The five voluntary organizations listed below are just a sample of local organizations preserving something essential for our City’s future.  There are, of course, many other organizations, larger (eg. Sierra Club, SMRR) and smaller (eg. SMCLC, SMa.r.t.) including individuals, that are doing similar or parallel problem  solving things and thereby preparing us to face the even larger problems which we know are headed our way: 

Read More: https://smmirror.com/2024/03/s-m-a-r-t-column-five-saving-historic-santa-monica/

LA City Controller Kenneth Meija posted comments on social media about an unreleased report from the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) that was kept secret and has recently come to light, as was reported by The LAist. This report highlights the ineffectiveness of the City of Los Angeles’ anti-camping ordinance in addressing homelessness.  

Read More: https://smmirror.com/2024/03/lahsa-report-exposes-failures-of-anti-camping-ordinance-allegedly-kept-secret-since-november/

The Los Angeles City Council came one step closer to implementing a “master leasing” program aimed at expanding the availability of housing for unhoused residents, as reported by City News Service. This approach, already in use by LA County, involves securing all or part of an apartment building on a long-term lease, followed by subleasing the units to unhoused individuals or families, along with the provision of supportive services.

Read More: https://smmirror.com/2024/03/la-city-council-greenlights-master-leasing-program-to-tackle-homelessness-crisis/

Public safety -- the top priority of every city -- is also being curbed by "federal, state and county laws and practices (that), in many cases, have worked against the goal of keeping us safe."

Read More: https://www.surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2024/March-2024/03_01_2024_State_of_City_Address_Expresses_Cautious_Optimism.html

By Cal Matters

The numbers have continued to grow despite many billions of dollars in federal, state and local funds having been spent – $20 or so billion by the state alone over the last five years. As the problem worsens, it consistently ranks as one of Californians’ most pressing public policy issues, polling has found.

How is it, one might ask, that so much money could be spent with so little, if any, progress?

Read More:  https://smdp.com/2024/03/01/california-spends-billions-on-homelessness-yet-the-crisis-keeps-getting-worse/

8) Santa Monica's unfunded Pension Liability in 2022 was an alarming $265 million, expected to have increased by $8 million in 2023. This amount equals about 115% of the General Fund. The unfunded Pension Liability is growing at a faster rate than our City's General Fund. In 2005, the unfunded Pension Liability was 45% of the General Fund.

12) The payments and legal fees for two of Santa Monica's ongoing lawsuits regarding District Based Voting, and the sexual abuse case related to an employee of the Police Activities League, have passed over $300 million.

Read More: https://www.smobserved.com/story/2024/03/01/opinion/santa-monica-is-broke-28-percent-of-sales-tax-is-generated-downtown-an-area-with-a-now-45-percent-vacancy-rate/8144.html

Over the past 12 months, Santa Monica's average rent has dropped -7.1 percent, the largest annual decrease in the LA metro area, and far larger than the decreases of -1.0 percent nationwide and -1.3 percent in California.

Read More: https://www.surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2024/February-2024/02_29_2024_Santa_Monica_Rents_Continue_Trending_Down.html

Shocking budget stats - Santa Monica is broke & broken

Read More: https://finance.smgov.net/Media/Default/annual-reports/FYE2024/FY%202023-25%20Adopted%20Biennial%20Operating%20Budget.pdf

Charles Andrews

Behind the scenes, of course, at this point, and it’s going both directions. The difference is, the anti-resident forces, mostly developers and ideologues, and the politicians willing to serve them, have already been working on their strategies and on grooming candidates, for months, to retake City Council.

I have been pleading, in this column, for a long time, for some good candidates to step up, NOW, because you can’t win a November election if you start in June. Everybody knows that. But getting started is so hard.

Read More:  https://smdp.com/2024/02/28/union-of-residents-of-santa-monica-ii/

 The fear that SMRR propagates every election cycle, suggesting that if SMRR candidates don’t win, Rent Control will disappear forever. That new ideas or directions mean losing everything we hold dear.

Read More on Page 4: https://s3.amazonaws.com/smdp_backissues/022624.pdf