1Homeless
housing makes a community safer and is good for business.
2.
Overconcentration is not a problem
for gentrifying areas like Northwest Pasadena. According to our Housing
Director, “Affordable housing in all its forms is the best way to combat
gentrification.” Furthermore, the overconcentration policy doesn’t apply to
Heritage Square South since it is not an inclusionary project.
3.
Homeless
housing is a better option for this neighborhood than selling this property for
exclusively commercial development and forfeiting over a million dollars to HUD.
4.
Selling
this property for commercial development doesn’t make economic sense. It makes
sense to invest in the community with a city-funded project.
5.
This
project has overwhelming support of the community in Vice Mayor John Kennedy's
District.
6.
This site
is ideal for homeless seniors, according to our Housing Director.
7.
We can be
sure that those housed in Heritage Square South supportive housing will be from
Pasadena.
8.
With a
city-funded homeless housing project, we can guarantee it will generate local
jobs and beautify the neighborhood. There is no guarantee that exclusively
commercial development will generate a single job for Pasadena residents.
9.
The need
for supportive housing for Pasadena’s homeless residents is growing rapidly and
needs to be addressed now.
10. There are huge financial benefits for housing
homeless seniors.
11. Heritage Square South was originally intended for
affordable housing and is considered an “affordable housing asset.”
Talking
Point #1: Homeless housing makes a community safer and is good for business. Public
safety is a big concern and that’s why we feel you should support housing homeless
seniors at Heritage Square South. According
to Donna Hess, the property manager at Heritage Square North, crime rate has
gone down 11% near this property. When this property was a vacant lot, it was
used for petty crime. We can expect a similar reduction in crime once Heritage
Square South is developed. Mr. Huang produced a video showing why permanent
supportive housing benefits a community. This documentary makes
it clear why police support permanent supportive housing. Police would rather
be apprehending real criminals than hassling homeless people. A police sergeant
in Sacramento was quoted recently as saying, “You can’t arrest your way out of
homelessness.” Retired Police Chief Sanchez was a big supporter of affordable
housing. He said, “Despite some of the stereotypes, affordable housing doesn’t
impact crime. It doesn’t erode the quality of life. They’re highly regulated.
They are highly monitored.” Lieutenant Mark Goodman, added, “The safety level
is actually enhanced, because you are taking people from off the street and
putting them into a situation that’s
stable.”’
Studies
confirm that housing the homeless deters crime and makes our communities safer.
The Justice Policy Institute states: “An increase in spending on housing is associated with a
decrease in violent crime at the national level and a decrease in incarceration
rates at the state level An increase in spending on housing and community
development paired with a decrease in spending on corrections is associated
with both lower crime rates and lower prison incarceration rates’” In
other words, the more you spend on affordable and homeless housing, the less
you need to spend on jails!
This
makes sense. When homeless people are in permanent supportive housing, they can
receive help with their substance abuse issues and are less likely to commit
petty crimes.
Housing
the homeless is also good for business.
In this documentary
Paul Little, CEO of the Pasadena Chamber of Commerce, said, “Local businesses
don’t feel the impact of permanent supportive housing. If there is an impact,
it’s a positive one because there are fewer people in doorways, fewer people
sleeping on sidewalks, or under bridges.”
The documentary provides perspectives from realtors,
homeowners, and housing advocates, all of whom agree that permanent affordable
housing is not only good for homeless people, it is also good for the
community.
We have canvassed businesses around South Heritage Square
who agree and have signed petitions supporting homeless housing on this site.
They would like to see homeless people off the streets and housed with dignity.
They agree with Paul Little and the police that permanent supportive housing is
good for business and makes our community safer.
Talking
Point 2. Overconcentration
is not a problem for gentrifying areas like Northwest Pasadena. According to
our Housing Director, “Affordable housing in all its forms is the best way to
combat gentrification.” I am here to speak on behalf of housing homeless at
Heritage Square South. I’d like first to clarify a policy matter regarding over
concentration of affordable housing in Northwest Pasadena.
The issue of over concentration has
been brought up as a reason not to have homeless housing at Heritage Square
South,
It is important to note, however,
that this policy applies only to off-site inclusionary affordable housing
projects, such as the one that Mr. Gordo wanted to replace a blighted liquor
store in his district. Under the inclusionary policy passed by the City Council
in 2001, such a site could not be developed with inclusionary funds. The
Council decided to pass an exception for this project and also for the Lincoln
project. Both are affordable home ownership projects.
I think that the City Council was
wise to make these exceptions since Northwest Pasadena needs more affordable
housing. For a similar reason, it would also be wise to allow homeless housing
to be built at Heritage Square South.
But Heritage Square South is not an
inclusionary offsite project, so there is no need to make an exception to
current policy. I
have checked with Bill Huang as well as with the wording of the policy, and it
is very clear that it doesn’t apply in this case.
With the help of Kim Douglas, a retired Cal
Tech reference library who now serves on the Northwest Commission, Jill and
Anthony have written a report showing that the overconcentration policy is
obsolete and needs to end in Northwest Pasadena. The policy no longer makes
sense because Northwest Pasadena has become gentrified and there is an urgent
need for more affordable housing in Northwest Pasadena so that “legacy”
residents including the African American and Latino community aren’t forced to
leave.
Not only do we want to end blight of a defunct
gas station and a problem liquor store, we need to end the blight of
homelessness and prevent so many from being displaced from NW Pasadena. William
Huang has stated, “Affordable housing in all
its forms is the best way to combat gentrification.”
Talking Point 3: Homeless housing is a
better option for this neighborhood than selling this property for exclusively
commercial development and forfeiting over a million dollars.
Mr Gordo, I know you care deeply about creating a family-friendly
neighborhood and you are also pro-union since you served as an attorney for the
Laborers’ International Union of North America. That’s why we feel you should
support permanent supportive housing for homeless seniors at North Heritage.
As you know,
there are many elderly seniors living on the streets in your district and they
have nowhere to go. Many are long-term residents of this area who have ended up
on the street because of rising rents. If we could house 69 of them at Heritage
Square North, it would improve the quality of life for all residents in your
neighborhood. I am sure you are aware that homeless people forced to sleep on
the street can create unsanitary conditions and disturb families and
businesses.
Your
constituents do not like seeing homeless people in their area. That’s why when
Vice Mayor Kennedy asked residents what they wanted at Heritage Square South,
80% wanted homeless housing and 80% opposed selling this affordable housing
asset for exclusively commercial use. Your constituents have the right idea. It
is much better to house our homeless neighbors with dignity than to let them
live on the streets. Getting homeless seniors off the streets of Northwest
Pasadena will make our community safer for families and better for
business.
Talking Point #4: Selling this property
for commercial development doesn’t make economic sense. It makes sense to
invest in the community.
I’m sure you all realize that your constituents are very upset that the City
Council gave away nearly half a million dollars in funds slated for homeless
housing because it didn’t have a homeless or very low income project in the
pipeline. Your constituents will be even more outraged if you decide to sell Heritage
Square South and forfeit over two million dollars to HUD and Redevelopment
funds. If this property is sold to a commercial developer, not only would the
City lose HUD funding, we would lose the opportunity to ensure that
construction is done by union labor that will pay a fair wage. If this property
is sold for commercial development, there is no guarantee that there will local
hires, local contractors, or local materials used. There is no way to compel a
commercial developer to hire union labor. In fact, there is no way to guarantee
that a commercial developer will hire a single Pasadena resident. If this is s a city-funded project, we can
require local hires, local contractors, and local materials. It will also
require hiring workers at prevailing wage, which usually means union
workers. Heritage Square North generated
7 million dollars of economic development in the city of Pasadena. Bill Huang
says it is possible to have commercial development and permanent supportive housing
on this site, which would be even better for the community. The time to act is
now while HUD and other funding is available for permanent supportive housing.
As Mr. Wilson said, "We're
eight years into an economic growth cycle, and I'm deeply concerned about the
magnitude of this challenge when the economy's behind our backs. We really owe
it to ourselves and our community to be clever now, when frankly we have the
luxury to solve some of this without a gun to our heads, because I can imagine
when the business cycle turns, what those homeless numbers are going to look
like." Mr. Wilson is right. We need to be clever now and approve using
Heritage Square South for homeless housing.
Talking
Point 5: This project has overwhelming support of the community in
Vice Mayor John Kennedy's District.
In many areas of our City, NIMBYism prevents homeless housing from being
built. I am grateful that this City Council continues to support motel
conversion, even though the initial roll out of this policy didn’t go well. NIMBYism
isn’t a problem in Northwest Pasadena, however. Residents here want affordable
and homeless housing. During a community meeting in March, 80% of the community
supported using this site for affordable housing and 80% opposed using this
site only for commercial development. See Kennedy’s survey results: https://www.surveymonkey.com/results/SM-25G2T2Y68/
Religious leaders and churches have signed over 400 letters in support of
homeless housing for seniors, and two prayers vigil on the property attracted
20 and 60 people, many from the nearby neighborhood. The Interdenominational
Ministerial Alliance, which comprises most of the African American churches in
this area, supports using Heritage Square South for homeless
housing. We have gone door to door surveying businesses and
neighbors and most were willing to sign petitions of support, which were sent
to the City Council.
Talking
Point 6: This property is ideal for homeless seniors, according to
our Housing Director. Supportive housing for seniors is
the best option for this site because it is located on a busy commercial
intersection, which is not ideal for families. Furthermore, families need more
parking than do seniors and that would reduce the number of individuals who
could be served, and also limit mixed use commercial development (restaurants
require lots of parking). This site is better suited for seniors because it is
close to already existing senior housing, a CVS, grocery stores and
restaurants, and medical facilities (easily accessible by bus). Supportive
housing for homeless seniors is fundable because of Measure H and other
sources. Finally, the need is urgent, with the number of homeless seniors
(those over 50 years of age) increasing 65% in three years, from 153 in 2016 to
253 in 2018. (Of these, 174 are unsheltered.)
Talking
Point 7: We can be sure that those housed in Heritage Square South
supportive housing will be from Pasadena. Mr. Hampton, we know that you are concerned that
projects like these benefit the community you serve. According to Bill Huang, the
City can give preference to Pasadena residents and to homeless seniors, of
which there are 253 living on the streets of our city. It is likely that the
vast majority of those housed will be homeless Pasadena seniors, many of whom
will likely be from District 3. Almost all the current residents of Heritage
Square North are from Northwest Pasadena. 30% are African American, 25% are
Hispanic, 22% are Caucasians, and 18% are Asian. The 2018 Homeless Count shows
that 36% of the homeless population are African American and 28% are Hispanic,
and 48% are white. Heritage Square South will be a great benefit to the
residents of Northwest Pasadena since it will house around 10% of our homeless
residents.
Talking
Point 8: If the property is mixed use, including supportive housing, we
can guarantee it will generate local jobs and beautify the neighborhood.
I am speaking out in support of using Heritage Square South for homeless
housing because it will benefit the economic development of our community and
beautify the neighborhood. The City can require local hires for affordable and
homeless housing. For Heritage Square North, 20% were local hires, and 60% of
materials used were purchased locally. Supportive housing would provide
economic benefits to the local community in ways that commercial development
could not guarantee. Heritage Square left $ 7 million in the City because of
its policy to provide local contracts and supplies. Unlike city funded affordable
housing projects, there is no requirement for commercial developers to hire
local contractors. Nor are commercial ventures required to hire local
employees. Therefore, commercial development would not necessarily
provide any jobs for local residents nor would there be any
requirement for material to be purchased locally. It makes much better economic
sense for the City to invest in homeless housing in an area where such housing
is urgently needed. . Furthermore, affordable housing like Summit Grove or
Heritage Square North is not a stigma, but an asset to the community.
They add beauty to the neighborhood.
Talking
Point 9: The need for supportive housing for Pasadena’s homeless
residents is growing rapidly. Homeless service providers
have testified to this Council many times that the lack of homeless housing in
this city is making very hard for them to find housing for those who are
homeless. The number of unsheltered homeless residents in our City increased
33% in the past year. The number of homeless seniors has increased 65% in the
past three years. Since there is no supportive housing in the city
pipeline, this number of homeless residents will undoubtedly increase over the
next few years. There is a need to create multiple homeless housing projects,
both short- and long-term. Reducing our homeless population by providing
housing will make our community safer and better for business.
Talking
Point 10: There are huge financial benefits for housing homeless
seniors. Homeless seniors are likely to cost society more money
in health care than younger and healthier homeless residents. Given the City’s
budget crunch, it makes more economic sense to house homeless seniors in
facilities with services provided by the County’s Measure H funding than to let
them sicken and die on the streets, with various agencies in the City footing
enormous medical bills. A Rand study showed that housing homeless residents has
saved the county $1.20 for every dollar spent on housing and supportive
services. According
to an Economic Roundtable study, the cost of dealing with a homeless individual
in LA County is around $5038 per month, vs $605 per month when they are
provided with supportive housing. These costs increase with the age of homeless
individuals. Based on this study, we can estimate the cost to Pasadena of
having 69 homeless seniors living on the street to be around $4,171,464 per
year. Housing them in supportive housing would run around $500,940, a savings
of $3,670,524. This would be a huge financial benefit to our City.
Talking
Point 11: Heritage Square South was originally intended for affordable
housing and is considered an “affordable housing asset.” According
to Bill Huang, the North and South Heritage Square property was originally
purchased in different parcels over a period of time by the City with HUD and
other funding for affordable housing, starting in 2004. For political reasons,
it was bifurcated in 2011 with the understanding that Heritage Square North
would be used for affordable senior housing, and the southern part primarily
for commercial use. When the state ended Redevelopment, however, the City
changed its tune. The state wanted the City to sell the property and give them
the proceeds, but the City argued that the property was an affordable housing
asset and would be used for affordable housing. The state allowed the City to
keep the property for this purpose. The City’s intention for this property has
shifted over time, but it is currently designated for affordable housing. If it
is sold for commercial use, the City must use the proceeds for affordable
housing and will forfeit over a million dollars in HUD funding.
Anthony and Jill
Anthony and Jill
