~ Fight or flight. Those of you who are acquainted with me know which choice I have always made. However, It seems that many longtime residents are choosing flight. They have decided that the scourges of crime, overdevelopment, traffic, and a deteriorating lifestyle make it no longer worth the hassle of living in Santa Monica.

Read More: https://smmirror.com/2020/06/sma-r-t-column-if-its-not-okay/

The Santa Monica City Council fully funded the local police department during a budget decision Tuesday night but officials said they are actively working with local advocates to develop a plan for long-term changes to police funding that acknowledge the national calls to reinvest municipal money into other departments. 

As of Tuesday night, funding for the Santa Monica Police Department is down about three percent over two years but remains stable compared to recent requests for decreases in police spending triggered by efforts to promote racial justice. 

Read More: https://www.smdp.com/budget-discussions-focus-on-defunding-the-police-movement/193430

Santa Monica City Council unanimously approved the City’s FY 2020-21 proposed budget and biennial FY 2020-22 capital improvement program budget. The operating budget is $613.6 million and reflects an organizational restructuring, a reduction to the operational budget by nearly 25% in response to the impacts of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and includes measures to close a projected $224 million budget deficit through FY 2021-22.  

Read More: https://www.santamonica.gov/press/2020/06/24/santa-monica-council-adopts-fy-2020-21-operating-budget-and-fy-2020-22-capital-improvement-program-budget

The City Council on Tuesday paved the way to replace Greg Morana by appointing a new member to serve for approximately three and a half months before facing reelection.

The Council -- which will begin accepting applications at noon tomorrow -- is expected to vote to fill the vacancy on July 14 and, if an appointment is not made, try again on July 21.

The new member would need to win the November 3 general election in order to finish serving the final two years of Morena's term.

Read More: http://surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2020/June-2020/06_23_2020_Council_Opens_Application_Process_to_Fill_Morenas_Seat.html

(UPDATED) The City Council postponed until July 14 a decision on whether to continue negotiations on The Plaza mixed-use project Downtown after opponents submitted legal arguments to stop the proposed development on City owned land.

Read More: http://surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2020/June-2020/06_22_2020_Council_to_Decide_Fate_of_Plaza_Project.html

Once approved, funds would be paid directly to their landlords.

The city estimates the program could help 50,000 households through two months of assistance, with up to $2,000 being awarded per home.

Read More: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/rent-relief-la-city-council-approves-dollar100m-to-help-tenants-landlords-amid-pandemic/ar-BB15S3Zf?li=BBnb7Kz

TONIGHT the Council must reject the construction of a huge, 11-story hotel, retail, office, housing complex at 4th, 5th and Arizona ON PUBLIC PROPERTY, and work to create an urban oasis of true, ground-level park space in the HEART of Downtown.

Last Thursday, at a Special Meeting of the Recreation and Parks Commission, our first since the pandemic, the Commission voted unanimously for the third time in four years to urge the Council to:

1) Abandon negotiations with the developer,

2) Build a true public park on public land at the site, and

3) Direct staff to explore ways a public-private partnership might raise the money for a park and the underground parking garage that could help pay for it.

Here’s why:

Read More: https://www.smdp.com/abandon-the-plaza/193380

Council will consider restarting negotiations to develop the city owned property at 4th and Arizona following a delay caused by questions over the land’s status.
Staff are asking the council to provide direction on the property at their June 23 meeting. Their options include restarting negotiations as they were earlier this year, abandoning current plans for the site or restarting talks with an altered set of priorities.
According to the staff report, the current project is up to 11 stories (129 feet in height) with up to 240 hotel rooms, no more than 106,800 square feet (SF) of creative workspace, 42,000 SF of ground-floor retail space, and 820 parking spaces within a three-level subterranean garage.

Read More: https://www.smdp.com/council-to-consider-restarting-plaza-negotiations/193318

Community Corporation of Santa Monica will partner with Molcajete Dominguero to bring the first small-business incubator to the city of Santa Monica. Hosted on the ground floor of Community Corp.’s upcoming affordable housing development in Santa Monica’s Pico neighborhood, the incubator will help develop, inspire, and cultivate small businesses at a time when local industry has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read More: https://www.smdp.com/community-corp-partners-with-molcajete-dominguero-to-develop-small-business-incubator/193354

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill Thursday to require county officials to mail a ballot to every registered voter for the November election, cementing into law the Democratic governor’s earlier order to mail out ballots statewide in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

Newsom, citing health risks from large groups gathering at polling places, announced in early May that the state will send every voter a mail-in ballot for the fall contest, but his plan has been challenged in court.

Read More: https://www.smdp.com/california-to-send-every-voter-mail-in-ballot-for-november/193278