee Prioritizing small- and mid-sized arts groups and provide subsidies for rentals at City-owned venues.
$100,000
1.1 Supporting Small Businesses Committee
Continue to prioritize and increase financial assistance and support for very small businesses (fewer than 10 employees).
$600,000
2.1 Supporting Small Businesses Committee
Continue to partner with and provide funding to organizations that provide training to small business owners on managing books, filing taxes, building credit, securing funding, computer literacy, and other financial tools for long-term success.
$150,000
1.2 Workers’ Health, Safety, and Rights Committee
Increase engagement with the County of Santa Clara’s Fair Workplace Collaborative to conduct outreach and education, especially around City minimum wage and wage and hour issues. Visit workplace sites and engage with workers and small business owners; this includes engaging with both worker
organizations and groups representing small
businesses.
$375,000
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
November 16, 2022
Subject: COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report
Impact: Developing Metrics to Track Community Outcomes
Before Task Force committees worked to define community needs in their respective areas and form recommendations, each worked on initial impact and outcome measures to inform their work. Staff assembled these initial ideas, which were intended to guide decisions on recommendations to have a maximum positive impact for San José. Where recommendations are successfully executed, community and economic health outcomes—and overall COVID-19 recovery—improve.
Impact metrics can serve as high-level indicators for long-term recovery for the City. During the implementation framework phase, City staff will refine metrics with departments and partners.
Figure 5 lists the potential impact metrics by Task Force committee.
Figure 5: Potential Outcome Metrics
Committees Metrics
Childcare, Early Care
and Education, and
Youth Development
• Childcare slots available compared to demand by age group and zip code
• Anonymous mental health child survey
Community Engagement
• Promotores connections with residents and businesses
• Resident participation in City Recovery resources and programs by gender, race, ethnicity, and disability status Community Health and
Wellness
• Number of food-insecure households
• Regional Health Equity Initiative Index
Housing • Average rent burden by income (30% income, 50% income) • Number of people in City assistance programs
Just Recovery for
Airport, Hotel, and Arts
Workers
• Hotel occupancy rates in San José
• Number of arts and cultural events and theater occupancy rates
Supporting Small
Businesses
• Support opportunities offered to small businesses – financial, training, and accessibility
• Health of small businesses provided support by City by gender, race, ethnicity, and disability status
Workers’ Health, Safety,
and Rights
• Number of sick leave days provided and used
• Rates of wage theft
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
November 16, 2022
Subject: COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report
CONCLUSION
The Task Force Report provides the City and its partners with a set of community-informed actions to consider in advancing community and economic recovery. The Report’s recommendations support the workers, families, and businesses who have been most impacted by the pandemic. The 10 recommendations receiving funding this fiscal year, as well as the continuation of the pilot Promotores program, reflect the Task Force and the communities’ priorities and will strengthen existing City and partner Recovery programs.
EVALUATION AND FOLLOW-UP
City Council action will close out the initial direction related to the Task Force. Following the City Council’s acceptance of the report, the Administration will develop a framework for implementation, including developing work plans for the 10 recommendations that the Task Force allocated the $2.0 million in one-time ARP funding. As requested by the Task Force, staff will incorporate relevant recommendations into the City’s Children and Youth Services Master Plan process and will work with City departments and partners to refine outcome metrics. Staff will also provide semi-annual status reports on implementation to the Community and Economic Development Committee as part of future committee work plans.
The Task Force also recommended
, and staff agrees with, evaluating the remaining 78
recommendations for consideration in future annual budget processes given the importance of the City continuing our community and economic recovery efforts. While the Task Force requested staff to bring forward funding recommendations as soon as the FY 2022-2023 Mid- Year Budget Review, new initiatives are generally not brought forward during that time, but rather during the annual budget process pursuant to budget policies. By evaluating and considering the remaining recommendations during future annual budget cycles, staff and the City Council can weigh those recommendations in context with existing work, the City’s overall budget condition, and other City Council priorities.
CLIMATE SMART SAN JOSE
The recommendations in this memorandum have no effect on Climate Smart San José energy, water, or mobility.
PUBLIC OUTREACH
Beginning in November 2021, the Task Force met monthly on the second Thursday of the month. Twelve meetings were held virtually via an internet communications platform and were open to the public and individuals were provided an opportunity for public comment. To ensure
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
November 16, 2022
Subject: COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report
equity and accessibility, meetings were held in the evenings, and live simultaneous interpretation was available in Spanish and Vietnamese.
As part of the Task Force’s Community Engagement Plan, the Task Force implemented a total of 31 community engagement activities engaging 1,500 people. This included 16 focus groups, 13 pop-ups at third-party community events, two community forums, and one community resource fair held at the Seven Trees Community Center that attracted approximately 500 people. These activities educated the community on existing programs while facilitating genuine community feedback that identified community needs.
Additionally, 771 people completed the community survey. A majority of survey respondents were considered very low-income, with 80% reporting a household income of $85,000 or less per year. There was also a significant response rate among people of color with 50% of respondents indicating they identified as Mexican, Chicana/o, Hispanic, Latino/a/x, Afro-Latino, or Spanish origin with another 23% identifying as Asian.
More details about the public engagement process and findings can be found in the Task Force’s Community Engagement Report.
COORDINATION
The Task Force Report was developed in coordination with Task Force members and City departments. Preparation of this memorandum was coordinated with the City Attorney’s Office and the City Manager’s Budget Office.
COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION/INPUT
No commission recommendation or input is associated with this action.
FISCAL/POLICY ALIGNMENT
The Task Force Report aligns with existing City of San José policies including the Envision San José 2040 General Plan, Climate Smart San José, Vision Zero Action Plan, and overarching land use and economic development efforts.
COST SUMMARY/IMPLICATIONS
Ten of the 88 Task Force recommendations will be implemented using the $2.0 million in ARP one-time funding allocated in the FY 2022-2023 Budget. Nearly half of the recommendations have been categorized as requiring a City Council policy decision—which will likely require
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
November 16, 2022
Subject: COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report
staff resources—and as requiring additional evaluation and/or resources. As the implementation framework is developed, staff will seek grants and funding as appropriate through future budget processes in consideration of the City’s budgetary position and other City Council priorities.
CEQA
Not a Project, File No. PP17-008, General Procedure and Policy Making resulting in no changes to the physical environment.
/s/ /s/
ROSALYNN HUGHEY ROB LLOYD
Deputy City Manager Deputy City Manager
For questions, please contact Aurelia Bailey, Assistant to the City Manager, at [email protected] or Carlos Velazquez, Assistant to the City Manager, at [email protected].
Attachment – COVID-19 Recovery Task Force Report