[00:00:05]
WELCOME EVERYONE TO THE FEBRUARY MEETING OF OUR PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE.
MADAM CLERK, WILL YOU PLEASE CALL RULE COUNCIL MEMBER BRAVO HERE.
COUNCIL MEMBER MCKEE RODRIGUEZ, PRESIDENT COUNCIL MEMBER GRO.
COUNCIL MEMBER PAZ, PRESENT CHAIR CAB HDA.
AND THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE TODAY.
[Approval of Minutes ]
APPROVAL OF LAST MIN ME MEETINGS, MINUTES, THERE'S A COUPLE OF ITEMS FOR BRIEFING AND POSSIBLE ACTION.AND THEN WE HAVE THREE ITEMS ON THE CONSENT AGENDA.
MEMBERS, YOU'LL HAVE FOUR MINUTES TO ASK QUESTION TWO FOR FOLLOW UP.
UM, SO, UH, BE CONCISE, BUT IT'S BECAUSE WE HAVE A LOT ON OUR AGENDA TODAY.
THE FIRST ITEM IN OUR AGENDA IS THE APPROVAL OF MINUTES FROM OUR JANUARY 17TH MEETING.
I'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION APPROVED OF A MOTION.
ANY OPPOSED? UH, MINUTES ARE APPROVED.
UH, MOVING ON TO THE CONSENT AGENDA.
[CONSENT AGENDA]
THERE'S THREE ITEMS ON CONSENT.DID ANYONE, ANYONE WANNA PULL ANY OF THOSE ITEMS FROM CONSENT? I JUST HAVE A QUESTION THAT I, UM, OKAY.
SO, UH, SEEING NO ITEMS TO PULL, I'LL ENTERTAIN ANY MOTIONS TO APPROVE THE CONSENT ITEMS. APPROVE.
SECOND WITH A MOTION A SECOND.
ANY OPPOSED? UM, AND WE'LL NOW BEGIN
[Public Comment ]
WITH PUBLIC COMMENT.UH, A QUICK REMINDER THAT PUBLIC COMMENT ARE LIMITED TO TWO MINUTES UNLESS SOMEONE SEEDS THEIR SI.
ANYONE THAT SEEDS THEIR TIME MUST BE LISTED AS A SPEAKER.
UM, MADAM CLERK, WHO'S THE FIRST SPEAKER? DOUG BEACH.
THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK TODAY.
UH, MY NAME IS DOUG BEACH AND I'M THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR NAMI SAN ANTONIO.
THAT'S THE NATIONAL ALLIANCE ON MENTAL ILLNESS.
AND WE'VE BEEN IN SAN ANTONIO FOR OVER 40 YEARS, AND WE HELP EDUCATE PEOPLE ABOUT MENTAL ILLNESS, ADVOCATE FOR THOSE WHO ARE IMPACTED AND SUPPORT FAMILIES AND INDIVIDUALS DEALING WITH MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES.
AND I'M HERE TO REQUEST SUPPORT FOR OUR REQUEST FOR ARPA FUNDS.
WE DID NOT RECEIVE FUNDS IN THIS, UH, LAST, UH, R F P AND IS TO HELP CONTINUE OUR GRASSROOTS PRO MENTAL HEALTH EDUCATION AND SUPPORT PROGRAMS THROUGH BRIDGES TO CARE, AND THROUGH OUR NAMI SIGNATURE EDUCATION PROGRAMS AND OUR LOCAL WARM LINE.
EACH OF THESE PROGRAMS HELP PROVIDE FAMILIES AND INDIVIDUALS WITH THE SUPPORT THEY NEED TO IDENTIFY MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES BEFORE THEY BECOME A CRISIS.
AND WHILE ONE IN FIVE PEOPLE ARE IMPACTED BY A MENTAL HEALTH DISORDER EACH YEAR, PEOPLE TYPICALLY WAIT 10 TO 11 YEARS AFTER THEIR FIRST EPISODE TO SEEK HELP, HELP EARLY IDENTIFICATION AND INTERVENTION HELP CAN, CAN HELP SAVE LIVES AND IMPROVE THE LIVES OF PEOPLE AFFECTED.
AND THROUGH THESE PROGRAMS, WE HAVE A PROVEN TRACK RECORD OF MAKING A POSITIVE IMPACT ON COMMUNITY MENTAL HEALTH.
AND OVER THE PAST TWO YEARS, WE'VE WORKED EXTENSIVELY IN DISTRICT TWO, AND WE ARE BEGINNING TO OFFER THESE PROGRAMS IN DISTRICT FIVE.
WE ARE REACHING THE MOST UNDER-RESOURCED AREAS OF OUR COMMUNITY WHERE SOME OF THE GREATEST DISPARITIES OF MENTAL HEALTH EDUCATION AND SUPPORT EXIST.
OUR WARM LINE HELPS PROVIDE PEOPLE WITH A PLACE TO CALL BEFORE A CRISIS OCCURS.
AND WE OFFER PEOPLE NAVIGATION TO RESOURCES AND OPPORTUNITY TO ENROLL IN MENTAL HEALTH EDUCATION AND SUPPORT PROGRAMS. WE OFFER SOMEONE WHO CAN LISTEN WHEN A PERSON MAY NOT EVEN KNOW WHY THEY'RE CALLING OR EVEN KNOW THAT THERE'S A MENTAL HEALTH ISSUE INVOLVED.
OUR WARM LINE PERSONNEL ARE BILINGUAL AND KNOW THE CHALLENGES OF TRYING TO ACCESS CARE.
ARE YOU, UH, LOCATED IN DISTRICT TWO? UH, WE'RE ON, OUR OFFICES ARE, UH, ON THE EDGE OF DISTRICT ONE.
UM, WHO'S OUR NEXT SPEAKER? DO WE HAVE ANYONE? KAYLA CARTER.
I KNOW Y'ALL ARE PRETTY FAMILIAR PERHAPS WITH, FOR HER ALREADY.
UM, SO I WON'T BELABOR ALL OF THIS POINTS.
OH, YES, SORRY, A LITTLE BIT SHORT.
UM, SO FOR HER SERVES, UM, UNDERSERVED IN MINORITY COMMUNITIES IN SAN ANTONIO.
UM, MOST OF WHICH HAVE BEEN VICTIMS OF CRIME, INCLUDING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, TRAFFICKING, AND SEXUAL ABUSE.
AND IN THESE POPULATIONS, WE KNOW
[00:05:01]
THAT CONDITIONS OF DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY HAVE INCREASED.UM, AND A LACK OF ACCESS TO QUALITY MENTAL HEALTH CARE KEEPS WOMEN IN CYCLES OF DIMINISHED MENTAL HEALTH AND VULNERABILITY.
UM, SO TODAY WE'RE REQUESTING FUNDING THAT WE WERE NOT AWARDED THROUGH ARPA, UH, TO SUPPORT OUR PROGRAMS. UM, THE WOMEN THAT WE SERVE, 70% OF WHICH, UM, HAVE A SCORE OF SIX OR MORE ON THE CITY'S, UH, EQUITY ATLAS LIVE IN THOSE AREAS.
UM, 75% OF OUR CLIENTS AS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SURVIVORS, 59% ARE SURVIVORS OF SEXUAL ABUSE.
22% HAVE BEEN TRAFFICKED AND 15% HAVE BEEN DIAGNOSED WHEN WITH MENTAL ILLNESS.
AND 10% ARE CURRENTLY LIVING ARE CURRENTLY HOMELESS OR HAVE EXPERIENCED HOMELESSNESS IN THE PAST.
SO WE'RE SERVING A VERY VULNERABLE POPULATION THAT NEEDS ACCESS TO MENTAL HEALTH CARE.
AND WE DO PROVIDE MENTAL HEALTH CARE AT FOR FREE WITH A LICENSE FULLY LICENSED, UH, COUNSELOR ON STAFF, UM, AS WELL AS INDIVIDUAL SUPPORT GROUPS AND COMMUNITY GROUPS, PEER GROUPS, INDIVIDUAL ADVOCACY, AND A WHOLE HOST OF OTHER SERVICES THAT HELP BUILD A WOMAN'S CONFIDENCE AND RESILIENCE, UM, SO THAT SHE DOESN'T END UP BACK IN CRISIS.
AND SO, THOUGH WE DON'T OFFER THINGS THAT ARE VERY MUCH NEEDED, LIKE HOUSING, UH, WE'RE REALLY THAT NEXT STEP TO HELP PREVENT A FUTURE CRISIS AND TO HELP SOMEONE STABILIZE AND BUILD TOWARDS SELF-SUFFICIENCY.
THAT'S OUR ANY MORE, UH, SPEAKERS? MADAM CLERK? OKAY.
THANK YOU, UH, MR. BEACH AND MS. CARTER FOR COMING AND TALKING WITH US TODAY.
[Briefing and Possible Action on ]
IS, UM, BRIEFING OF THE, UH, OF METRO HEALTH ON THE COLAB COLLABORATIVE DEV DEVELOPMENT OF A METRO HEALTH VIOLENCE PREVENTION STRATEGIC PLAN.DO WE HAVE CLA? YES, UH, CHAIRWOMAN.
UM, I WILL BRIEFLY INTRODUCE THIS ITEM.
WE'RE EXCITED THAT OUR METRO HEALTH DEPARTMENT IS DEVELOPING A STRATEGIC PLAN FOR VIOLENCE PREVENTION.
AND THIS IS THE FIRST TIME THAT THE CITY IS DOING, UH, A COMPREHENSIVE STRATEGIC PLAN THAT ENCOMPASSES ALL ASPECTS OF VIOLENCE THAT IMPACT OUR COMMUNITY.
UM, THE METRO HEALTH DEPARTMENT, UH, THREE, FOUR YEARS AGO DEVELOPED A STRATEGIC PLAN TO ADDRESS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN OUR COMMUNITY.
AND THE, UM, C C D V, WHICH IS OUR COLLABORATIVE, UH, CITY COUNTY COLLABORATIVE FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, TOOK THAT REPORT AND HAS DONE WORK OVER THE PAST THREE YEARS.
UM, I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE, UH, JUDGE MONIQUE DIAZ, WHO IS HERE TODAY.
SHE'S, UH, A CO-CHAIR OF THE C C D V.
UM, I'M THE OTHER CO-CHAIR OF THE C C D V, AND WE'RE EXCITED THAT METRO HEALTH IS GONNA DO THIS, UH, STRATEGIC PLAN.
AND INCLUDED IN THAT PLAN, IT'LL BE AN UPDATE TO THE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE STRATEGIC PLAN THAT WAS DEVELOPED THREE YEARS AGO.
SO, UM, CLAUDE IS GONNA WALK US THROUGH THE PRESENTATION TODAY IS A BRIEFING, JUST TO LET YOU KNOW THAT THE, THE WORK THAT IS GONNA BE DONE OVER THE NEXT, UH, SEVERAL MONTHS THAT WILL RESULT IN THE, IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN, THE STAKEHOLDERS THAT WE'RE GONNA INVOLVE.
SO WE WOULD LIKE TO GET YOUR FEEDBACK ON THE WORK THAT METRO HEALTH IS BEGINNING TO DO WITH, WITH THIS, UM, WITH THIS PLAN.
GOOD MORNING AND THANK YOU MARIA.
MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE, THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO PROVIDE THIS MORNING'S UPDATE ABOUT THE DEVELOPMENT OF A VIOLENCE PREVENTION STRATEGIC PLAN TAKING SHAPE AT OUR DEPARTMENT.
UM, I'M ALSO JOINED BY ERICA HALON, HALLIS STEVENSON PUBLIC HEALTH ADMINISTRATOR, WHO IS THE, THE LEAD STAFFER AT OUR DEPARTMENT, LEADING THE WORK OF OUR VIOLENCE PREVENTION SECTION.
THIS EFFORT IS PART OF A NATIONAL PUBLIC HEALTH LEADERSHIP TRAINING, UH, PROGRAM, WHICH FEATURES A TEAM FROM SAN ANTONIO THAT INCLUDES OUR PARTNERS FROM S A P D U T S A, AS WELL AS ST.
SO VERY QUICKLY, WHILE, UM, LOCAL HEALTH DEPARTMENTS HELP MANAGE AND MITIGATE DISEASE, UH, THIS AGAIN, PREVENTION CONTINUUM PROVIDES AT LEAST AN OPPORTUNITY TO, TO DESCRIBE OUR EFFORTS FURTHER UPSTREAM.
SO OUR, OUR TEAM AT METRO HEALTH IS LEADING A PROCESS TO DEVELOP THIS STRATEGIC PLAN THAT WILL UTILIZE DIFFERENT FORMS OF PREVENTION TO REDUCE THE IMPACT OF VIOLENCE IN OUR COMMUNITY.
SO THERE'S A LOT OF TALK ABOUT UPSTREAM VERSUS DOWNSTREAM.
SO JUST KNOW THAT PRIMARY PREVENTION IS ABOUT, UH, DISRUPTING, UH, THESE, UH, THESE CYCLES OF VIOLENCE BEFORE THEY OCCUR.
SECONDARY PREVENTION IS, UH, REALLY LOOKING AT, UM, EARLY DETECTION AND IMMEDIATE EFFECTS.
AND THEN, UH, LONGER TERM RECURRENT, UM, PREVENTION HAS TO DO WITH TERTIARY PREVENTION AFTER VIOLENCE OCCURS.
[00:10:01]
FRAMEWORK AS WE TALK ABOUT UPSTREAM AND DOWNSTREAM.AND WHILE THERE'S A LOT OF TALK ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS, UH, FURTHER DOWNSTREAM, AT THE END OF THE DAY, THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO APPLY THE PUBLIC HEALTH LENS.
AND SO WE FOCUS ON SOCIAL INEQUITIES, INSTITUTIONAL INEQUITIES, AND SO WHY WE DO THIS? UM, IF EXPERIENCES WITH VIOLENCE ARE AT THE END OF A SE RESULT OF A SERIES OF RISK FACTORS AND CIRCUMSTANCES AND PEOPLE'S LIVES, WE MUST INTERVENE WELL BEFORE THE VIOLENCE OCCURS.
UH, WE REFER TO INTERVENTIONS THAT ARE CLOSE TO THE POINT OF IMPACT ON THE PERSON'S LIFE AS DOWNSTREAM INTERVENTIONS.
UPSTREAM'S INTERVENTIONS ARE THOSE THAT PRECEDE THE EVENTS LEADING TO INJURY, DISEASE, AND DEATH.
IN THIS MODEL, YOU'LL SEE THAT ADDRESSING SOCIAL AND INSTITUTIONAL INEQUITIES AND LIVING CONDITIONS ARE THE STRATEGIES FURTHEST UPSTREAM.
AS A SOCIETY, WE ALSO SPEND LESS MONEY AND HAVE GREATER IMPACT ON WORKING UPSTREAM.
SO JUST KNOW THAT THIS PLAN DOVETAILS WITH THE SAP'S PLAN ON VIOLENCE CRIME REDUCTION.
SO WHY IS THIS A PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUE? UH, VIOLENCE IS A PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUE BECAUSE, UH, PEOPLE MUST MEET THEIR BASIC FOOD, BASIC NEEDS FOR FOOD, SHELTER, AND SAFETY BEFORE THEY CAN FOCUS ON OTHER ASPECTS OF THEIR HEALTH AND WELLNESS.
UH, ONE OF METRO HEALTH'S RESPONSIBILITIES AS A HEALTH DEPARTMENT IS TO MONITOR THE HEALTH STATUS OF THE COMMUNITY AND IMPLEMENT STA STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVEMENT.
SO WE'VE HEARD REFERENCE ABOUT OUR ASSAY FORWARD PLAN, AND THIS IS ONE OF OUR PRIORITY AREAS.
THIS SLIDE REALLY IS A QUICK SNAPSHOT AND PROVIDES A, A TABLE, UM, LOOKING AT DATA FROM BEAR COUNTY, UH, GEOGRAPHIC AREA, LOOKING AT 2020 AND 2021, THE RATES OF CRIME PER A HUNDRED THOUSAND ARE LISTED AS THE MAIN FIGURES AND THE CRIME COUNTS ARE SHOWN IN PARENTHESES.
UH, THE BEXAR COUNTY DATA REPRESENT THE TOTAL CRIMES FOR ALL JURISDICTIONS IN THE AREA, REPORTING CRIME DATA TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, AND ARE NOT LIMITED TO SAN ANTONIO POLICE DEPARTMENT OR TO, UH, THE BEXAR COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE.
UH, THE HOMICIDE AND ASSAULT RATES IN BEXAR COUNTY INCREASED FROM 20 AND 21 AND EXCEEDED EXCEEDED THE STATEWIDE RATES DURING BOTH YEARS.
HOWEVER, SEX OFFENSES DECLINED FROM 20 AND 21 AND WERE LOWER THAN THE TEXAS RATE, UH, IN 2021.
HOMICIDES, SEX OFFENSES AND ASSAULT ARE OFTEN MONITORED AS INDICATORS OF VIOLENT CRIME.
WHILE THE DATA ON THIS SLIDE DON'T TELL THE FULL STORY OF VIOLENCE IN OUR COMMUNITY THAT CONTRIBUTE TO A PORTRAIT OF THE NEED FOR US TO REDUCE AND PREVENT VIOLENCE.
SO THERE'S A LOT TO TALK ABOUT SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH AND JUST KNOW THAT WE'RE NOT NEW AT THIS.
UM, BUT JUST KNOW THAT SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH ARE INSTITUTIONALIZED AND POLITICAL, SOCIOECONOMIC, CULTURAL AND HISTORICAL CONSTRUCTS.
SO WE TALK ABOUT THE DRIVERS OR DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH.
AND THESE CONDITIONS HELP EXPLAIN WHY SOME INDIVIDUALS ARE HEALTHIER THAN OTHERS AND HOW HEALTH STATUS IS OFTEN TIED TO ONE ZIP CODE.
THIS FRAMEWORK REFLECTS A MODEL ADOPTED BY HEALTHY PEOPLE 2030, AND IT'S ORGANIZED IN THESE FIVE DOMAINS AND 18 SUB-DOMAINS.
SO THE WORK PERTAINING TO THE VIOLENCE PREVENTION AND CRIME REDUCTION PLANS WOULD BE FOUND UNDER NEIGHBORHOOD AND BUILT ENVIRONMENT OR VIOLENT CRIME, AS WELL AS SOCIAL AND COMMUNITY CONTEXT.
SO WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT CIVIC ENGAGEMENT AND SOCIAL COHESION, THE OTHER DOMAINS INCLUDE ECONOMIC STABILITY.
SO THINK ABOUT FOOD INSECURITY OR HOUSING INSTABILITY, UH, EDUCATION ACCESS AND QUALITY, AS WELL AS HEALTHCARE ACCESS AND QUALITY.
SO AS YOU HEARD FROM, UH, OUR DEPUTY CITY MANAGER.
SO AGAIN, THIS IS PART OF OUR FIVE YEAR PLAN.
IN TERMS OF SA BOARD, UH, WE RELEASED THIS, UH, THIS PAST APRIL.
UM, THIS IS REALLY LOOKING AT CONDITIONS THAT HAVE GOTTEN, UH, WORSE OVER THE COURSE OF THIS PANDEMIC EXPERIENCE OVER THE LAST THREE YEARS.
THIS IS PART OF A FIVE-YEAR PLAN.
AND, UM, UH, THIS AGAIN, IS APPLYING LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE C OVID 19 PANDEMIC, AND IT INCLUDES VIOLENCE AND COMMUNITY SAFETY.
SO, IN BROAD STROKES, OUR CORE VIOLENCE PREVENTION INITIATIVES IN SA FORWARD INCLUDE THE ENHANCED DOMESTIC VIOLENCE CRISIS ADVOCACY AND CASE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM, A POSITIVE PARENTING PROGRAM CALLED TRIPLE P AND THE STANDUP SA ARE VIOLENCE, OUR GUN VIOLENCE INTERRUPTER PROGRAM.
DURING THE CURRENT FISCAL YEAR, WE'RE EXPANDING THE REACH OF TRIPLE P TO HELP PARENTS INVOLVED IN THE JUSTICE SYSTEM.
WE'RE ALSO WORKING WITH COMMUNITY PARTNERS TO DEVELOP A RESTORATIVE JUSTICE PROGRAM SET IN AREA SCHOOLS.
GIVEN LESSONS LEARNED FROM COVID, UM, METRO HEALTH IS ALSO RESTORING AND BUILDING ITS INFRASTRUCTURE FOLLOWING THE COVID OVID 19 PANDEMIC WITH A FIVE YEAR, UH, GRANT AWARD FROM THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION, THE C D C.
AND THIS IS TO STRENGTHEN OUR WORKFORCE AND IMPROVE OUR FOUNDATIONAL CAPABILITIES.
THIS PLAN ALSO, UM, AS YOU'VE HEARD REFERENCE IN TERMS OF THE NEXUS WITH THE COLLABORATIVE COMMISSION ON DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, WE'VE BEEN UTILIZING A 2019, UH, PLAN TO GUIDE OUR WORK.
THE COMMISSION MEMBERS INCLUDE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO DEPARTMENTS, UM, BEXAR COUNTY AGENCIES, AND SEVERAL COMMUNITY AND EDUCATION ORGANIZATIONS.
THE MEMBERS WILL PARTICIPATE IN THE, THE DEVELOPMENT OF THIS VIOLENCE PREVENTION STRATEGIC PLAN TO REFRESH THEIR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE STRATEGIES AND COLLABORATE ON AN EVEN LARGER SCALE.
[00:15:01]
THE PURPOSE OF THIS VIOLENCE PREVENTION, UH, STRATEGIC PLAN WILL SET A, A STRATEGIC DIRECTION FOR SAN ANTONIO AND BEXAR COUNTY FOR CALENDAR YEARS 2024 THROUGH 2028.THIS ROADMAP WILL INCORPORATE A PUBLIC HEALTH APPROACH AND COMBINE UPSTREAM AND DOWNSTREAM STRATEGIES BY HARNESSING SHARED PRIORITIES AND EVIDENCE-BASED STRATEGIES.
THE STRATEGIC PLAN WILL GUIDE MULTIPLE AGENCIES AND SECTORS OF THE COMMUNITY TO WORK TOGETHER TO HAVE GREATER IMPACT.
THE STRATEGIC PLAN WILL EMPHASIZE COLLABORATION AND CAN HELP ATTRACT FUNDING FOR PROGRAMS AND SERVICES.
SO, IN TERMS OF THE TIMELINE, SO AS I MENTIONED, SO WE'RE WORKING WITH, UH, SS A P D ST.
JOHN BAPTIST CHURCH AND THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS OF SAN ANTONIO, OR U T S A TO COORDINATE THE STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS.
THE PROCESS IS BEING CONDUCTED WITH A COMMUNITY DRIVEN APPROACH TO INCORPORATE INPUT AND PARTICIPATION BY COMMUNITY MEMBERS.
THE COORDINATING TEAM IS COLLECTING, UH, COMMUNITY INPUT AND REVIEWING DATA THROUGH FEBRUARY.
THEY WILL CONDUCT A COLLABORATIVE PLANNING PROCESS FROM MARCH THROUGH SEPTEMBER TO IDENTIFY THE PRIORITY AREAS FOR THE STRATEGIC PLAN AND DEVELOP OBJECTIVES, STRATEGIES, AND MEASUREMENT INDICATORS.
IN AUGUST, A DRAFT VERSION OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN WILL BE SHARED TO OBTAIN COMMUNITY AND STAKEHOLDER FEEDBACK.
FINALLY, WE ANTICIPATE THE PLAN WILL BE PUBLISHED IN NOVEMBER.
SO THE FIRST STAGE OF THIS PROCESS WILL INCLUDE A GRASSROOTS EFFORT TO OBTAIN INPUT FROM COMMUNITY MEMBERS THROUGH DIRECT ENGAGEMENT, BY COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZATIONS AND TOWN HALLS.
METRO HEALTH IS ALSO SOLICITING INPUT FROM PEERS FROM OTHER CITY DEPARTMENTS AND THROUGH PARTNERS IN BARETT COUNTY AGENCIES AND COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZATIONS.
AND JUST NOTE THAT THIS PROCESS WILL ALSO INCLUDE ENGAGING THOSE WITH LIVED EXPERIENCE IN THE COMMUNITY TO INCLUDE VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.
SO BETWEEN THREE AND FIVE PRIORITIES WILL BE SELECTED FOR THE VIOLENCE PREVENTION PLAN BASED ON COMMUNITY INPUT, UH, WORK, UH, AND ASSESSMENT DATA.
THE WORK GROUPS WILL BE FORMED FOR EACH PRIORITY.
THE WORK GROUPS WILL INCLUDE REPRESENTATION FROM COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS, RESIDENTS, THE CITY AND COUNTY, AS WELL AS CITY AND COUNTY EMPLOYEES.
EACH WORK GROUP WILL IDENTIFY OBJECTIVES, STRATEGIES, AND SUCCESS INDICATORS FOR THEIR RESPECTIVE PRIORITY AREAS.
SO, IN CLOSING, AT THE REQUEST OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE, UH, WE, OUR TEAM AT METRO HEALTH CAN PROVIDE AN INTERIM PROGRESS UPDATE DURING A FUTURE MEETING, MOST LIKELY IN THE SUMMER.
WE ALSO INTEND TO BRIEF THE FULL CITY COUNCIL ON COMPLETE ON THE COMPLETED, UH, PLAN LATER IN THE FALL.
SO THIS LAST SLIDE, WHICH MIGHT BE A LITTLE DIFFICULT TO SEE, THESE ARE PICTURES OF THE TEAM IN ACTION.
SO FROM THE TIP TRIPLE P PROGRAM, STANDUP SA, UH, OUTREACH PROGRAM, AND A SITE VISIT THAT WAS HELD LAST FALL WITH A CURE VIOLENCE GLOBAL INC.
AND THEN OUR, UH, DV UH, UM, CRISIS RESPONSE TEAM AND CASE MANAGERS ALONG WITH SS A P D.
UH, WE ARE AVAILABLE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MAY HAVE.
I APPRECIATE YOUR, UM, PRESENTATION.
AND, UH, THANK YOU TO JUDGE DIAZ AND, AND OUR OWN MARIA GOMEZ FOR THE WORK THAT THEY'VE DONE ON, UH, C C D B.
UM, THIS, AS WAS MENTIONED, THIS IS THE FIRST TIME WE'VE HAD A COMPREHENSIVE PLAN, AND IT'S EXCITING.
UH, OF COURSE, WE WANNA MAKE SURE WE'RE DOING IT RIGHT.
UM, THIS IS A, IN MANY WAYS, KIND OF A FIRST STEP TOWARDS A, A VERY LONG PROCESS.
BUT, UM, I ONLY SAY LONG BECAUSE I WANT IT TO, I WANT US TO CONTINUALLY KEEP UP WITH IT AND, AND BE MORE INNOVATIVE AS WE MOVE ALONG.
UM, IT WOULD BE NICE TO SAY THAT THIS IS GONNA ERADICATE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, BUT WE KNOW THAT THIS IS A VERY LONG-TERM, UH, GOAL FOR US.
THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS THAT THIS PLAN AND THE PROCESS BRINGS TO MIND.
UM, ONE IS, AS WE, WE ALL KNOW, WE CAN'T PUT PUBLIC SAFETY ENTIRELY ON THE SHOULDERS OF OUR POLICE DEPARTMENT.
UM, WE ALSO, I THINK, ALL KNOW THAT WE CAN'T ARREST PROBLEMS LIKE THESE AWAY.
SO I THINK THAT'S WHAT THIS PLAN IS DOING.
IT SPREADS THE LOAD, UM, ACROSS DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS.
OBVIOUSLY FROM A PUBLIC HEALTH PERSPECTIVE, ADDS COMMUNITY RESOURCES TO ADDRESS CRIME AND VIOLENCE AT THEIR SOURCE.
IT'S A COMPLIMENT ALSO TO THE MICRO HOTSPOT STRATEGY.
UM, SO I, I, I CAN SEE A LOT OF, UM, JUST IN THE INITIAL, UH, PRESENTATION, SEE A LOT OF COLLABORATION AND THAT, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT'S EXCITING TO ME.
'CAUSE IT, IT CAN'T BE HANDLED BY ONE INDIVIDUAL DEPARTMENT.
UM, BUT THERE IS STILL, STILL A LOT OF WORK TO DO IN PREVENTING VIOLENCE.
UH, WE SHOULD THINK OF THIS PLAN AS THE FIRST IN A SERIES OF STEPS IN CRIME PREVENTION.
UM, AND YOU MENTIONED A CONTINUUM.
OF COURSE, I WOULD LIKE TO FOCUS THE MOST WE CAN ON PRIMARY PREVENTION BEFORE THE VIOLENCE OCCURS.
UH, WE DON'T WANT ANYBODY TO HAVE TO DEAL WITH ANY MORE VIOLENCE, UM, THAT IS ALREADY GOING ON OUT THERE.
BUT, BUT OF COURSE WE KNOW IT IS.
AND SO WE HAVE THE SECONDARY AND THEN THE TERTIARY PREVENTION, WHICH ARE ALSO IMPORTANT.
I I THINK THE STRATEGY SHOULD CONTINUE.
PUBLIC SAFETY IS PUBLIC HEALTH.
PUBLIC HEALTH IS EVERYTHING ELSE, RIGHT? MENTAL HEALTH, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, EDUCATION
[00:20:01]
OPPORTUNITY.SO, UM, WHEN WE BROADEN OUR APPROACH TO PUBLIC SAFETY, WE SHOULD PUT OURSELVES ON A TRACK TO ADDRESS ALL THESE THINGS THROUGH THAT PUBLIC SAFETY LENS.
THAT, THAT'S WHAT I THINK THIS PLAN DOES.
I THINK IT'S A REALLY SOLID FIRST STEP TOWARDS THAT.
I HAVE JUST A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS.
UM, BUT, UH, CLAUDE, I, I VIEW THE VIOLENCE PREVENTION PREVENTION PLAN AS AN INITIAL PHASE OF METRO HEALTH WORKING WITH, WITH, UH, PUBLIC SA, OUR PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE.
UM, HOWEVER, I THINK A SECOND STEP IS NECESSARY BECAUSE OF SO MUCH OF OUR CONVERSATION HAS FOCUSED ON MENTAL HEALTH, UH, NOT JUST IN THIS ROOM, BUT I THINK AS, UM, AS A COMMUNITY.
AND WE'VE ACKNOWLEDGED A LOT OF THE AMOUNT OF THE, A LOT OF THE, THE WORK NEEDS TO BE DONE TO RELATED, RELATED TO MENTAL HEALTH AND PUBLIC SAFETY.
BUT I'D LIKE TO SEE SOME KIND OF MENTAL HEALTH AND PUBLIC SAFETY STRATEGIC PLAN CREATED, UM, TOGETHER.
IF, IF THERE'S SOMETHING THAT WE CAN MAYBE WORK ON TOGETHER TO, TO HAVE THAT PLAN GOING FORWARD.
UM, I THINK OUR, I KNOW OUR CONSTITUENTS WANNA SEE THAT PROGRESS.
UH, SO I'D LIKE TO SEE A PLAN FOR THIS STRATEGIC INITIATIVE, UM, COMING UP IN THE NEXT SEVERAL MONTHS, IF THAT'S SOMETHING WE CAN WORK ON.
I'M ALSO, UH, I THINK ON, UH, ON SLIDE 11, YOU MENTIONED I'M A BIG FAN OF DASHBOARDS.
SO, UM, I THINK IT'S A GOOD WAY TO, FOR OUR CITY, OUR, YOU KNOW, OUR COMMUNITY, UM, TO, I'M GOING TO SLIDE 11 REAL QUICK.
'CAUSE I THINK IT'S SLIDE 11, UM, TO UNDERSTAND KIND OF A SNAPSHOT OF WHAT'S GOING ON.
THEY, THEY DON'T ALL, THEY'RE NOT ABLE TO ALL COME AND TALK TODAY AT OUR PUBLIC SAFETY MEETINGS OR ANY OF OUR COMMITTEE MEETINGS, OR EVEN OUR COUNCIL MEETINGS.
BUT A DASHBOARD, I THINK IS, IS KIND OF A ONE STOP.
YOU CAN GO AND LOOK AT, UH, WHAT'S HAPPENING AND, AND, UM, THE DIRECTION THAT OUR CITY IS HEADED TOWARDS.
SO I'D LIKE TO SEE A CENTRALIZED DASHBOARD OR A TOOLKIT DEVELOP FOR THE COORDINATING TEAM TO SHARE DATA AND EVIDENCE-BASED STRATEGIES, UM, AS TRANSPARENT AS WE CAN BE WITH OUR PUBLIC.
UH, AND SO MY QUESTIONS ARE, UM, IS DATA BEING COLLECTED THROUGH MANDATED REPORTING OR THROUGH VOLUNTARY, UH, REPORTING? UM, HOW CAN WE MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ADDRESSING VULNERABLE DEMOGRAPHICS SPECIFICALLY THAT ARE MORE LIKELY TO INCUR VIOLENCE, BUT MAYBE LESS LIKELY TO REPORT IT? UM, WHICH IS, I, I UNDERSTAND.
AND WHAT I JUST SAID MAYBE CONTRADICTS ITSELF.
BUT, YOU KNOW, MY, MY CONCERN IS FOR THESE POPULATIONS THAT UNDER REPORT, LIKE, UM, PEOPLE THAT ARE UNDOCUMENTED, OUR COMMUNITY LGBTQ PLUS, UH, SPECIAL NEEDS, UH, PEOPLE WITH SPECIAL NEEDS, THEY'RE, THEY'RE, THEY'RE NOT AS LIKELY TO REPORT VIOLENCE.
UM, IS THERE A WAY THAT WE'RE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO CAPTURE THAT DATA? THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION.
SO I WOULD SAY THAT THERE ARE, UM, DIFFERENT OPTIONS TO TRIANGULATE TO AT LEAST HAVE THE BEST SNAPSHOT.
SO, FOR EXAMPLE, ONE OF OUR PRIORITIES, WE ESTABLISHED AN INFORMATICS UNIT AT OUR DEPARTMENT BECAUSE WE WANTED TO DO A BETTER JOB WITH OUR EPIDEMIOLOGISTS, OUR DISEASE DETECTIVES TO SEE THE PATTERNS OF DISEASE AND SO, OR THE DISRUPTIONS THAT WE'RE SEEING IN COMMUNITY.
SO WE ARE AT LEAST GOING THROUGH THIS PLANNING PROCESS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE CAPTURE THE BEST, UH, DATA THAT ARE AVAILABLE.
UH, SOMETIMES THERE ARE LAG TIMES, UM, AND SO WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT, UH, WE'RE NOT DRAWING INCORRECT CONCLUSIONS, BUT IT'S ALLOWING US TO AT LEAST SHAPE THE PROGRAMS, SEE AND UNDERSTAND THE EXPERIENCE OF VICTIMS ON THE GROUND.
SO JUST KNOW THAT WE HAVE THAT TEAM IN PLAY, AND IT'S ONE OF OUR PRIORITY ERAS AND ESSAY FORWARD PLAN.
COUNCIL CHAIRWOMAN, JUST TO ADD TO WHAT CLA MENTIONED, AND I WOULD OFFER THE WORK THAT WE HAVE DONE AT THE C C D V WITH GATHERING ALL THE DATA THAT IS AVAILABLE, NOT ONLY FROM THE CITY AND THE COUNTY, BUT ALSO THE MANY NONPROFIT PARTNERS THAT ARE WORKING WITH THE C C D V, WITH A GOAL OF PROVIDING A MORE COMPREHENSIVE PICTURE OF WHAT'S GOING ON.
WE KNOW THAT NOT EVERYBODY REPORTS NECESSARILY TO THE POLICE OR BURKE COUNTY OFFICE, BUT THEY MAY BE BE RELYING ON NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS, UH, UH, FAITH-BASED COMMUNITY AS WELL.
SO THAT'S AN EXAMPLE OF THE WORK THROUGH METRO HEALTH IN THE INFORMATICS, UH, DIVISION, THE CLOUD MENTIONED THAT WE, UM, HAVE DONE FOR THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS.
AND THAT WE ARE EXPANDING, AND WE CAN USE THAT EXAMPLE ALSO TO ADDRESS ALL THE OTHER ASPECTS OR OF, UH, VIOLENCE, NOT JUST DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, BUT THE OTHER VIOLENCE THAT WE EXPERIENCE TO TRY TO PROVIDE OUR COMMUNITY A BETTER PICTURE OF THE EXTENT, UM, THAT, THAT WE SEE IN OUR COMMUNITY.
AND, AND SO DID I HEAR FROM THAT, THAT WE, WE ARE GONNA WORK WITH THE COUNTY? SO I'M, IT BRINGS TO MIND, UM, SPECIFICALLY THE COURT SYSTEM.
THERE WAS A TIME WHEN I WAS, UM, ON THE INDIGENT MISDEMEANOR WHEEL.
SO I WAS REPRESENTING CLIENTS WHO COULDN'T AFFORD AN ATTORNEY.
AND, UH, SO MANY OF THOSE CLIENTS WERE, UH, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE VICTIMS. AND EVEN THOUGH AT SOME POINT SOMEBODY CALLED THE POLICE AND THEY WERE IN THE COURT SYSTEM, THERE WERE SO MANY TIMES WHEN, UM, THEY COULDN'T PROSECUTE OR THEY HAD TO DRAW, DISMISS A CASE BECAUSE THE WITNESS WOULD, UM, DISAPPEAR, WOULD STOP, MY CLIENT, WOULD STOP ANSWERING CALLS, UM, BECAUSE THEY GOT BACK TOGETHER WITH THE PERSON, OR WHAT, FOR WHATEVER REASON.
THERE WERE A LOT OF REASONS WHY THEY GOT LOST IN THAT, IN THAT SYSTEM.
[00:25:01]
IT JUST BRINGS TO MIND EVEN WHEN THEY DO GET, UH, REPORTED IT, IT'S, THEY'RE STILL LOST.SO YOU'RE, YOU'RE WORKING WITH THE COUNTY TO HELP COLLECT THAT DATA.
AND, AND THEN I, I REALLY DO APPRECIATE, UM, WORKING WITH THE NONPROFITS THAT THEY MAY REACH OUT TO THE NONPROFITS BEFORE ANYBODY ELSE.
UM, COUNCILMAN MIHI RODRIGUEZ.
UM, THERE WAS A BRIEF MOMENT WHEN I WAS LISTENING TO THE PRESENTATION, AND I WAS THINKING, IN MY HEAD, I WAS LIKE, IS THE COMMUNITY INPUT THE TOWN HALLS THAT WE JUST HAD REGARDING THE, UH, UH, SAP'S HOTSPOT INITIATIVE? AND THAT IS NOT THE CASE.
CAN YOU, UM, TELL ME A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THE COMMUNITY, UH, FEEDBACK THAT YOU RECEIVED, AND HOW WAS OUTREACH CONDUCTED? SO OUR PROCESS IS NOT YET UNDERWAY, UM, BUT IN TERMS OF OUR TOWN HALLS, YEAH.
SO I'M GONNA ASK ERICA TO AT LEAST WALK YOU THROUGH SINCE SHE'S ALREADY MOBILIZING AT LEAST THE ROLLOUT OF THIS PROGRAM.
BUT LET ME ASK ERICA TO AT LEAST, UH, DRILL DOWN TO TALK ABOUT OUR EFFORTS TO GATHER COMMUNITY INPUT, JUST TO BE SURE, BECAUSE I ONLY HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF TIME.
IT SAYS JANUARY AND FEBRUARY IS THE INPUT PROCESS.
WE HAVE SEVEN DAYS LEFT OF FEBRUARY, SO, OKAY.
SO UP FRONT, I'M GONNA SPILL ABOUT A WEEK INTO MARCH, UH, ON THE EFFORT, UM, WE'RE DOING A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT THINGS IN SOMEWHAT OF A FRAGMENTED MANNER, BUT IT'S INTENDED TO BE LESS GOVERNMENTAL, MORE GRASSROOTS, AND MORE COMPREHENSIVE.
WE'RE WORKING WITH PARTNERS LIKE NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS TO ENGAGE THEIR CONSTITUENTS AND THE PEOPLE THEY SERVE WITH SOME STANDARD TOOLS TO CONDUCT FOCUS GROUPS AND SURVEYS.
UH, WE ALSO ARE GONNA HOST SOME MORE FORMAL TOWN HALLS WITH THE FAITH COMMUNITY, WHICH ARE ON DECK FOR ABOUT A WEEK AND A HALF AWAY.
WE'RE GETTING THOSE FINALIZED.
I'VE ALSO BEEN ATTENDING ALL OF THE S A P D COMMUNITY MEETINGS AND TAKING NOTES ON WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT VIOLENCE IN THEIR COMMUNITY AND WHAT MATTERS TO THEM.
UM, SO WE'RE KIND OF HITTING DIFFERENT POCKETS OF THE COMMUNITY TRYING TO REPRESENT, UM, PEOPLE LIVING IN DIFFERENT AREAS OF TOWN, REPRESENTING DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE COMMUNITY, UH, AND GATHERING THAT INFORMATION, REALLY COMING AT IT FROM MULTIPLE DIRECTIONS BECAUSE THERE ISN'T A VERY SYSTEMATIC WAY, UH, THAT ALREADY EXISTS, UH, IN THIS AREA.
UM, SO WE HAVE TO KIND OF BUILD IT RIGHT NOW.
UM, DO YOU HAVE PARTICULAR THOUGHTS IN MIND? UM, YES.
IT'S JUST A, A REQUEST OF MIND THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, I'LL, I'LL BRAG ON MY TEAM A LITTLE BIT.
I THINK MY TEAM IS REALLY GREAT AT COMMUNITY OUTREACH AND EVENTS, AND EVENTS THAT WE DO AND SURVEYS THAT WE PUT OUT ARE VERY WELL, UH, PARTICIPATED IN.
AND SO WHEN THERE ARE OPPORTUNITIES FOR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND FEEDBACK, I WOULD LOVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SUPPORT AN OUTREACH.
UM, AND SO WE MIGHT BE CUTTING IT A LITTLE BIT CLOSE, BUT I WOULD LOVE THE OPPORTUNITY ANYTIME IN, IN THE FUTURE.
UM, THAT ANSWERS MY QUESTION THERE.
UM, WE ARE, UH, SECOND BAPTIST CHURCH HAS OFFERED TO HOST ONE OF THESE TOWN HALLS.
UM, I'M TRYING TO THINK OF THE DATE, I THINK MARCH 5TH, I BELIEVE.
UM, BUT WE'RE JUST FINALIZING THAT.
WE'LL MAKE SURE YOUR OFFICE IS AWARE.
AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE, SO WE CAN DO THE ABSOLUTELY.
UM, I GUESS MY LAST, UH, QUESTION OR SOMETHING THAT I'M INTERESTED IN IS, UM, CRIME PREVENTION THROUGH ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN.
AND IT'S SOMETHING THAT, UH, LIKE OPIA GARDENS WAS FOUNDED OFF OF THAT PRINCIPLE, AND THERE'S A PROGRAM IN DALLAS CALLED THE BETTER BLOCK PROGRAM, WHERE THEY TAKE A BLOCK WHERE THERE'S VERY SIMILAR TO OPIA GARDENS, WHERE THERE IT'S HIGH IN CRIME AND THEY CREATE SOMETHING THERE.
AND WHEN THAT HAPPENS, YOU SEE A HUGE DECREASE IN VIOLENT CRIME.
AND SO I'M WONDERING WHAT ROLE THAT MIGHT PLAY HERE.
AND IN REFERENCING MY COMMENT EARLIER ABOUT THE, OH, OKAY, THERE'S A PIECE HERE AND THERE'S A PIECE, UH, REGARDING THE HOTSPOT PROGRAM.
I THINK THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY THERE, UM, FOR COORDINATION.
AND SO WHAT ROLE MIGHT THE, UM, SAP'S VIOLENT AND UTSA'S, UH, PARTNERSHIP, HOW MIGHT THAT COORDINATE WITH THE WORK THAT YOU GUYS ARE DOING THROUGH SA FORWARD AND ALL OF THAT? SO CLEARLY, UH, THE MODEL YOU MENTIONED IN DALLAS, SO WE CAN LOOK AT THAT.
UM, OUR PLANS ARE INTENDED TO ALIGN.
SO THE TIMING OF THIS COULDN'T BE BETTER IN TERMS OF US INVESTING TIME AND ENERGY AND RESOURCES.
SO WE'LL LOOK AT THAT PROGRAM THAT YOU SUGGEST, AND VERY SPECIFIC, UH, COUNCILMAN THE SECOND STRATEGY ON THE CRIME PREVENTION PLAN THAT TALKS ABOUT BRINGING OTHER STAKEHOLDERS AND AGENCIES.
UM, WHAT YOU, WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT IN TERMS OF USING ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN FOR CRIME PREVENTION, THAT'S HOW WE'RE GONNA UTILIZE IT, UH, IN, IN, IN THAT SECOND STAGE THAT WE ANTICIPATE THAT WILL START SIX MONTHS FROM JANUARY OR SOONER, UH, TO START TACKLING THOSE ASPECTS.
SO BOTH THE POLICE DEPARTMENT AND METRO HEALTH ARE WORKING COLLABORATIVELY ON THIS PLAN AND ALSO ON THE CRIME
[00:30:01]
PREVENTION PLAN.I APPRECIATE Y'ALL BEING HERE.
UM, I KEEP HEARING GOOD THINGS ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION AND, UM, THE WORK YOU'RE DOING IS IMPORTANT.
UH, SPEAKING OF IMPORTANT, UM, JUDGE MONIQUE DIAZ, YOU, YOU DON'T, YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO RAISE YOUR HAND.
UH, AND NO, SERIOUSLY, YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO RAISE YOUR HAND AND VOLUNTEER FOR, UH, THE ROLE THAT YOU PLAY, UH, YOU KNOW, ON THE C C D V.
UM, BUT YOU DID, AND YOU THREW ALL OF YOURSELF INTO IT.
AND I, I SEE THE WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING, AND A LOT OF THE FOLKS, UM, WITH WHOM I SPEAK, UH, SEE THE WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING, AND, UM, YOU'VE STUCK WITH IT.
AND THERE'S A LOT OF FOLKS WHO GET INTO THIS CONVERSATION ABOUT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, AND IT'S A REALLY DIFFICULT CONVERSATION.
AND FOR SOME PEOPLE, IT, IT'S TOO DIFFICULT.
AND THEY JUMP IN AND THEN THEY, THEY GRACEFULLY EXIT THE SCENE, RIGHT? AND, UM, YOU HAVEN'T DONE THAT.
UH, AND, AND I HOPE THAT YOU NEVER WILL.
UM, WHAT WORRIES ME, AND, UH, YOU KNOW, I, SOME OF YOU I'D SPOKEN TO FOR HER, I, I REMEMBER YOU GUYS WERE THERE.
WE, WE WENT TO THE TRI POINT LAST WEEK, WAS IT LAST WEEK, UH, WHERE WE HAD THE, UM, UNDER THE, UH, THE WATCHFUL EYE OF, UH, OF REVEREND HELMKE.
UH, WE HAD OUR EVENT WHERE WE BROUGHT THE FAITH COMMUNITY, UH, AND THEIR COLLABORATIVE COMMISSION, RIGHT? ON DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND WHAT BROKE MY HEART.
AND, AND IF ANYBODY YOU EVER WANNA BREAK YOUR OWN HEART, GO TO ONE OF THOSE MEETINGS AND LOOK AROUND, AND IT'S ALMOST EXCLUSIVELY WOMEN.
UM, AND, YOU KNOW, HAVING BEEN IN THIS CONVERSATION NOW FOR ABOUT 25 YEARS, IT'S ALMOST ALWAYS WOMEN, UH, WHO ARE OUT THERE ADVOCATING AND PUSHING AND FIGHTING AND, UM, YOU KNOW, AND DOING THE, THE, THE HEAVY LIFTING ON THIS ISSUE.
AND, YOU KNOW, CLAUDE, I I, I ALWAYS WONDER WHERE THE MEN ARE IN THIS CONVERSATION.
AND I'M, AND I'M DELIGHTED THAT IT'S A, THAT IT'S A MAN, YOU KNOW, UH, SORT OF LEADING METRO HEALTH AND LEADING US IN THIS CONVERSATION, BECAUSE I THINK THAT MEN HAVE TRADITIONALLY NOT BEEN APPROACHED BECAUSE THEY, YOU KNOW, 90 SOMETHING PERCENT OF ALL THE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IS PERPETRATED BY MEN.
BUT, UM, MEN HAVE NEVER REALLY BEEN INVITED AUTHENTICALLY AND, AND OR VERY EFF EFFECTIVELY TO COME TO THE CONVERSATION, RIGHT? AND IF WE'RE GONNA DO RESPONSE, AND, YOU KNOW, TRIAGE AND CATCHING ALL THIS WORK, WHICH IS WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HERE, UM, YOU CAN'T LOSE SIGHT OF THE FACT THAT S A P D HAS FOR DECADES, WAY BEFORE ANY OF US GOT HERE, UM, YOU KNOW, HAD THAT BACK OFFICE, UH, SERVICES TO VICTIMS, AND, YOU KNOW, MAKING SURE THAT THE VICTIMS GET, UH, THE, THE, UH, THE RESOURCES THAT THEY NEED WITH VERY LITTLE ATTENTION PAID TO THE UPSTREAM PROBLEM, RIGHT? WHICH IS, UH, HOW DO YOU MAKE SURE THAT YOUNG GIRLS AND YOUNG WOMEN, UM, DON'T BECOME VICTIMIZED, RIGHT? UH, TO BEGIN WITH.
UH, AND THEN HOW DO YOU MAKE SURE THAT BOYS AND MEN DON'T BECOME ABUSERS, RIGHT.
TO BEGIN WITH? AND I, I DON'T KNOW THE ANSWER, AND I KNOW THAT THERE'S PLENTY OF PEOPLE OUT THERE WHO'VE BEEN TRYING TO DECRYPT THAT PUZZLE, RIGHT? SO, UH, I'D LIKE TO SEE GOING FORWARD, AND I THINK YOU WANNA SEE THE SAME THING, CLAUDE, IS, IS A LOT OF MORE CONVERSATION ABOUT THE UPSTREAM EFFORTS TO MAKE SURE THAT JUDGE DIAZ, AND TO MAKE SURE THAT, FOR HER, AND TO MAKE SURE THE BATTERED WOMEN CHILDREN SHELTER HAVE NOTHING TO DO IN THE FUTURE.
I MEAN, MY, MY GOAL IS FOR YOU GUYS TO WORK YOUR WAY OUT OF A JOB, RIGHT? BUT YOU'LL, YOU'LL NEVER GET THERE UNLESS WE ADDRESS THESE UPSTREAM PROBLEMS. AND, AND, YOU KNOW, GOING FORWARD WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THIS, I, I REALLY WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ALL FOCUSING ON, AND THAT'S GONNA BE MY CHALLENGE FOR YOU, UM, CLAUDE GOING FORWARD, IS HOW ARE WE RECRUITING MEN TO THE CONVERSATION, RIGHT? SO IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR ME TO BELIEVE THAT THE FAITH LEADERS IN THIS COMMUNITY WHO WERE ALL THERE ARE WOMEN, THAT'S, THAT'S ACTUALLY NOT TRUE, RIGHT? THE MAJORITY OF FAITH, THE PINNACLE FAITH LEADERS IN, YOU KNOW, CONGREGATIONS ARE MEN, THEY'RE ALL PASTORS, RIGHT? AND HOW DO WE GET THOSE GUYS IN THE ROOM? CLAUDE, UM, THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION.
YOU JUST, UH, FRAME A REFERENCE.
SO, PRIOR TO COMING HERE AND SERVED AS A HEALTH OFFICER IN THE CITY OF CAMBRIDGE, AND WE HAD AN INITIATIVE CALLED MINDING CAMBRIDGE, UM, WHICH WAS DESIGNED TO AT LEAST GET TO, TO BATTERIES.
AND SO IT'S CREATING A SPACE FOR CONVERSATION.
THERE ARE DIFFERENT MODELS ACROSS THE COUNTRY, BUT TO YOUR POINT, WITH OUR EMPHASIS FURTHER UPSTREAM, WE MAY HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY THROUGH THE DEVELOPMENT OF THIS PLAN TO BE MORE INTENTIONAL WITH HOW WE LEVERAGE THOSE ASSETS AND COMMUNITY.
SO MORE TO COME, WE'LL BRAINSTORM WITH OUR STAFF AND COMMUNITY PARTNERS.
IT IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO LEAN IN EVEN MORE.
UM, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? COUNCILMAN BRAVO.
[00:35:01]
CLAUDE, YOU KNOW, THIS FITS WELL WITHIN, UM, WHAT I'VE BEEN ASKING FOR, WHICH IS A, A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO PUBLIC SAFETY, A COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH, LOOKING AT ALL THE DIFFERENT THINGS THAT WE CAN DO.UM, THAT BEING SAID, IT ALSO FEELS A BIT ACADEMIC AND BUREAUCRATIC.
AND, YOU KNOW, I'M INTERESTED IN, YOU KNOW, WHAT CAN WE GET GOING ON NOW? AND THIS, SO THIS IS SIMILAR TO WHEN I CAME INTO OFFICE AND, UH, YOU KNOW, THE TRANSPORTATION DIRECTOR, I TOLD THE TRANSPORTATION DIRECTOR, HEY, WE NEED TO START BUILDING PROTECT SAFE, PROTECTED BIKE LANES.
AND THEY TOLD ME, OH, WE'RE GONNA, WE'RE GONNA WORK ON A STRATEGIC PLAN.
AND SO WE'RE NOT GONNA INVEST IN ANY SAFE PROTECTED BIKE LANES FOR AT LEAST TWO YEARS BEFORE WE EVEN THINK ABOUT THAT.
AND, AND SO I'M LIKE, I'M LOOKING FOR WHAT CAN WE GET GOING ON NOW? AND ONE OF THE THINGS I THINK ABOUT IS RESTORATIVE JUSTICE.
AND WHEN I FIRST CAME INTO OFFICE, YOU KNOW, AT THE VERY FIRST GOAL SETTING MEETING, I WAS TOLD BY THE PREVIOUS DIRECTOR OF METRO HEALTH THAT THERE WAS A, A FIVE YEAR PLAN FOR RESTORATIVE JUSTICE.
AND YOU KNOW, WHEN I THINK OF RESTORATIVE JUSTICE, I THINK ABOUT HOW I'VE READ THAT, THAT INDIVIDUALS WILL, LIKE, CRIMINALS WILL GRADUATE OVER TIME, IF NOT, YOU KNOW, WHEN ALLOWED TO, WILL GRADUATE IN TIME OVER THE SEVERITY OF THE CRIMES THEY COMMIT.
AND I THINK A RESTORATIVE JUSTICE IS SOMETHING WHERE WE CAN STEP IN AND CHANGE THE TRAJECTORY OF WHEN SOMEBODY COMMITS A CRIME, WE CAN TRAIN, YOU KNOW, WORK WITH THE COMMUNITY TO CHANGE, CHANGE THE TRAJECTORY OF THEIR LIFE, RIGHT? SO INSTEAD OF PUTTING THEM IN JAIL, HAVE THEM GO AND WORK WITH THE COMMUNITY TO RESTORE THEIR COM, THEIR, THEIR ROLE WITH THE COMMUNITY, INSTEAD OF SAYING, HEY, WE'RE GONNA HAVE A PUNITIVE APPROACH.
AND WHEN WE PUT SOMEBODY IN JAIL, SOMETIMES THIS PERSON HAS NOT BEEN VIOLENT, BUT WE PUT 'EM IN JAIL NOW, AND THEY'RE MEETING GANG MEMBERS, AND THEY'RE BEING INITIATED IN A GANG, AND THEY'RE MEETING PEOPLE WHO CAN SELL THEM GUNS.
THEY'RE MEETING PEOPLE WHO, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE, THEY'RE, THEY'RE BEING INTRODUCED TO TRAUMA IN DIFFERENT WAYS, AND THEY COME OUT EVEN ANGRIER THAN WHEN THEY WENT IN AND MORE PRONE TO VIOLENCE.
AND SO, I'VE ASKED YOU THIS BEFORE, BUT WHEN ARE WE GONNA TAKE THE FIRST STEPS TO START A RESTORATIVE JUSTICE? OKAY.
SO, UM, JUST TO REMINDER THAT THIS IS ANCHORED TO OUR ESSAY FORWARD PLAN AS PART OF OUR FIVE YEAR DELIVERABLE, UM, TO BRING UP TO SPEED, UM, WE DO HAVE, UM, A COLLABORATION NOW THAT'S UNDERWAY WITH MY BROTHER'S KEEPER OF SAN ANTONIO, AND A PARTNERSHIP TO SUPPORT RESTORATIVE JUSTICE EFFORTS ALREADY IMPLEMENTED AT 17 SCHOOL CAMPUSES IN FOUR OF THE ISDS, UM, EAST CENTRAL HARLANDALE JUDSON IN SAN ANTONIO.
UM, THE GOAL, AGAIN, AS YOU'VE ARTICULATED, IS TO ELIMINATE EXCLUSIONARY PRACTICES ACROSS THE CAMPUSES, DISTRICTS, AND COMMUNITY.
UH, THIS ALLOWS STUDENTS TO FEEL SAFE, WELCOMED, ENGAGED, AND SUPPORTED, AND THE SCHOOLS TO FEEL READY.
UM, SO WE ALSO RECEIVED FUNDING HERE, UH, THROUGH, UH, UM, THE AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN ACT OR ARPA.
SO TO AT LEAST, UH, UM, BRING ON BOARD A FULL-TIME, UH, AN F T E THAT WOULD ANCHOR THE STANDUP SA.
UH, SO THIS, WE SEE TO BE A COORDINATOR LEVEL TO STRENGTHEN THE EXISTING PROGRAM IN COLLABORATION WITH MY BROTHER'S KEEPER.
UM, AND THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO REPORT OUT AT LEAST OVER TIME.
SO THIS IS A COMMITMENT BY THE CITY.
UM, THIS IS SOMETHING THAT I KNOW YOU ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT.
UM, BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, UH, WE'RE JUST MAKING SURE THAT WE ALIGN OUR RESOURCES, WE WORK WITH PARTNERS ON THE GROUND, AND WE MOVE FORWARD.
SO IT'S A FIVE YEAR DELIVERABLE, AND THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'VE ANCHORED WITH OUR PARTNERSHIP HERE ON THE GROUND.
SO IS, IS THAT SOMETHING THAT WE CAN GET A PRESENTATION ON HERE IN THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE? AGAIN, I'LL DEFER TO THE CHAIR, BUT AT SOME POINT WHEN APPROPRIATE, WE'LL BRING OUR PARTNERS AND WE'LL PROVIDE AN UPDATE.
AND THERE'S ANOTHER ROUND IF Y'ALL WANT IT.
ANYBODY, LEMME GIVE YOU A SECOND TO PONDER IT.
AND THERE'S A LOT OF QUESTIONS THAT I THINK, UH, WE BRING UP AND WE POSE, UM, SUCH AS THAT ONE.
AND I THINK THERE'S OPPORTUNITIES TO STRENGTHEN OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT BY CREATING THESE SORT OF MICRO TOPICS WHERE MAYBE WE CONDUCT OUTREACH TO, UM, ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE, UH, MALE DOMINANT AND TO CERTAIN PROFESSIONS, AND START INITIATING THOSE CONVERSATIONS AND SEEING WHAT, WHAT COMES OF IT AND WHAT, UH, YOU KNOW, HOW YOU MIGHT BE GUIDED.
[00:40:01]
AND SO I WOULD BE INTERESTED IN SEEING IF THAT CAN BE BAKED INTO THE PLAN, AND NOT JUST WITH THAT ISSUE, BUT WITH A HOST OF OTHER ONES I HAVEN'T THOUGHT OF YET.THANK YOU FOR THAT SUGGESTION.
UM, I'M SORRY, COUNCILMAN MCKEE RODRIGUEZ.
UM, ANY OTHER COMMENT? OKAY, THAT WAS A THANK YOU FOR THAT BRIEFING.
UM, AND WITH THAT, WE'RE GONNA MOVE ON TO ITEM THREE.
UH, THERE WAS A, I GUESS A COMPLICATION WITH OUR, UH, PUBLIC COMMENT SIGN UP.
SO I'M GONNA INVITE, UH, MS. EMMA ALEXANDER TO COME UP FOR OUR PUBLIC COMMENT.
MS. ALEXANDER, YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES, MA'AM.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE OPPORTUNITY.
EMMA ALEXANDER, AND MY HUSBAND IS BISHOP TREVOR ALEXANDER.
WE ARE PASTORS OF TRU VINE CHURCH IN DISTRICT NUMBER TWO.
OUR CHURCH IS A WELLNESS CHAMPION CHURCH, AND WE HAVE COMPLETED THE COURSE WITH BRIDGES TO CARE NAMI, THAT MR. DOUG BEACH HAS TALKED ABOUT.
AND I JUST WANTED TO SHARE THE IMPACT IT HAS ON OUR COMMUNITY.
UM, IT HAS HELPED RIDDING THE STIGMA OF MENTAL HEALTH IN THE BLACK CHURCH.
SOMETHING THAT WE DON'T WANNA TALK ABOUT, BUT KNOWING THAT IT IS TRULY NEEDED.
SO WE'VE EVEN NOW PREACHED ON SERMONS ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH AND MENTAL WELLNESS.
UH, WE TALK WITH OUR YOUTH AND RECOGNIZING CERTAIN THINGS ABOUT DEPRESSION AND SUICIDE TENDENCIES.
WE LEARN TO ACT IN WAYS THAT RESPECT DIGNITY AND AUTONOMY OF OTHERS, LEARN TIPS TO LISTEN TO OUR SOUL LISTENING.
UM, ALSO, NAMI REPRESENTATIVES HAVE COME TO OUR CHURCH, UM, AND DEDICATED SEVERAL SESSIONS DURING OUR SUNDAY SCHOOL TO HELP TRAIN AND HAVE THOSE CONVERSATIONS YOU'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT.
AND IT HAS HELPED SO MANY PEOPLE IN OUR CHURCH, IN OUR COMMUNITY, AND I CAN EVEN SAY IN MY OWN HOUSEHOLD, IS BRINGING MORE AWARENESS TO MENTAL HEALTH, MENTAL WELLNESS.
IT HAS IMPACTED, EMPOWERED, GIVEN US TOOLS, RESOURCES FOR MENTAL WELLNESS AND RESILIENCE AS A CHURCH TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN OUR COMMUNITY.
SO I JUST WANNA LET YOU KNOW THAT NAMI AND BRIDGES, THE CARE OF SAN ANTONIO IS MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN SAN ANTONIO.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME, AND LET ME DO THIS.
AND WE'LL MOVE ON WITH THE PRESENTATION FOR ITEM THREE.
ITEM NUMBER THREE IS A DISCUSSION AND, UM, ACTION FOR THIS COMMITTEE.
WE, UM, DID A PRESENTATION TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL, UM, ON FEBRUARY THE SECOND WHERE THE CITY COUNCIL AWARDED FUNDS TO AGENCIES THAT HAD, UM, GONE THROUGH A SOLICITATION, AND WE RECOMMENDED AWARDS THE CITY COUNCIL APPROVE THEM.
THERE WAS A BALANCE, UH, THAT WAS LEFT, UH, FROM THAT SOLICITATION PROCESS.
UH, THE MAJORITY OF THOSE DOLLARS WERE COMING FROM THIS COMMITTEE, UH, PUBLIC SAFETY IN TERMS OF MENTAL HEALTH.
WE SUBSEQUENTLY DID A PRESENTATION TO THE GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE.
AND, UH, THERE WAS SOME ADDITIONAL FUNDING THAT WE HAD IDENTIFIED FROM INTEREST INCOME ON THE ARPA, AS WELL AS PROGRAM BALANCES FROM PROJECTS THAT WERE COMPLETED.
SO, UM, AT THE END OF THE DAY, WITH THE ACTION FROM THE GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE, UH, FOR YOUR DISCUSSION TODAY IS $4.6 MILLION IN ARPA FUNDS THAT HAVE BEEN ALLOCATED TO MENTAL HEALTH.
UH, WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO HEAR FROM CLAUDE TODAY IS SOME ALTERNATIVES THAT WE HAVE DEVELOPED FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION IN DISCUSSION TODAY.
UM, IF THE COUNCIL WAS TO, UH, AGREE ON PRIORITIES, UH, THE COMMITTEE WAS TO AGREE ON PRIORITIES TODAY, THE NEXT STEP IN THE PROCESS IS TO BRING THAT TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL, UH, BEFORE WE, WE WERE TO BEGIN A COMPETITIVE PROCESS, IF THAT IS THE DESIRE OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE.
SO AGAIN, THIS IS FOR YOUR DISCUSSION ON HOW YOU WOULD LIKE TO ALLOCATE THOSE FUNDS.
AND, UH, STAFF IS HERE TO, TO FACILITATE THAT.
AND CLOUD'S PRESENTATION WILL, UH, PROVIDE YOU WITH SOME ALTERNATIVES THAT WE HAVE, UH, DEVELOPED FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.
THANK YOU AGAIN FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO PROVIDE THIS UPDATE.
SO FOR THIS, I'M PRESENTING TO YOU, UM, THE, UH, $4.6 MILLION IN ARPA FUNDING THAT WAS ALLOCATED BY THE GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE BACK ON FEBRUARY 15TH.
UM, UM, PRIORITIES FOR THIS OPERA FUNDING WILL ADDRESS THE NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF COVID TO 19 ON MENTAL HEALTH AND DRIVE THE COMPETITIVE PROCESS FOR AGENCIES TO PROVIDE SERVICES.
UH, SO IN, IN BROAD STROKES, I'LL PRESENT TO YOU AN OVERVIEW OF THE PREVIOUS MENTAL HEALTH INVESTMENTS FUNDED WITH ARPA RECOMMENDATIONS FOR INVESTMENT PRIORITIES WITH THIS FUNDING AND NEXT STEPS.
SO, WITH THAT AS A QUICK REMINDER, ON FEBRUARY, IN FEBRUARY OF 2022, THE CITY COUNCIL ALLOCATED $26 MILLION TO THIS COMMITTEE TO DEVELOP AN IMPLEMENTATION PLAN.
THIS PLAN FOCUSED ON STRATEGIES ADDRESSING FOUR CATEGORIES OF YOUTH, OLDER ADULTS, INDIVIDUALS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS AND COLLABORATION WITH AREA PARTNERS AFTER SEVERAL COMMUNITY AND STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT SESSIONS, THIS PLAN WAS APPROVED BY THE COMMITTEE IN AUGUST OF 2022, AND APPROVED BY CITY COUNCIL LAST FALL.
[00:45:01]
WITH THAT, AFTER APPROVAL, UH, $22.75 MILLION WENT THROUGH IN R F P PROCESS, WHICH RESULTED IN 19 POINT, UH, UM, $35 MILLION IN FUNDING FOR SERVICES THAT WAS AWARDED EARLIER THIS MONTH.LAST WEEK, THE GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE ADDED $1.2 MILLION TO THE 3.4 MILLION THAT WAS PREVIOUSLY UNALLOCATED.
AND TODAY WE HAVE A TOTAL OF $4.6 MILLION FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.
SO WE ARE, UH, LOOKING AT THREE COVID IMPACT AREAS FOR YOU TO CONSIDER.
THE C OVID 19 PANDEMIC HAS EXACERBATED EXISTING DEFICITS IN THESE AREAS, WHICH ARE HIGHLIGHTED ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THE SLIDE.
UM, SO THE STATE OF TEXAS REPORTED IN ITS 2022 REPORT ON SUICIDE AND SUICIDE PREVENTION, BUT THE RATE OF SUICIDE FOR YOUTH IN FOSTER CARE DOUBLED FROM 20 21, 20 20 TO 2021 S A P D CALL VOLUME DATA SHOW THAT FAMILY VIOLENCE CALLS INCREASED BY 15%, 15.7% FROM 2019 TO 2021.
AND, UH, THE E M S DATA SHOWS THAT TOXIC INGESTIONS SU FROM SUSPECTED FROM OPIOIDS INCREASED BY 27% FROM 2019 TO 2022.
AGAIN, THE DATA SHOW THAT MENTAL HEALTH AND SUPPORT SERVICES ADDRESSING FOSTER CARE AND AT-RISK YOUTH, FAMILY VIOLENCE AND SUBSTANCE USE WILL HELP MITIGATE THE EFFECTS OF THE PANDEMIC ON VULNERABLE MEMBERS OF OUR COMMUNITY.
SO HERE WITH OUR IMPLEMENTATION PLAN TO ADDRESS THESE THREE AREAS, UM, REPRESENTING THE FOLLOWING STRATEGIES AND FUNDING AMOUNTS, AGAIN, UM, THIS INFORMATION IS FAMILIAR, BUT JUST, UH, IN BROAD STROKES, ADDRESSING THE INCREASED, UH, MENTAL HEALTH NEEDS OF YOUTH AGING OUT OF FOSTER CARE AND AT-RISK YOUTH, WE'RE LOOKING AT ADDRESSING INCREASED 9 1 1 CALLS FOR FAMILY VIOLENCE, AND WE'RE LOOKING AT ADDRESSING INCREASED SUBSTANCE USE AND OVERDOSES OR HARM REDUCTION EFFORTS.
SO, TO DRILL DOWN FOR EACH OF THESE AREAS, UM, WE HAVE RECOMMENDED SERVICES WITH EQUITABLE OUTCOMES AND CORRESPONDING METRICS.
SO, LOOKING AT RECOMMENDED SERVICES, WE'RE LOOKING AT WRAPAROUND SERVICES TO SUPPORT FOSTER CARE AND AT-RISK YOUTH.
UM, WE'RE ALSO LOOKING AT, UH, ENHANCING OUR MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES.
THE OUTCOMES THAT, UM, WE'LL BE PAYING ATTENTION TO ARE INCREASED SUPPORT IN EDUCATION, INCREASED ACCESS TO EMPLOYMENT, INCREASED HOUSING STABILITY, INCREASED KNOWLEDGE OF RESOURCES, UH, DECREASED DEPRESSION, AND INCREASED WELLBEING.
UM, WE HAVE A LISTING OF SOME OF THE PROPOSED METRICS, WHICH HAVE TO DO WITH LOOKING AT THE NUMBER OF UNDUPLICATED YOUTH SERVE, THE PERCENTAGE OF YOUTH SERVE, FOUR OR MORE TIMES THE PERCENTAGE OF YOUTH WITH IMPROVED ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE, PERCENTAGE OF YOUTH EMPLOYED, PERCENTAGE OF YOUTH, UH, WITH SUSTAINED STABLE HOUSING, AND THE PERCENTAGE OF YOUTH REPORTING IMPROVEMENT IN MENTAL HEALTH.
THIS NEXT CATEGORY, AGAIN, UH, LOOKING AT THESE RECOMMENDED SERVICES, EQUITABLE OUTCOMES AND METRICS, UM, WE'RE LOOKING AT, UM, IN TERMS OF SERVICES, LOOKING AT THE NAVIGATION PROGRAMS TO SUPPORT FAMILIES, AGAIN, ACROSS, UH, EMPLOYMENT, HOUSING, AND IMPROVING THEIR ACCESS TO RESOURCES.
UH, WE'RE LOOKING AT ENHANCING, UM, THE NEXUS FOR ACCESSING LEGAL SERVICES, BUT AGAIN, AT THE END OF THE DAY, LOOKING AT IMPROVING THEIR ACCESS TO MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES FOR FAMILIES.
UH, THE OUTCOMES ARE ABOUT INCREASING ACCESS TO EMPLOYMENT.
UH, I IMPROVING INCREASED HOUSING STABILITY, UH, IMPROVING INCREASED KNOWLEDGE OF RESOURCES, UH, IMPROVING INCREASED ACCESS TO LEGAL SERVICES AND INCREASED WELLBEING.
AND YOU SEE THE LIST OF METRICS ON THE FAR RIGHT SIDE.
THIS LAST AREA, AGAIN, UH, AS WE'VE WRITTEN, UH, TALKING ABOUT THESE CONDITIONS THAT HAVE WORSENED OVER THE COURSE OF THIS PANDEMIC, WE'RE LOOKING AT RECOMMENDED SERVICES THAT LAUNCH A PILOT PROGRAM FOR AS, UH, UM, HAVING, UH, NARCAN DISPENSERS HERE AND, UM, UH, HERE IN THE CITY, ADDITIONAL DISPENSERS AND LOOKING AT SUBSTANCE USE TREATMENT SERVICES FOR INDIVIDUALS, UH, WHO HAVE, UH, WITH, UH, RECENT, UH, OVERDOSE.
THE OUTCOMES THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT ARE INCREASED ACCESS TO NARCAN, UH, INCREASED BYSTANDER TRAINING, INCREASED ACCESS TO SUBSTANCE USE TREATMENT, UH, DECREASED RISK OF OVERDOSE DEATHS, UH, DECREASED SUBSTANCE USE, AND INCREASED OVERALL WELLBEING.
UM, AND AGAIN, WE HAVE THE LIST OF PROPOSED METRICS TO KEEP TRACK OF OUR PROGRESS OVER THIS TWO YEAR WINDOW.
SO TO INCREASE OUR HARM REDUCTIONS ACROSS THE CITY, WE WOULD UNDERSCORE THAT WE RECOMMEND THESE FOLLOWING, UH, SERVICES, OUTCOMES AND METRICS TO DOVETAIL WITH ONGOING EFFORTS ON THE GROUND.
THESE EFFORTS WOULD BE COORDINATED WITH OUR EXISTING AREA SERVICE PROVIDERS, AS WELL AS OUR, UH, EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES.
SO IN TERMS OF NEXT STEPS, UH, TODAY WE ASK YOU TO DISCUSS AND FINALIZE THESE PRIORITIES.
WE'LL THEN BRIEF, UH, THE CITY COUNCIL IF APPROVED, OUR TEAM AT METRO HEALTH WILL BEGIN THE R F P PROCESS.
WE WILL MIRROR THE PREVIOUS PROCESS THAT WAS HELD OVER THE LAST FEW MONTHS, UM, AND TO UNDERSCORE THE ELIGIBLE ORGANIZATIONS.
WE'RE LOOKING AT NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS OR THAT ARE TAX EXEMPT ONE C THREE.
WE'RE LOOKING AT, UH, FAITH-BASED ORGANIZATIONS.
WE'RE LOOKING AT PUBLIC ENTITIES, NON CITY, NON CSA.
AND PLEASE NOTE THAT THE FOCUS WILL BE ON ORGANIZATIONS THAT HAD NOT RECEIVED APA FUNDS PREVIOUSLY.
WE RECOGNIZE THAT SOME OF THESE ORGANIZATIONS MAY REQUIRE ADDITIONAL TECHNICAL
[00:50:01]
ASSISTANCE, UM, AND WITH THE SCORING RUBRIC, UH, PROGRAMS WILL BE SCORED BASED ON EXPERIENCE, BACKGROUND, QUALIFICATIONS, PROPOSED PLAN AND BUDGET, AND PROGRAMS WILL BE FUNDED FOR TWO YEAR CONTRACTS WITH NO RENEWAL.SO WITH THAT, UM, THAT CONCLUDES MY REPORT, AND I DO WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE OUR CHIEF MENTAL HEALTH OFFICER, UH, JESSE HINS FROM OUR DEPARTMENT, AND THAT WE'RE AVAILABLE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MAY HAVE.
UH, FOR THE PRESENTATION FOR ME IS, UH, SLIDE SEVEN.
UM, I WANNA JUST ASK ONE INITIAL QUESTION.
IS THERE RECOMMENDATION THAT WE'RE PUTTING THIS BACK OUT FOR R F P? THAT'S, THAT'S, I THINK TECHNICALLY THAT'S WHAT WE HAVE TO DO, RIGHT? UM, WE, THAT'S WHAT WE ARE RECOMMENDING, COUNCILMAN.
I, WE, UM, KNOW THAT THERE ARE MANY INTERESTED AGENCIES THAT WOULD LIKE TO, UM, HAVE THE ABILITY TO GET SOME OF THIS FUNDS.
SO THE COMPETITIVE PROCESS WILL ALLOW THEM TO APPLY.
I AGREE WITH THE RECOMMENDATION.
I THINK THERE ARE SOME, UH, WE WE'RE MAYBE ALTERING THE CRITERIA JUST A LITTLE BIT, OR SHIFTING, SHIFTING IT, SO IT MAY OPEN UP, UM, THE DOOR TO OTHER NONPROFITS.
UM, SO MAYBE I, I, I DO AGREE WITH THE, I DON'T, I DON'T LIKE THE IDEA OF HAVING TO GO BACK TO THE, I WANNA GET THIS MONEY INTO THE HANDS OF THE NONPROFITS, BUT, UM, I THINK IN ORDER TO DO IT THE RIGHT WAY AND INCLUDE AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE, OR AS MANY ORGANIZATIONS AS POSSIBLE, THAT SERVE AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE, WE SHOULD TAKE OUR TIME TO DO IT RIGHT.
UM, SO I, I AGREE WITH THE RECOMMENDATION.
UM, UH, SLIDE SEVEN IS REALLY THE KEY ONE FOR ME.
UM, I THINK THESE ARE ALL THE IMPACT AREAS THAT, UM, I FEEL STRONGLY ABOUT.
UM, YOU KNOW, THE, THE, OF COURSE, UH, I'VE BEEN ADVOCATING FOR FOSTERED CHILDREN, AGING OUTTA THE SYSTEM.
WE'VE ADDED, UM, THE, THE INCREASED ACCESS TO NARCAN, UM, SUBSTANCE ABUSE TREATMENT, UM, AND THEN EVEN LEGAL SERVICES FOR, UH, UH, FAMILIES DEALING WITH, WITH, UH, FAMILY VIOLENCE.
UM, UH, THERE, THERE'S ONE, ONE CRITERIA THAT I WOULD ADD.
UM, AND IT'S MAYBE A LITTLE MORE, WE'D HAVE TO WORK OUT HOW TO DO THAT, BUT IT WAS BROUGHT UP, UH, MY, OUR COLLEAGUE HERE BROUGHT UP, UH, HOW THERE WEREN'T ANY NONPROFITS THAT WERE GEOGRAPHICALLY IN DISTRICT TWO, UM, ISH.
OKAY, WELL, I'LL LET YOU TALK ABOUT IT, BUT I, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THEM KIND OF EVENLY DISTRIBUTED.
I KNOW WE USE THE EQUITY ACCESS, UH, I'M SORRY, EQUITY ATLA AT ATLAS ATLAS, UM, BUT MAYBE JUST TO, TO SEE THAT THERE, THEY'RE, THEY'RE MORE GEOGRAPHICALLY, UM, SPREAD OUT.
UM, SO I, I'LL LET YOU SPEAK TO THAT IF THAT'S OKAY.
I THINK THAT THERE NEEDS TO BE NOT JUST SERVING THE COMMUNITIES, BUT UM, PHYSICALLY LIVING IN THOSE COMMUNITIES.
UM, AND THE OTHER ONES, I MEAN, I, I, YOU KNOW, YOUTH ACCESS TO MENTAL HEALTH, I THINK THAT'S REALLY KEY.
NOT JUST, UH, FOSTER CHILDREN, BUT AT RISK YOUTH.
UH, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH, AND WE, WE TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT IT IN THE LAST ITEM, BUT, UM, THE, THE, THE STIGMA AND, AND THE, UM, THE DIFFICULTY THAT SOME POPULATIONS HAVE WITH REPORTING, UH, NOT ONLY FAMILY VIOLENCE, BUT THEIR OWN MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES.
ALEXANDER MENTIONING TODAY THAT YOU ARE INCLUDING MENTAL HEALTH IN YOUR SERMONS.
AND I THINK THOSE ARE THE WAYS THAT WE'RE REALLY GONNA CHANGE THE STIGMA.
UM, I KNOW, AND, AND, AND RIGHT BEHIND YOU, UM, MS. CARTER WITH, FOR HER, MS. CARTER WITH, FOR HER PROVIDING THE SAFE SPACE FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, UM, VICTIMS, UH, AND, AND TO REACH OUT.
AND, AND I'M SURE BY VIRTUE OF HAVING DEALT WITH THAT VIOLENCE, THEY'VE GOT MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES.
SO, UM, THERE'S A LOT OF NONPROFITS OUT THERE DOING THAT WORK TO, TO HELP REDUCE THE STIGMA.
AND NOT JUST NONPROFITS, BUT CHURCHES I HEAR TODAY.
UM, SO, UH, THOSE ARE JUST SOME OF MY THOUGHTS.
I, I, I VERY MUCH SUPPORT THE RECOMMENDATION, UM, AND THINK, YOU KNOW, WE JUST NEED TO TAKE, UH, WE DON'T WANNA TAKE ALL THE TIME IN THE WORLD, BUT WHAT WE NEED TO DO IT, RIGHT.
SO I, I DO RECOMMEND THAT WE, WE OR I, I AGREE WITH THE RECOMMENDATION THAT WE PUT IT BACK OUT TO R F P.
SO, UH, WHEN I LOOK AT THE RECOMMENDATIONS, I, I STRONGLY SUPPORT, UH, THE, THE, UM, HARM REDUCTION, UH, RECOMMENDATION.
WHEN, WHEN I LOOK AT, UM, THE, UM, NEEDS OF YOUTH AGING OUT OF FOSTER CARE AND AT-RISK YOUTH, UH, I WONDER, AND I, THAT'S, YOU KNOW, IT'S AN AREA OF NEED FOR SURE.
UM, BUT I, I ALSO WONDER COULD SOME OF THAT BE COVERED BY SA READY TO WORK? YOU KNOW, WE HAVE SO MUCH, SO MUCH UNUSED FUNDS IN SA READY TO WORK, AND YOU KNOW, THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO HAVE WRAPAROUND SERVICES TOO.
AND SO IS THERE A WAY WHERE SOME OF THOSE FUNDS COULD BE APPLIED HERE FOR, 'CAUSE WHAT I'M LOOKING AT HERE IS WRAPAROUND SERVICES AND EMPLOYMENT, AND, YOU KNOW,
[00:55:01]
AS PART OF THAT.AND SO I'M JUST WONDERING, COULD WE MAYBE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE, WE'RE LOOKING AT THE RECOMMENDATION IS 3 MILLION, UH, FOR, FOR YOUTH AGING OUT OF FOSTER CARE AND AT RISK YOUTH, AND IN 1 MILLION FOR, FOR FAMILY VIOLENCE.
I'M WONDERING, COULD WE TAKE A MILLION OUT OF, UH, THE, THE, UM, FIRST CATEGORY AND ADD A MILLION TO FAMILY VIOLENCE AND THEN LEAN ON ESSAY READY TO WORK TO HAVE A FOCUSED EFFORT ON ASSISTING, UH, YOUTH THAT ARE, THAT ARE AGING OUT OF FOSTER CARE AND PROVIDING THEM WITH JOB TRAINING AND AC UH, JOB TRAINING AND WITH WRAPAROUND SERVICES? UM, COUNCILMAN, UH, TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, FOR THE READY TO WORK, THEY HAVE TO BE ENROLLED IN THE PROGRAM TO BE ABLE TO, UM, GET THOSE WRAPAROUND SERVICES.
THERE'S NO LIMITATIONS, IF YOU WILL, IN, IN WHAT THE COUNCIL IS CONSIDERING TODAY.
UM, IF THERE'S SOMEBODY WHO ENROLLS INTO THE PROGRAM, UH, UH, IS IT READY TO WORK, THEN THEY CAN GET THE WRAPAROUND SERVICES.
BUT THIS DOESN'T NECESSARILY MEAN THAT SOMEBODY HAS TO BE ENROLLED.
SO THIS IS A LITTLE BIT MORE, UM, UM, UM, DOESN'T HAVE ANY RESTRICTIONS.
JUST TO ADDRESS YOUR QUESTION.
UM, YOU KNOW, BUT I MEAN, I, I JUST WONDER IF THEY READY TO WORK, IF, IF THEY COULD, UM, YOU KNOW, I GUESS MAYBE JUST BE, LOOSEN UP SOME OF THOSE RESTRICTIONS AND HOW THEY CAN, CAN WORK THAT PROGRAM.
THERE'S JUST SO MUCH FUNDING THERE THAT I FEEL LIKE IS, IS UNDERUTILIZED AT THIS TIME.
AND I'M, I I THINK THAT'S A CONVERSATION MAYBE WE SHOULD TRY AND HAVE BEFORE GOING TO FULL COUNSEL.
THE OTHER THING THAT I SAW WAS WE HAD A, A, YOU KNOW, A CATEGORY OF COLLABORATION, AND I JUST WANT TO EXPLORE IF THAT, THAT COULD BE SOMETHING THAT COULD BE, UH, CONSIDERED HERE AS FAR AS, UM, YOU KNOW, A CATEGORY OR MAYBE WE COULD BE FAMILY VIOLENCE AND, AND COLLABORATION TO EXPAND THAT CATEGORY.
I HAVE A, UM, A FEW DIFFERENT TOPICS TO TOUCH ON, AND I MIGHT ASK A QUESTION SIMILAR TO COUNCILMAN BRAVO.
UM, BUT FAIRLY, UH, FAIRLY DIFFERENT IN RELATION TO, UM, SOME OF THE PROGRAMS THAT WE ALREADY DO, LIKE, UH, READY TO WORK.
AND I THINK THE FACT THAT WE'RE ABLE TO LOOP IN ALL OF THESE TOPICS AND PROGRAMS AND WHATNOT, TELLS ME THAT WE ARE PREACH, WE ARE APPROACHING, UH, A SENSE OF COMPREHENSIVENESS THAT I APPRECIATE.
UM, AND SO MY QUESTION IS COUNCILMAN PERRY HAD ASKED ABOUT, YOU KNOW, HOW ARE WE PREPARING ORGANIZATIONS AFTER ARPA AND WHEN THIS, WHEN THIS SOURCE OF FUNDING IS NO LONGER HERE, HOW ARE WE MAKING SURE THAT THEY'RE ABLE TO CONTINUE HAVING THAT IMPACT? AND I WANT US TO CONTINUE THINKING ABOUT THAT QUESTION, BUT IT MADE ME START THINKING ABOUT THE DELEGATE AGENCY PROCESS, THE CONSOLIDATED, UH, FUND, THE HUMAN SERVICES CONSOLIDATED, UH, CONSOLIDATED FUNDING PROCESS, AND HOW IT'S ALSO TWO YEARS.
AND I'M WONDERING HOW MIGHT WE, 'CAUSE THAT PROGRAM ALSO HAS FOUR TOPICS THAT, UM, ARE A PRIORITY AND THE PROGRAMS AND AGENCIES HAVE TO ALIGN AND MEET THOSE GOALS.
IT'S VERY SIMILAR TO WHAT WE'RE DOING HERE.
ARE THERE OPPORTUNITIES TO, UH, REALIGN THAT THIS NEXT GO AROUND, THIS NEXT, UH, PROCESS AND THEN TO FILL SOME OF THE GAPS THAT EXIST IN THE SERVICES.
SO I'M THINKING OF, UM, YOU KNOW, I COULD SEE A ROLE FOR ORGANIZATIONS LIKE FOR HER OR OPIA GARDENS IN, UH, SUPPLEMENTING WRAPAROUND SERVICES AND PROGRAMMING OR FOR ORGS LIKE BUILDING BRIGHTER COMMUNITIES OR BIG MAMA SAFE HOUSE OR TRUE VINE, UM, TO SUPPLEMENT HOUSING NAVIGATION SERVICES.
UM, SO HOW IS THAT SOMETHING WE CAN DO? YES.
AND WE'RE GONNA COME TO THE FULL COUNCIL IN A B SESSION TO TALK ABOUT THE PRIORITIES FOR THE CONSOLIDATED FUNDING PROCESS.
SO MAYBE IN A COUPLE OF WEEKS.
AND THAT'S WHEN THE COUNCIL HAS THE OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE THAT POLICY DISCUSSION TO CHANGE FROM THE CATEGORIES THAT WE'VE DONE IN PREVIOUS YEARS.
AND THEN, UM, AND MAYBE FOR THAT CONVERSATION, I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO UNDERSTAND HOW WE'RE TRACKING, UH, RESULTS AND PROGRESS.
AND I KNOW METRICS HAD TO HAVE BEEN ESTABLISHED, AND SO I WOULD LOVE TO, UM, SEE HOW THAT'S GOING FOR US.
THE SECOND POINT THAT, UH, CHAIRWOMAN KIL VARDA WAS ALLUDING TO WAS, UM, HOMEGROWN ORGANIZATIONS.
AND THE POINT THAT I HAD MADE, UM, DURING OUR B SESSION DURING THE LAST, THE LAST SESSION WE HAD WAS THAT ABOUT 40 SOMETHING PERCENT OF THE ORGANIZATIONS THAT WERE RE OR THE PROPOSALS THAT WERE REJECTED CAME FROM DISTRICT TWO.
UM, AND SO WHEN I, AND I ALSO BROUGHT THIS UP DURING THE HOUSING BOND DISCUSSION, IS
[01:00:01]
THAT, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A COMMITMENT TO EQUITY.AND WHAT THAT MEANS FOR ME IS, YOU KNOW, I THINK WE HAVE A VERY CLEAR PROCESS FOR INFRASTRUCTURE WHERE A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF FUNDING IS ALLOCATED BASED ON CONDITION AND BASED ON NEED.
AND FOR OTHER PARTS OF OUR PROCESS, OF OUR CITY PROGRAMS AND PROCESSES, I DON'T KNOW THAT WE, UM, HAVE SUCH A STRAIGHTFORWARD WAY TO ACHIEVE EQUITY.
AND SO FOR ME, A PROGRAM LIKE THIS WHERE WE SAY, HEY, YOU'RE GOING TO, UM, HAVE TO SERVE THESE AREAS, DOES A PART OF THAT GOAL.
BUT WHAT HAPPENS IF EVERY SINGLE ORGANIZATION CAN SAY, OH, YEAH, WE'RE SERVING IN THIS AREA AND THEY ALL SERVE THE SAME ZIP CODE, THEN THERE'S AN ENTIRE SEGMENT OF THE POPULATION OF THOSE HIGH NEED AREAS THAT IS NOT RECEIVING SERVICES.
AND SO PART OF WHAT I WAS ASKING FOR WAS HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT EVERY SINGLE, UM, AREA WITHIN THIS, UH, EQUITY, UH, EQUITY MAP IS BEING, UH, REACHED AND IS BEING SERVED.
AND SO WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE TO ME IS THAT THERE'S A LITTLE BIT EXTRA, UM, PRIORITY FOR ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE HOME BA LIKE, ARE HOMEGROWN FROM THE COMMUNITIES THEY'RE GOING TO SERVE.
AND FOR ME, THAT LOOKS LIKE A CERTAIN AMOUNT NEEDS TO GO TO, UH, ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE BASED IN DISTRICT TWO.
I THINK YOU UNDERSTOOD THE ASSIGNMENT AND, AND YOU DELIVERED, UH, A PLUS.
I'VE GOT A FANTASTIC TEAM BEHIND ME.
SO AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR THE COMMENTS.
UM, SO MY QUESTION IS ON SLIDE NUMBER FIVE, UH, HOMELESS VETERAN AND FOSTER YOUTH.
R F P AMOUNT WAS 5 MILLION, AWARDED 2.6.
SO BASICALLY WHAT WE'RE ADDING IS 0.6 TO THAT BALANCE AND REISSUING IT FOR, UH, OUR ARPA GRANTS.
UH, WITH THE CAVEAT THAT WE ALSO ADDING AT-RISK YOUTH, WHICH WAS NOT PART OF THE ORIGINAL, UM, R F P.
SO THAT'S HOW WE GOT TO THE $3 MILLION.
AND CAN YOU GIVE ME A DEFINITION OF WHAT Y'ALL ARE DEFINING AS AT-RISK YOUTH? GO AHEAD, JESSICA.
UM, THAT'S SOMETHING WE'D HAVE TO GET BACK TO YOU OR ALLOW IN THE PROPOSALS FOR AGENCIES THAT ARE SERVING THOSE FOLKS TO GIVE US THE PARAMETERS AROUND HOW THEY REACH THAT.
I DID ALSO WANNA ADD, WE'VE, WE'VE BROADENED THE CATEGORY AS WELL TO NOT JUST INCLUDE HOUSING SUPPORTS FOR FOSTER AND AT, AT-RISK YOUTH TO INCLUDE HOUSING, EMPLOYMENT, AND MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES.
SO THAT'S WHY IT HAS INCREASED AS WELL.
I'M GONNA NEED A DEFINITION OF AT-RISK YOUTH BEFORE WE HAVE THIS PRESENTED AT THE B SESSION.
MY ARGUMENT IS, I THINK ALL THE YOUTH EMERGING OUT OF THIS PANDEMIC ARE AT RISK.
UM, I THINK IF WE WENT TO THE SCHOOL DISTRICTS, THEY WOULD SAY SO ALSO.
SO I WANNA KEEP THAT IN MIND, UH, AS WE MOVE FORWARD.
THE OTHER IS, I'M NOT HAPPY WITH THE, WHAT IS IT ON SLIDE SEVEN, THE MILLION FOR 9 1 1 CALLS FOR FAMILY VIOLENCE.
UH, THE, THESE PROGRAMS, NAVIGATION SERVICES, LEGAL SERVICE, MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES FOR FAMILIES, OTHER THAN MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES FOR FAMILIES.
SHOULDN'T THIS BE SOMETHING THAT, UH, FAMILY VIOLENCE PREVENTION SERVICES IS ALREADY DOING? OUR, OUR, UH, CRISIS RESPONSE TEAM ARE, ISN'T OUR TEAM ALREADY DOING THIS? IT'S NOT, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT GUARANTEED LEGAL SERVICES RIGHT NOW, UNLESS THERE'S FUNDING TO PAY FOR TRA TO PROVIDE THOSE SERVICES.
PEOPLE GO IN ON SLIDING SCALE, UH, BASED ON THEIR OWN ECONOMIC STATUS.
SO THEY MAY NOT RECEIVE THOSE SERVICES.
NAVIGATION SERVICES ARE LIMITED TO THE PORTION OF THE SYSTEM SOMEBODY OCCUPIES IN A MOMENT, AND WE'RE TALKING ABOUT NAVIGATION ACROSS THE ENTIRE SYSTEM.
I SEE COUNCILMAN PELAS WILL HAVE A QUESTION.
THERE'S, THERE'S NO, I'M NOT INTERRUPTING YOU.
UH, SO I, AND WHAT, WHAT IS THE, BUT BECAUSE FAMILY VIOLENCE PREVENTION SERVICES, MY UNDERSTANDING WAS SUPPOSED TO HELP WITH THIS.
SO IS THE COUNTY, UM, NOT PROVIDING THESE SERVICES? OR ARE WE SUPPLEMENTING THE COUNTY COUNCILWOMAN? I THINK ERICA, IF YOU CAN CLARIFY, YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT THAT THE SERVICES ARE NOT AVAILABLE ON THE CITY'S BUDGET, BUT THERE ARE ORGANIZATIONS IN THE COMMUNITY THAT PROVIDE THOSE SERVICES, WHICH IS WHERE YOU'RE ALLUDING TO.
IF WE TALK ABOUT ALL OF THE ORGANIZATIONS THAT PROVIDE THESE SERVICES, SOME ARE ABLE TO PROVIDE LEGAL SERVICES IN-HOUSE,
[01:05:01]
OR A DIRECT ENROLLMENT INTO THOSE THINGS.IF YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT ON THE CITY SIDE AND THE CRISIS ADVOCATES, WE'RE ABLE TO REFER TO LEGAL SERVICES, BUT WE CAN'T GUARANTEE PEOPLE WILL RECEIVE THOSE SERVICES.
SO 'CAUSE, 'CAUSE 1 MILLION IS NOT ENOUGH.
AND ONE, I THINK WE NEED TO MAKE THIS A PRIORITY IN OUR BUDGET FOR, UM, ADDRESSING FAMILY VIOLENCE AND, AND, AND GETTING THE ORGANIZATIONS TO GET TO THE ROOT CAUSE, NOT JUST WHAT WE SEE AND WHAT OUR TEAM IS SEEING.
UM, AND I, AND I LOOKED OVER THE PRESENTATION YOU DID BEFORE, BUT THAT MICROAGGRESSION THAT TALKING DOWN AT THE HOME OR IN THE WORKPLACE THAT IS CAUSING THESE WOMEN TO FEEL BAD ABOUT THEMSELVES.
I THINK WE NEED TO, THERE'S A BIGGER ISSUE THERE TO ADDRESS.
AND WHILE I APPRECIATE THE 1 MILLION IN, IN THIS TERM, BECAUSE AS MY COUNCIL COLLEAGUES KNOW, THIS HAS ALWAYS BEEN A PRIORITY FOR ME.
I JUST FEEL LIKE IT'S, IT'S, WE'RE GOING TO GIVE TO AGENCIES WHO ARE ALREADY DOING THIS.
AND I WANTED TO SEE US GIVE TO AGENCIES THAT HADN'T RECEIVED BEFORE.
UM, I, I'M ON THE CHECK COMMITTEE, SO I LOOK, I LOOK FORWARD TO HAVING THAT DISCUSSION FOR YOUTH.
BUT, UM, THA THANK YOU FOR ANSWERING THOSE QUESTIONS.
AND IF YOU COULD JUST GET ME THAT, THAT, UH, DEFINITION FOR AS RISK YOUTH.
MAY I CLARIFY SOMETHING? UM, JUST WANTED TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO, UH, BRING TO YOUR ATTENTION THAT AS PRO THE DISCUSSION FOR TODAY ON SLIDE 11, ONE OF THE, UM, UH, AREAS ON THE ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA IS TO FOCUS ON AGENCIES THAT HAVE NOT RECEIVED ARPA FUNDS PREVIOUSLY.
UM, SO THAT WILL ADDRESS SOME OF THE ORGANIZATIONS THAT YOU, UM, THAT YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT.
COUNCILWOMAN BRAN, COUNCILMAN ELA.
UH, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT THERE'S A, UH, ONE MISSING PIECE OF INFORMATION THAT ALL OF US COME TO THE TABLE, UH, WITHOUT AND WE BENEFIT FROM IT.
AND THAT IS A COMPLETE LIST OF ALL THE ORGANIZATIONS THAT PROVIDE THE SERVICES AND THEN THE TYPE OF SERVICES, RIGHT? AND, UM, HOW PEOPLE QUALIFY OR DON'T QUALIFY FOR, FOR THAT.
UM, LIKE FOR EXAMPLE, UH, THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY PROVIDES FREE LEGAL REPRESENTATION AS IT RELATES TO PROTECTIVE ORDERS, RIGHT? PEOPLE DON'T KNOW THAT.
A LOT OF MY CONSTITUENTS DON'T KNOW IT, RIGHT? AND SO THEY, THEY GO TO THE SHELTERS OR THEY GO TO T R L A AND THEY'RE LIKE, WELL, I DIDN'T GET THE FREE SERVICES.
RIGHT? AND SO I GUESS I DON'T QUALIFY.
UM, AND YET THEY WOULD, IF THEY JUST WERE TO GO TO, UH, THE DA'S OFFICE, UM, MANY WOMEN, FOR EXAMPLE, OUR CONSTITUENTS HAVE NO IDEA THAT THE AG WILL HELP THEM WITH, UM, COLLECTING CHILD SUPPORT, RIGHT? NONPAYMENT OF CHILD SUPPORT IN MANY WAYS IS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, UM, AND BULLYING.
AND SO, UM, I, I DO THINK THAT IT WOULD BE HELPFUL, UH, AND IF YOU CAN DO THAT FOR US, LIKE ASAP, THAT THAT'D BE GREAT.
RIGHT? UM, AND BY ASAP I MEAN LIKE ASAP NOT, NOT BEFORE THE NEXT MEETING.
'CAUSE THAT'S A TOOL THAT MY, MY FIELD OFFICE COULD USE, RIGHT? UM, LIKE TOMORROW, YESTERDAY.
THANK YOU FOR THAT SUGGESTION.
SO WE'LL, WE'LL WORK ON THAT FOR YOU.
I MEAN, SO I GUESS MY INPUT WOULD BE THAT I WOULD LIKE FOR US TO BE ABLE TO BROADEN THESE CATEGORIES FOR, TO, TO, AND LET THE MARKET BRING A SOLUTIONS, RIGHT? BECAUSE I, I SEE IN MY FIRST TERM, I'VE SEEN GOVERNMENT GET IN THE WAY OF SUCCESS A LOT OF TIMES WHERE WE SET UP ALL KINDS OF RESTRICTIONS FOR SOMETHING AND OR GUIDELINES.
AND THEN, YOU KNOW, WE EITHER IT CAUSES ALL KINDS OF DELAYS OR PEOPLE DON'T QUALIFY FOR WHATEVER REASON.
WHETHER IT'S DISTRIBUTING ARPA FUNDS TO, TO BUSINESSES, OR WHETHER IT'S CREATING OUR OWN HIRING PRACTICES.
WHAT, WHAT, WHO WE'RE ALLOWED TO HIRE.
OR, YOU KNOW, WE'VE GOT $5 MILLION IN THE TREE MITIGATION FUND AND WE CAN'T LET ANYBODY GO OUT AND PLANT TREES BECAUSE WE'RE STILL TRYING TO COME UP WITH CRITERIA.
AND SO, LIKE, I, WHAT I DON'T WANT TO DO IS SAY WE'RE LOOKING FOR SQUARE PEG SOLUTIONS, AND THEN PEOPLE, ALL THE PEOPLE WITH ROUND PEG SOLUTIONS, YOU KNOW, CAN'T EVEN QUALIFY.
AND, AND SO I'D LIKE FOR US TO LOOK AT LIKE, YOU KNOW, IF WE COULD BROADEN THESE SOMEHOW SO THAT WE'RE DEALING UPSTREAM, UH, UPSTREAM SOLUTIONS FOR VULNERABLE POPULATIONS, I THINK THAT WE CAN LET THE MARKET BRING US, UH, MORE OF, YOU KNOW, THEY KNOW WHAT, THEY KNOW WHAT WORKS AND WHAT DOESN'T.
THEY KNOW WHAT THEIR COMMUNITIES NEED AND LET THEM BRING THAT TO US.
AND I THINK WE CAN BE MORE SUCCESSFUL THAT WAY.
AND I'VE, I'VE TRIED TO PREACH THIS IN OTHER DEPARTMENTS AS WELL, UM, WITH LIMITED SUCCESS.
AND I, I DON'T WANT GOVERNMENT GETTING IN THE WAY OF SOLUTIONS.
IF I MAY, IF WE COULD JUST BE SURE THAT WE KEEP IT TO THE TOPICS THAT ARE POSTED TODAY.
[01:10:01]
THANK YOU, MA'AM.UM, I WAS JUST THINKING ABOUT SOMETHING AND I WANT TO, I'LL, I'LL MAKE A MOTION IN A LITTLE BIT, UM, 'CAUSE I KNOW WE HAVEN'T DONE THAT YET, BUT I WAS DOING MY TAXES A COUPLE WEEKS AGO, AND I WAS AT THAT POINT WHERE I WAS THINKING, WOW, I SHOULD GET ANOTHER JOB.
UH, LIKE, YOU KNOW, I SHOULD START SUBBING PART-TIME.
'CAUSE I WAS REALLY WORRIED I WAS GONNA HAVE TO PAY EXTRA, AND I DID NOT KNOW WHERE IT WAS GONNA COME FROM.
AND WHEN I WAS THINKING ABOUT BEING A SUB OR ABOUT, UH, APPLYING FOR SUBSTITUTE TEACHING POSITIONS, I WAS THINKING ABOUT HOW HARD A TIME I HAD MY LAST TWO OR SO YEARS OF TEACHING DURING THE PANDEMIC AND THINKING ABOUT ALL OF THE ATTACKS THAT ARE GOING ON ON, UH, ON TEACHERS RIGHT NOW.
AND I'M WONDERING WHAT OPPORTUNITIES WE MIGHT HAVE HERE, UH, MAYBE TO ALLOCATE A SMALL, UH, NO AMOUNT OF THIS WOULD BE SMALL, RIGHT? BUT ANY AMOUNT OF FUNDING FOR MENTAL HEALTH TO SUPPORT TEACHERS, IS THAT SOMETHING THAT MAYBE WE COULD TAKE A HUNDRED THOUSAND? UH, WELL, THAT WOULD BE FOR THE DISCUSSION OF, OF THE COUNCIL.
WE, UM, WHEN WE DEVELOPED THE IMPLEMENTATION PLAN FOR MENTAL HEALTH, WE MET WITH THE SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND THE POSITION THAT, THAT WE, AND THE COUNTY ATTENDED WITH US AS WELL.
SO WHAT WE DECIDED TO DO WAS THE COUNTY WAS GOING TO BE INVESTING, UH, WITH THE SCHOOLS.
AND THE SCHOOLS WERE GONNA BE DRIVING THOSE PRIORITIES THAT WERE MORE INTERESTED, UM, UH, TO THEM.
AND THEN WE, THE CITY, WE'RE GONNA FOCUS ON NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS TO EXPAND THE SERVICES IN THE COMMUNITY.
UM, WE, WE CAN FIND OUT FROM THE COUNTY IF THEY'RE ADDRESSING WHAT YOU ARE ASKING IN TERMS OF TEACHERS.
I KNOW THE SCHOOLS, UH, DISCUSS THAT AS, AS A NEED AND, AND PROGRAMS THAT THEY HAD IN PLACE, NOT VERY WELL VERSED IN EXACTLY WHAT THEY'RE DOING.
WITH THAT SAID, IT'LL BE THE POLICY DISCUSSION OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE IF THERE WERE TO BE ADJUSTMENTS TO WHAT WE ARE, UM, DISCUSSING TODAY.
SO IS THIS COMING BACK TO PUBLIC SAFETY AGAIN, OR IS IT GOING TO FULL COUNCIL? UM, WHAT WE WERE THINKING IS BRINGING IT TO THE FULL COUNCIL AFTER THIS DISCUSSION WITH THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE.
WE DO WANT THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE TO MAKE A RECOMMENDATION TO THE FULL COUNCIL ON WHAT PRIORITIES TO FOCUS ON.
SO THEN WHAT I'M HEARING IS YOU WOULD LIKE TO GO HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH THE COUNTY TO SEE IF THEY'RE ADDRESSING THIS SPECIFIC NEED THAT I'M ASKING FOR.
BUT I'M ALSO HEARING THAT THIS WOULD HA THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE, YOU KNOW, AND I PLAN TO MAKE THE MOTION TO SEND IT FULL COUNCIL.
UM, IF IT GOES TO FULL COUNCIL, I'M, YOU KNOW, THE LIKELIHOOD OF BEING ABLE TO SHIFT FUNDS, I THINK, UH, DECREASES PRETTY SUBSTANTIALLY.
AND SO COULD I, SO PROCESS WISE, IF I MAKE A MOTION TO SEND THIS TO FULL COUNSEL, CAN I THEN MAKE AN AMENDMENT TO MOVE MAYBE 250,000 FROM THE 3 MILLION TO THAT SPECIFIC NEED? AND THEN, LIKE, IS THAT APPROPRIATE? YOU SHOULD MAKE YOUR MOTION, I MOVE TO SEND THIS TO FULL COUNSEL MOTION.
WHAT, WHAT IS MOVING THE STAFF RECOMMENDATION? THE STAFF RECOMMENDATION? OKAY.
SO THIS DOESN'T HAPPEN OFTEN, YOU GUYS, I PROMISE WE KNOW WHAT WE'RE DOING, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO MOVE TO AMEND THE PROPOSAL TO, UH, SHIFT 250,000 FROM THE, UH, FIRST CATEGORY, THE MENTAL HEALTH NEEDS OF YOUTH AGING OUTTA FOSTER CARE AND AT RISK YOUTH.
UM, 250,000 OF THAT TO SUPPORTING THE MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING OF TEACHERS.
MAY I MAKE A, WELL, I'M IN CHARGE HERE, RIGHT? UH, I I HAVE A, I I UNDERSTAND THE SENTIMENT.
MY, MY CONCERN IS 250,000 SPREAD ACROSS ALL THE DIFFERENT SCHOOL DISTRICTS.
I, I DON'T KNOW THAT THAT'S GONNA REALLY MAKE, LET'S SAY S A I S D.
UM, I MEAN, I HAVE A CONCERN ABOUT THAT TOO, RIGHT? I MEAN, I, I, UH, IT IS NOT JUST ABOUT MY, MY DISTRICT, RIGHT? BUT, UM, S A I S D DOESN'T TOUCH A LOT OF THE DISTRICTS.
UM, I DON'T KNOW, I, I I WONDER IF I'M JUST THINKING OUT LOUD, BUT MAYBE WE, UH, GET THE ANSWER FROM THE COUNTY AND, AND CONSULT WITH THE SCHOOL DISTRICTS.
I KNOW THAT WE HAVE IN THE, WE DID IN THE BEGINNING OF THE PROCESS, IT WAS A, A, UH, A AND SEE WHAT, WHAT THEY'RE THINKING.
UM, I CAN ONLY SAY FROM MY EXPERIENCE, I DID MEET WITH ONE OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN MY, UH, DISTRICT, UH, THE BIGGEST ONE, NORTHSIDE.
AND THEY, AS, AS THEY WOULD BE AS TEACHERS AND ADMINISTRATORS, THEY WERE CONCERNED ABOUT THE KIDS, RIGHT? UM, SO I MEAN, I THINK IT'S WORTH A DISCUSSION.
UH, SO I DON'T KNOW, BUT DO WE HAVE A SECOND ON THE TWO 50? OKAY.
[01:15:01]
IT'S FINE.AND IT WAS A, I THINK IT'S AN OVERSIGHT OF MY PART FROM THE, THAT THIS WASN'T, UH, A THOUGHT THAT CROSSED MY MIND SOONER IN THIS PROCESS.
BUT I WOULD LIKE US TO, UH, LOOK AT OTHER OPPORTUNITIES FOR FUNDING AND TRY TO, UH, MAKE THIS A PRIORITY.
I'LL TELL YOU, AND, AND I'M IN FEAR OF LIZ GETTING AFTER ME, BUT IN, IN OUR LAST BUDGET, UM, DISCUSSIONS, JUST CITY BUDGET, WE TALKED ABOUT, I BROUGHT UP, UM, INCLUDING TEACHERS IN, UM, HOME BUYING PROCESS, LIKE FIRST HOME BUYING, UH, UM, PROGRAMS TO HELP THEM.
AND SO MAYBE IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE CAN INCLUDE IN THAT IN THE CITY BUDGET.
UM, JUST A THOUGHT, BUT NOT TO GET TOO OFF TOPIC.
I'D SECOND THAT AFTER WE SPOKE TO THE TEACHERS UNION.
I THINK THAT THEY'RE CLOSEST TO THE PROBLEM.
AND, UM, YOU KNOW, I THINK MOST OF US AT THE TABLE KNOW HOW TO REACH THOSE FOLKS.
AND, UM, IN FACT, IN THE, OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS, I THINK ALL OF US WILL BE IN FRONT OF THEM SOON.
UH, AND THEN WE DON'T, WE DON'T WANNA DELAY IT.
SO MAYBE HAVE A REPORT BACK, UM, BY, BY MEMO, UM, FOR BEFORE FULL COUNCIL.
UH, I ALSO WANNA JUST REAL QUICK MAKE ANOTHER POINT.
I DO APPRECIATE COUNCILMAN BRAVO.
I APPRECIATE, UM, WHAT YOU TALKED ABOUT AS, AS FAR AS READY TO WORK.
MY, MY, MY ADVOCACY FOR FOSTER YOUTH, THOUGH, UM, IS PULLING ME FORWARD BECAUSE IT, IT'S, UH, THE CITY HAS NEVER GIVEN ANY MONEY TO FOSTER YOUTH EVER TILL ARPA.
IT'S, UM, MY CONCERN IS THAT THERE'S, THERE'S, THIS IS, UM, MAYBE THE LAST OF SEVERAL ATTEMPTS TO MOVE MONEY OUTTA THE FOSTER CARE POT.
AND IT, IT, UM, I, I WANNA JUST, YOU KNOW, VOCALLY ADVOCATE FOR IT BECAUSE IT SEEMS LIKE THERE IS ALWAYS SOMETHING MORE IMPORTANT THAN FOSTER CHILDREN THAT ARE AGING OUTTA THE SYSTEM OR FOSTER CHILDREN, PERIOD.
SO, UM, I'VE BEEN STRONGLY, UH, ADVOCATING FOR THEM BECAUSE IT'S, UH, IT'S AS EVIDENCED BY HOW MANY TIMES PEOPLE TRY, KEEP TRYING TO TAKE THAT MONEY AND PUT IT SOMEWHERE ELSE, UH, THAT THEY'RE, THEY'RE VERY MARGINALIZED AS A LOT OF COMMUNITIES ARE.
BUT THIS IS PARTICULARLY, THIS GROUP HAS NEVER RECEIVED A SINGLE DOLLAR OF CITY FUNDING UNTIL ARPA.
SO THAT, THAT'S WHY, THAT'S PARTLY WHY I AM KIND OF CAPITALIZING ON THIS MONIES, UM, THESE MONIES.
I DON'T THINK IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE CAN, I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY WITH ARPA WE CAN'T CONTINUE IT, BUT, UM, AND, AND THE OTHER CONCERN I HAVE ABOUT YOUR PROPOSAL WAS IF WE TAKE 1 MILLION FROM, FROM THAT POT AND PUT IT TOWARDS SOMETHING ELSE, IF YOU'RE ASKING READY TO WORK TO TAKE IT ON, THEN I WOULD IMAGINE THAT A MILLION HAS TO GO TO READY TO WORK.
I MEAN, THEY HAVE SO MUCH MONEY THAT THEY'RE DEALING WITH, SO, UM, I DON'T, I'M NOT ADVOCATING FOR THAT.
BUT I'M SAYING IF YOU WERE TO TAKE IT AWAY FROM THERE TO SUPPORT THEM OVER AT READY TO WORK IT, IT MAKES MORE SENSE THAT THAT WOULD HAPPEN.
BUT, BUT AGAIN, I, I, AND I THINK MARIA MENTIONED SOMETHING LIKE THIS, BUT YOU PUT THEM IN A BIGGER POT OF READY TO WORK, AND THEN AGAIN, THEY'RE SORT OF PUSHED ASIDE AND THEY'RE NOT FOCUSED ON THAT, THAT MONEY'S NOT GONNA GO DIRECTLY TO HELP THEM WITH THE, THE SPECIFIC WRAPAROUND SERVICES THAT THEY NEED.
AND THE BIGGER PICTURE WAS TO PROVIDE HOUSING WHERE THOSE WRAPAROUND SERVICES WOULD BE IN HOUSE, NOT, UM, SORT OF, YOU HAVE TO GO TO THEM AND THE, THE WRAPAROUND SERVICES WOULD BE THERE FOR THEM.
SO I JUST HAD TO PUT THAT PLUGIN.
UM, SO, BUT I WILL ASK YOU TO, IF YOU HAVE ANYTHING, ANY COMMENT ON THAT.
SO, UM, TO BE CLEAR, I'M, I'M NOT ADVOCATING THAT WE GIVE ANY MONEY TO READY TO WORK.
I THINK THEY HAVEN'T, THEY HAVE EXCESS FUNDS FROM MY, FROM WHERE I SIT RIGHT NOW.
AND SO I JUST FELT LIKE MAYBE THIS IS SOMETHING THAT, WHERE THEY COULD FOCUS ON IT, WHICH WOULD FREE UP FUNDS FOR US POTENTIALLY TO BE ABLE TO PUT INTO ANOTHER CATEGORY.
UM, YOU KNOW, I, I'M AT THE END OF THE DAY TODAY, I'M, I'M GOING TO, UM, SUPPORT, UM, WHATEVER THIS BODY DECIDES TO MOVE FORWARD TO THE FULL COUNCIL, JUST SO WE CAN GET IT MOVING WITH THE, WITH THE, UM, JUST KNOWING THAT WE CAN STILL MAKE AMENDMENTS THERE AND THAT THIS IS NOT NECESSARILY WHAT, UH, WHAT I THINK MIGHT BE THE BEST VERSION.
UM, SO I'LL STILL BE ADVOCATING FOR HOW WE CAN MODIFY IT.
UH, SO WITH A MOTION AND SECOND ON THE FLOOR.
AND THAT IS THE, WE DID IT, WE GOT IN HERE UNDER
I DON'T, I WASN'T SURE WE WERE GONNA MAKE IT.
THERE WAS SO MANY ITEMS, BUT, UM, THANK YOU VERY MUCH EVERYONE WHO CAME, UH, TO TALK WITH US TODAY.
AND, AND, AND THOSE OF YOU IN THE AUDIENCE, UM, WE LOOK FORWARD TO OUR NEXT PUBLIC SAFETY MEETING IN, IN MARCH.