Mr. Mayor, members of the Council,
Now that Measure S has passed and the city has some hope of dragging itself out of a sizable deficit, I'd like to comment on the lack of city support for non-profit organizations in Yucaipa, in particular, Vision Quest. I was disappointed by the recent remarks by Yucaipa's City Analyst to Vision Quest, as reported in the News Mirror, regarding their building rent increase and his statement "Is it the city's responsibility to indefinitely subsidize underperforming tenants or Non -profits simply because it has done so in the past? My answer to that question is a resounding "YES". Particularly if it concerns non-profit organizations and their contributions to the arts. Yucaipa is facing a deficit but somehow you found money to increase employee salaries and benefits, created a new Department of Governmental Affairs with a million -dollar budget, and mailed out Measure S flyers to Yucaipa citizens. Is it not possible to find funding somewhere within Yucaipa's budget to keep Vision Quest open and in their building, at a reasonable rate, perhaps waiving the past due amounts? It appears the amount stated in the News Mirror is a drop in the bucket compared to what the city has spent recently on the political mailings.
I feel the quality of life in Yucaipa is slowly deteriorating and city leaders have somehow lost or ignored Yucaipa's vision as stated in the General Plan of Yucaipa which says "Yucaipa offers an attractive, peaceful and safe community for all its residents. Yucaipa is thoughtfully planned, balancing the needs of residents, the environment, and the business community". Non-profit Vision Quest is part of our community, and studies show how that art has a host of benefits for communities. Hopefully the city council will consider refunding this important non-profit organization which would show Yucaipa citizens that the City acknowledges the importance of the Arts instead of fostering the perception that the city is greedy and lacks compassion and charitableness.
Sincerely,
Petice Huntington
19+ year Yucaipa Resident