1 Vernice Hankins
From: Council Mailbox
Sent: Monday, April 10, 2023 8:44 AM
To: councilmtgitems
Subject: Fw: Task Force Input to City Council April 11, 2023 Meeting From: Early Childhood Task Force <[email protected]> Sent: Saturday, April 8, 2023 9:32 AM
To: Council Mailbox <[email protected]>
Subject: Task Force Input to City Council April 11, 2023 Meeting
EXTERNAL
Dear Mayor Davis, Mayor Pro Tem Negrete, and Honorable Councilmembers:
Thank you for your leadership in setting priorities at the March 11, 2023, Special Council Meeting. We are particularly grateful that you expanded council priorities to include and support the needs of children, youth, and their families.
As the council reviews the midyear budget and makes adjustments based on the City's economic recovery, the Task Force urges you to increase allocations for programs that support children and families.
Increased support for children, youth, and their families is a key facet for all five of the approved priorities.
For example:
Cultivate Economic Recovery & Expand Community & Cultural Offerings Investing in early childhood and after school childcare is critical to the City's economic recovery. A lack of childcare causes businesses to lose revenue due to employee absenteeism, high rates of turnover, and a reduction in their work hours. This leaves our families more vulnerable, causes postponement of their education or training opportunities, and causes parents to leave the workforce.
Racial Justice, Equity & Social Diversity
The Task Force believes that supporting young children and their families is essential to "create a community where differences in life outcomes cannot be predicted by race, class, gender, disability or other identities."
Clean & Safe Santa Monica
Law Enforcement leaders from Fight Crime: Invest in Kids have advocated for over 25 years in policies and programs that support youth. These law enforcement leaders consistently state that the best way to see less crime, incarceration, and homelessness is to invest in high‐quality early childhood education and support our low‐income families in accessing childcare.
Addressing Homelessness
We also urge you to increase funding for the City's Human Services Grants Program, which provides direct services for the city's most vulnerable residents of all ages. The agencies funded by these grants are on the Item 11.A
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2 front line helping housed residents, including families with children, get the support, training, and services they need to improve their lives and remain housed.
On behalf of the Early Childhood Task Force and Santa Monica's 4,500 children under five, we greatly appreciate your strong support for children and families.
If you have any questions or want to discuss this in greater detail, please do not hesitate to contact us at [email protected].
Sincerely,
The Santa Monica Early Childhood Task Force Steering Committee McKenna Belgarde and Julie Taren
Co‐Chairs Santa Monica Early Childhood Task Force
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1 Vernice Hankins
From: Anjuli Kronheim Katz <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, April 10, 2023 3:08 PM
To: councilmtgitems; Gleam Davis; Phil Brock; Oscar de la Torre; Lana Negrete; Christine Parra; Jesse Zwick; Caroline Torosis
Subject: Support for Early Childhood Task Force Steering Committee Recommendations
EXTERNAL
Dear Mayor Davis, Mayor Pro Tem Negrete, and Honorable Councilmembers:
I write in support of the Santa Monica Early Childhood Task Force Steering Committee's recommendations to increase allocations for programs investing in early childhood and after school childcare. I also support increasing funding fo the City's Human Services Grants Program, which provides direct services for the city's most vulnerable residents of all ages ‐ including families and children.
Thank you,
Anjuli Kronheim Katz
Former Housing Commissioner
‐‐
Anjuli Kronheim Katz
Cell: 484‐213‐4811
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1 Vernice Hankins
From: [email protected]
Sent: Monday, April 10, 2023 11:38 PM
To: Gleam Davis; Lana Negrete; Christine Parra; Oscar de la Torre; Phil Brock; Caroline Torosis; Jesse Zwick; councilmtgitems
Cc: David White; Gigi Decavalles; [email protected]
Subject: Re: City Council Mtg. 4/11/23 - Item 11A - Fiscal Year Midyear Budget - Neighborhood organization grants
EXTERNAL
April 10, 2022
To: Mayor Davis and City Council members
From: Zina Josephs
RE: 4/11/23 agenda item 11-A -- Neighborhood Organization Grants
I support the letter below from the Wilmont Board.
Sunset Park has about 7,000 residential addresses and another 1,000 or so business addresses.
Using the street addresses provided to us by the city, it cost us more than $9,000 last year to print and send out a newsletter using a bulk mail permit.
FOSP could afford to make up the difference between the grant and the actual cost of the mailing, but it's really unfair to expect Wilmont to do that when their neighborhood has so many more addresses.
Again, I support the letter below from the Wilmont Board.
************************************************************************************************* In a message dated 4/10/2023 6:10:53 PM Pacific Standard Time, [email protected] writes:
Mayor Davis and Council Members,
The Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Coalition (Wilmont) Board of Directors asks for the following change to be made to the Fiscal Year Midyear Budget based on equity and support of all city neighborhoods with the annual city grant of $7,000.
We request that the annual neighborhood grant become variable. Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Coalition (Wilmont) was given a list of over 13,000 addresses in our neighborhood via a city Item 11.A
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2 process. Historically the city requested and sent our annual newsletter in recognition of the value of neighborhood groups.
We use our grant to send out an annual newsletter to all our Wilmont residents. Wilmont is the largest neighborhood in terms of addresses. Currently, each neighborhood gets the same $7,000 grant.
Last year we obtained multiple estimates of the price to generate 13,000 copies, labels and postage for our annual newsletter and on average it was about $1/newsletter. The $7,000 does not cover this. We request that Council address these differences by still providing $7,000 per neighborhood groups that have 7,000 or less addresses and provide a $1/address for other neighborhoods that have greater than 7,000 addresses. For Wilmont, that would be $13,000 in 2023, or an addition of $6,000 to send newsletters out to every address in our neighborhood. Thank‐you
Thank‐you for ensuring the vitality and continued importance of the city's neighborhoods.
Board of Directors
Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Coalition (Wilmont)
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1 Vernice Hankins
From: Tricia Crane <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, April 11, 2023 9:36 AM
To: councilmtgitems; Gleam Davis; Oscar de la Torre; Lana Negrete; Christine Parra; Phil Brock; Jesse Zwick; Caroline Torosis; Gigi Decavalles; David White
Subject: Fwd: Support for Wilmont request - City Council Mtg. 4/11/23 - Item 11A - Fiscal Year Midyear Budget
EXTERNAL
To: City Council
From: Northeast Neighbors
Re: City Council Agenda Item 11A
April 11, 2023
Dear Mayor, City Council and City Manager,
The Board of Northeast Neighbors has voted to support the request of our neighbors in Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Association (Wilmont) to receive from the City adequate funding to continue their good work.
We ask the Council to provide the public funds needed by Wilmont to conduct outreach and build membership in their large and densely populated neighborhood.
Sincerely,
Tricia Crane
On behalf of the Board of Northeast Neighbors Neighborhood Association www.neneighbors.org
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2 Mayor Davis and Council Members,
The Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Coalition (Wilmont) Board of Directors asks for the following change to be made to the Fiscal Year Midyear Budget based on equity and support of all city neighborhoods with the annual city grant of $7,000.
We request that the annual neighborhood grant become variable. Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Coalition (Wilmont) was given a list of over 13,000 addresses in our neighborhood via a city process. Historically the city requested and sent our annual newsletter in recognition of the value of neighborhood groups. We use our grant to send out an annual newsletter to all our Wilmont residents. Wilmont is the largest neighborhood in terms of addresses. Currently, each neighborhood gets the same $7,000 grant. Last year we obtained multiple estimates of the price to generate 13,000 copies, labels and postage for our annual newsletter and on average it was about $1/newsletter. The $7,000 does not cover this. We request that Council address these differences by still providing $7,000 per neighborhood groups that have 7,000 or less addresses and provide a $1/address for other neighborhoods that have greater than 7,000 addresses. For Wilmont, that would be $13,000 in 2023, or an addition of $6,000 to send newsletters out to every address in our neighborhood. Thank‐you
Thank‐you for ensuring the vitality and continued importance of the city's neighborhoods.
Board of Directors
Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Coalition (Wilmont)
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From: Steve Bevilacqua <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, April 11, 2023 10:48 AM
To: councilmtgitems
Subject: SUBJECT: FYE’24 BUDGET: Support Early Childhood
EXTERNAL
Dear Mayor Davis, Mayor Pro Tem Negrete, and Honorable Councilmembers:
I am writing to express my support for childcare in Santa Monica. As a parent who has sent their child to the Growing Place, I benefited from having access to quality childcare service at the Growing Place Marine Park Child Development Center.
The Growing Place is fantastic and deserves your continued support. We are a household with two working parents and the Growing Place was an incredible asset and benefit to our lives when our daughter was enrolled there.
Child care is essential for working parents who need a safe and nurturing environment for their children while they are at work, and it plays a critical role in the development of young children.
Our City must do everything possible to support Santa Monica families and ensure its children have access to quality early education and care. This includes investing in early childhood education and providing financial assistance to families who need it most.
I urge the Santa Monica City Council to prioritize childcare as a critical infrastructure component of our community. Investing in child care supports working families, promotes early childhood education, and ensures that all children and families in our community have the opportunity to thrive.
Thank you for your attention to this important issue; keep children learning, parents earning, and communities growing in Santa Monica!
Sincerely,
Steve Bevilacqua
310.430.9837
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TO: SM CITY COUNCIL ([email protected])
SUBJECT: FYE’24 BUDGET: Support Early Childhood
TO: Santa Monica City Council
[email protected]
SUBJECT: Fiscal Year 2024 Budget
Support Early Childhood Education.
Dear Mayor Davis, Mayor Pro Tem Negrete, and Honorable Council members:
I am writing to express my support for childcare in Santa Monica. As a longtime resident of Santa Monica, I benefit from the Human Services Grant Program (HGSP) through the Growing Place Marine Park facility; I understand the importance of providing quality childcare services to families in our city. The education system in Santa Monica including programs like the Growing Place are a critical and important services to provide for families of our city.
As a member of a two-parent working household, we would challenged if it were not for services provided by institutions like the Growing Place. Our county and city are becoming increasingly expensive and, in many cases, cost prohibitive. We battle landlords that refuse to maintain their buildings all the while continues to increase rents. We travel great distances to our places of work so that we may live in one of the best cities in Southern California which provides wonderful public services and public education for our two daughters.
Childcare is essential for working parents who need a safe and nurturing environment for their children while they are at work. It also plays a critical role in the development of young children, providing them with early education and socialization opportunities that are essential for their future success.
Unfortunately, access to quality infant/toddler/preschool programs is limited due to high costs, long waiting lists, and limited availability of licensed childcare providers. This significantly burdens working parents, especially lowincome families who struggle to make ends meet.
Our city must do everything it can to support Santa Monica families and ensure our children have access to quality child care. This includes investing in early childhood education and providing financial assistance to families who need it most.
I urge the Santa Monica City Council to prioritize childcare as a critical infrastructure component of our community. Investing in childcare supports working families, promotes early education, and ensures that all children and families in our community can thrive.
Please ensure our young children have access to early childhood education and socialization. Help our parents maintain and keep our much-needed jobs and careers. Furthermore, help our communities grow and thrive in Santa Monica.
Sincerely,
Zachary Hoevet
229 San Vicente Blvd, Apt H
Santa Monica, CA 90402
503-260-9202
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1 Vernice Hankins
From: Bruce Leddy <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, April 11, 2023 11:56 AM
To: councilmtgitems; Gleam Davis; David White
Cc: [email protected]; Nancy Coleman
Subject: City Council Mtg 4-11-23 – ITEM 11A
EXTERNAL
To: City Council
From: NOMA
Re: City Council Agenda Item 11A
April 11, 2023
Dear Mayor, City Council and City Manager -
The Executive Board of NOMA (North of Montana Association) fully supports our neighboring organization, the Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Association (Wilmont), and their request to receive proportional funding from the City for resident outreach.
The strength of all neighborhood organizations depends on active participation by residents, and Wilmont's higher population means their outreach through mailings is more expensive. We request that you grant their request for additional funding to continue their good work which benefits their residents and the City.
Sincerely,
Bruce Leddy
On behalf of the Board of the North of Montana Association Mayor Davis and Council Members,
The Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Coalition (Wilmont) Board of Directors asks for the following change to be made to the Fiscal Year Midyear Budget based on equity and support of all city neighborhoods with the annual city grant of $7,000.
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2 We request that the annual neighborhood grant become variable. Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Coalition (Wilmont) was given a list of over 13,000 addresses in our neighborhood via a city process. Historically the city requested and sent our annual newsletter in recognition of the value of neighborhood groups.
We use our grant to send out an annual newsletter to all our Wilmont residents. Wilmont is the largest neighborhood in terms of addresses. Currently, each neighborhood gets the same $7,000 grant.
Last year we obtained multiple estimates of the price to generate 13,000 copies, labels and postage for our annual newsletter and on average it was about $1/newsletter. The $7,000 does not cover this. We request that Council address these differences by still providing $7,000 per neighborhood groups that have 7,000 or less addresses and provide a $1/address for other neighborhoods that have greater than 7,000 addresses. For Wilmont, that would be $13,000 in 2023, or an addition of $6,000 to send newsletters out to every address in our neighborhood. Thank-you
Thank-you for ensuring the vitality and continued importance of the city's neighborhoods.
Board of Directors
Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Coalition (Wilmont)
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From: Asa Greenberg
To: councilmtgitems
Subject: FYE’24 BUDGET: Support Early Childhood
Date: Tuesday, April 11, 2023 1:04:03 PM
EXTERNAL
Dear Mayor Davis, Mayor Pro Tem Negrete, and Honorable Councilmembers:
I am writing to express my support for childcare in Santa Monica. As a Santa Monica parent, resident, and member of the City's workforce, I benefited from having access to quality childcare service at the Growing Place Marine Park Child Development Center.
Child care is essential for working parents who need a safe and nurturing environment for their children while they are at work, and it plays a critical role in the learning and development of young children.
As a dual-working family/working parent whose child attended the program several years ago, I experienced firsthand the program's benefits, including extended hours for childcare. Few options if any in the area provide childcare in a wonderful environment for parents who need coverage throughout the working day. As my wife and I both work full-time, Growing Place Marine Park's extended hours (with early drop-off and late pickup available every day) were indispensable, enabling both of us to continue working in our demanding jobs without having to curtail our work schedules or make costly arrangements for at home care during the working day.
Our City must do everything possible to support Santa Monica families and ensure its children have access to high quality early education and care. This includes investing in early childhood education and providing financial assistance to families who need it most.
I urge the Santa Monica City Council to prioritize childcare as a critical infrastructure component of our community.
Investing in child care supports working families, promotes early childhood education, and ensures that all children and families in our community have the opportunity to thrive.
Thank you for your attention to this important issue; keep children learning, parents earning, and communities growing in Santa Monica!
Sincerely,
Asa Greenberg
--
-
Asa Greenberg
Kilogram Entertainment
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From: Kemper Donovan
To: councilmtgitems
Subject: FYE’24 BUDGET: Support Early Childhood
Date: Tuesday, April 11, 2023 2:27:28 PM
EXTERNAL
Dear Mayor Davis, Mayor Pro Tem Negrete, and Honorable Councilmembers:
I am expressing my support for Growing Place Marine Park to continue to receive City funding through the Human Services Grant Program; to sustain its programming to young children and families in our City. As a resident of Santa Monica and a working parent, I order the City to sustain this program.
High-quality early childhood education and care supports the City’s priorities:
Cultivate Economic Recovery - childcare is essential to working families, so we can continue our jobs/careers and participate in our local economy Equity and Social Diversity - women who must re-enter the workforce after childbirth need access to infant care
Sustainable and Connected Community - child development centers enhance the well-being of families and benefit the social and economic well-being of the community
For six years now, my husband and I have benefited from the excellent childcare and pedagogy consistently practiced by this wonderful program for the benefit of our two daughters. This is exactly the sort of program that deserves public funding.
The benefits are endless for children and parents who attend this twenty-three-year established family resource.
Please, invest in early childhood education and provide financial assistance to families who need it most; this will ensure all Santa Monica children and families have the opportunity to thrive!
Thank you for your attention to this important issue.
Sincerely,
Kemper Donovan
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From: Megan Kelly
To: councilmtgitems
Subject: FYE’24 BUDGET: Support Early Childhood
Date: Tuesday, April 11, 2023 2:40:30 PM
EXTERNAL
Dear Mayor Davis, Mayor Pro Tem Negrete, and Honorable Councilmembers:
I am expressing my support for Growing Place Marine Park to continue to receive City funding through the Human Services Grant Program; to sustain its programming to young children and families in our City. As a resident of Santa Monica and a working parent, I urge the City to sustain this program.
High-quality early childhood education and care supports the City’s priorities:
Cultivate Economic Recovery - childcare is essential to working families, so we can continue our jobs/careers and participate in our local economy Equity and Social Diversity - women who must re-enter the workforce after childbirth need access to infant care
Sustainable and Connected Community - child development centers enhance the wellbeing of families and benefit the social and economic well-being of the community The benefits are endless for children and parents who attend this twenty-three-year established family resource.
Please, invest in early childhood education and provide financial assistance to families who need it most; this will ensure all Santa Monica children and families have the opportunity to thrive!
I also urge you to support you to increase allocations for programs that support children and families.
Thank you for your attention to this important issue.
Sincerely,
Megan Kelly
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