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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06/20/1995, 1C - ENHANCED NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES PROGRAM G DA ajjj ijU city of san ..aI s OBISPO M to 0 70ar MM Walra COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT NUMBER: OP FROM: Arnold Jonas Community Development Director SUBJECT: Enhanced Neighborhood Services Program CAO RECOMMENDATION 1. Consider existing city efforts and policies for neighborhood action as described in the attached staff report, and receive public testimony. 2. By motion approve: (A) establishing a Neighborhood Services Office in the Community Development Department; (B) restructuring and retitling the position of Zoning Investigations Coordinator to Neighborhood Services Manager; and (C) implementing other improvements to current service levels as outlined in the report. 3. Consider whether additional measures should be included in the 1995-97 Financial Plan. DISCUSSION The attached staff report (Attachment 1) was scheduled for Council consideration on May 16, 1995. At that meeting, Council continued the matter (without initiating consideration) to a date uncertain in response to requests by members of various homeowners organizations. Coordinated by Residents for Quality Neighborhoods (RQN), the citizen groups desired additional time to meet with staff to clarify various aspects of the proposed program. A meeting of the interested parties and Community Development Department staff was held on May 25, 1995. In attendance were representatives of RQN, and the Chorro Street, Monterey Heights and San Luis Drive neighborhood associations. As shown on Attachment 2, a number of questions were addressed, with three general areas of interest becoming apparent. 1. What would be the nature of the duties and responsibilities of the new office? 2. What organizational requirements might be placed on the neighborhoods by the city? 3. Would the current level of code enforcement be reduced? All present felt these issues had been clarified by the time the meeting ended. The RQN Board of Directors will be meeting on June 14 to consider a report by their representatives, and to formulate additional comments to Council. It may not be possible for them to provide written comment by the June 20 Council hearing, but they will be present at the meeting to give oral comment. The other participating groups have received notice as well that this matter will be on the June 20 Council agenda. As Council recalls, the reason for agendizing this item on the 20th is to allow Council to take action prior to Financial Plan adoption. Attachments: 1. May 16, 1995 Staff Report. 2. Janet Kouralds letter for RQN. EP MEETING.I)ATE crt�r o� SAYI LUSS os1Spo - 5- -9s - ®��'� ����� RORT I19W NUMBER From: Arnold JonCommunity Development Director Prepared by: Prepared by Allen Hopkins, Administrative Analyst Subject: Enhanced Neighborhood Services Program CAO RECOMMENDATION 1. Review existing efforts and policies for neighborhood action. 2. By motion, approve: (A) establishing a Neighborhood Services office in the Community Development Department; (B) restructuring and retitling the position of Zoning Investigations Coordinator to Neighborhood.Services Manager,and(C)implementing other improvements to currea service levels, as outlined in the report. 3. Consider whether additional measures should be included in the 1995-97 Financial Plan. REPORT-IN-BRIEF An analysis of existing neighborhood outreach programs shows that the City's current efforts are significant, with responsibilities divided among a number of departments. Some City commissions (such as the Human Relations Commission) are also contributing to the overall effort. However, in spite of this work, some still feel that the City could father intensify its neighborhood outreach Program- Seeking a balance between the needs of neighborhoods and the City's financial.constraints, staff is . recommending that steps be taken to establish a specific office to provide neighborhood outreach ! services. The zoning and building code enforcement function of the Building and Safety Division would be redefined and Expanded. The Zoning Investigation Coordinator's position would also be redefined and expanded to become a Neighborhood Services Manager. The scope of the position would include responsibility for developing and administering neighborhood outreach policies, coordinating a Neighborhood Action Team and.worldng to improve internal organization and communication in neighborhood matters. No new or.expanded programs would be undertaken, but current programs would be re-examined and refined to eliminate past perceptions of "under- investment" in neighborhood issues. While. these recommended actions are possible at minor . additional cost, another option is presented which offers significantly greater improvements to the neighborhood outreach program by allowing for additional programs to be pursued through the use of additional staff Under any scenario, given the governmental financial environment of the 199Ys, City efforts must be oomplemeated by neighborhood self-reliance, as promoted by the Human Relations Commission. ATTACHMENT 1 city of sar 4,ws osispo MIGs COUNCIL. AGENDA REPORT . Staff Report Page 2 DISCUSSION Bac and Over the last five years, the number.and size of San Luis Obispo neighborhood groups have increased significantly. Today there are nine recognized organizations and several informal groups who are actively interested in improving and preserving neighborhood values. A list of these groups is shown in Attachment A An analysis of the City's neighborhood outreach and service efforts shows that there are marry City activities that either involve neighborhood participation or address neighborhood concerns. A summary of those activities is shown in Attachment B. Although the City is actively involving neighborhoods, and in spite of recent improvements, there continues to be the perception that the City could further intensify neighborhood outreach efforts. In response to these concerns, the Community Development Department has been directed to analyze the City's neighborhood outreach efforts, carefully examine options for improvement and present recommendations to the Council for an enhanced neighborhood protection program. This subject has been ranked as an "Other Important Goal" during recent Council goal-setting priority sessions. AnabYa Most neighborhood issues fall in two general categories. Fust, the conversion of owner-occupied homes to rentals has resulted in neighborhood problems. A major concern is poor property maintenance (reflecting a lack of pride of ownership). This concern has been recently addressed through the adoption of a Property Enhancement Ordinance. Other issues relate to increased densities which, in turn, generate noise; parking, and traffic problems. Rental areas show an increase in code violations. There is also the social issue of renters, often younger,who may have a different lifestyle than the homeowner. Neighborhood groups look to the City to address these problems and to support their efforts to improve add preserve the character of their neighborhoods. The second issue involves the relationship between the City and neighborhood groups. There is a belief by some that there has been insufficient City attention and response given neighborhood concerns. The impression is that communication between City departments is inadequate and communication between the City and neighborhood groups is insufficient. In assessing the problem, staff solicited the opinion of neighborhood groups and representatives at several recent meetings to identify the nature and scope of neighborhood concerns. A summary of the opinions gathered from those meetings is shown in Attachment C. Staff held meetings with various City departments to study their neighborhood programs and trace /C A city O� Sari -11S OBS SPO COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT Staff Report Page 3 their program development. Also addressed was how City departments foster. involvement with neighborhood, student and community groups, and how they view neighborhood issues. Generally City.departments have effective neighborhood programs in place. However, more could be done if resources were available to expand existing programs. Currently, programs are implemented in response to specific requests, problems or issues. Therefore, programs tend to be reactive rather than proactive. In its efforts to develop a workable neighborhood program, staff contacted local communities(Paso Robles, Santa Maria, and Santa Barbara)to learn about their neighborhood efforts, as well as cities with significant neighborhood outreach programs (Sacramento, Glendale, Spokane WA, and Champaign IL). The most notable, Champaign, Illinois, has developed a successful Neighborhood Wellness Action Plan evaluated by the Assistant City Administrative Officer in an earlier report to the Council (Attachment D). This research will continue and, while no two cities are alike, some aspects of their programs may be incorporated into our own efforts. Current Efforts Although many departments have programs that impact neighborhoods, the Community Development Department and Police Department have the greatest involvement in neighborhood programs and, in some cases, have cooperative involvement with each other. For significant neighborhood problems a task force approach has been used involving individuals from several different departments and agencies — Fire Marshall, building inspectors, County Health Department, and particularly the Zoning Investigations Coordinator. Current Elkrts—Police Department Police Department,neighborhood programs are administered by the Police Chief and the Operations Bureau Commander. Specific programs include: NNeiehborhood Proms Block Parent Neighborhood Watch Operation ID Security Surveys Student Neighborhood Assistance Program(SNAP) Good Neighbor Program Abandoned Vehicle Removal Program Traffic Survey Program i city of sari IIS OBISPO COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT Staff Report Page 4 Community Pro = Green Pennant Program DARE Program Business Crime Prevention Training Program No new programs are proposed for the 1995-97 Financial Plan. In addition to these specific programs,Police Department staff is frequently called on to speak to community groups on a variety oftopics. Since the Crime Prevention Officer position was eliminated in the 1993-95 Financial Plan, requests for speaking engagements are now directed to individuals in the department appropriate to the request. Currently 17 to 25 volunteers are available to assist with the crime prevention ProgrMs- Current Efforts—Building and Sgft Division The Community Development Department has two areas of neighborhood involvement: 1) The code enforcement efforts of the Building and Safety Division and, 2) The planning application process in the Development Review Division. Occasional neighborhood involvement also occurs during long-range planning projects such as specific plan review or preparation of general plan elements. The Budding and Safety Division is now performing a number of tasks that relate to neighborhood action. Most ofthe efforts involve enforcement and abatement activities, and are largely complaint- driven. The Zoning Investigations Coordinator receives, reviews, and facilitates city response to various neighborhood issues including: • Overcrowding • Vehicles parking on lawns • Storage in.street yards • Converted garages and other spaces creating substandard living conditions • Construction and alteration of sites without permits • Violation of use permit conditions and home occupation permits • Use of residential zones for commercial purposes The Zoning Investigations Coordinator, through these enforcement activities, has wdensive involvement with neighborhood grasps and their representatives. As such, this position has become a de-facto resource for neighborhood representatives to contact on a variety of neighborhood-related issues. As time allows, a few specific non-enforcement programs have been developed: Neighborhood Cooperation Week • Good Neighbor Day • Paint Your Heart Out • Water Conservation Landscaping s rc�. p City Of Sar ,SIS OBISpo COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT Staff Report Page 5 The recently adopted Property Enhancement Ordinance was developed with input from neighborhood groups in response to.concerns over declining neighborhood conditions and simplifies the enforcement process. In addition an education and prevention program is in place. It is administered by the Zoning Investigations.Coordinator, and is directed toward incoming students at Cuesta and Cal Poly. The program consists of slides, brochures and a lecture that provides information on the selection of rental housing and recommendations to avoid neighborhood conflicts.. The Zoning Investigations Coordinator also serves on various committees, including the Student Neighbor Relations Sub-Committee of the Student-Community Liaison Committee, which is responsible for Good Neighbor Day and Neighborhood Cooperation Week. . Current Efforts—Development Review Division The Community Development Department actively seeks to foster citizen participation in the planning process. To achieve that goal the Development Review Division has taken special steps to notify neighborhood and environmental groups of upcoming projects and applications that may concern them. Planning staff frequently advises neighborhood groups directly of applications that may have neighborhood-wide impacts. This notification doesn't typically involve individual permit applications,but rather text amendments that involve changes in land use or development standards that could have an influence on the way residential neighborhoods are developed. Whenever controversial projects of community-wide significance are reviewed, the department provides neighborhood workshops to encourage community input into the planning process. An example of the effective communication link between concerned neighborhood groups and staff can be seen in the development of the Neighborhood Enhancement Ordinance. Staff has worked with members of various groups on ordinance options including a draft prepared by Residents for Quality Neighborhoods(RQN). ' Shortly after the restructuring of the Community Development Department in 1993, management staff met with neighborhood and environmental groups in an attempt to establish a positive working relationship and foster effective communications. These meetings were well received and set a precedent for ongoing dialog between staff and neighborhood group representatives that continues today. The Department's neighborhood outreach effort continues to include a program whereby a planning staff member is designated to be the neighborhood liaison. As such, the planner is avarilable to any citizen or neighborhood group to respond to any concern or issue. The planner is not a neighbor- hood advocate,but rather a planning resource for the neighborhoods. t lI� city o� sa. M'S OBISpo 00174 COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT StaffReport Page 6 The Community Development Department offers the public subscriptions to a weekly report of active planning applications as a service for those interested in tracking the planning process. For $20 per year a subscriber receives a weekly fisting of new projects with addresses and a brief description. Several neighborhood and environmental groups take advantage of this special notification service. A recent modification of the planning application computer program allows staff to "flag" those projects that would be controversial or of interest to specific groups or individuals. Selecting one or more of the names currently on the list of community groups causes the computer to automatically add them to the computer file for future notification for any public hearing for that project and alerts staff to the sensitive nature of the application. Development of a post card notice system to supplement the current mailing operation has helped streamline the notification process and reduce mailing costs. Current Efforts—Lon&-.Range Planning Division In addition to the public hearing process, the Long-Range Planning Division continues to gather input whenever possible from neighborhood groups through the use of ad hoc committees and public workshops. Such workshops were valuable in the development of the Land Use, Housing, and Open Space Elements of the General Plan. Neighborhood groups have been invited to participate in other long-range planning efforts, such as the CDBG Housing Needs Workshop. The Long-Range Planning Division staff supports the Cultural Heritage Committee in its efforts to preserve and protect the historic resources of the community, and recently held a successful historic preservation workshop which presented useful information for those in historic neighborhoods. Offwt Efforts—Other Departments and Commi�c+nTs Some departments,such as Recreation or Public Works, have developed fiee-standing neighborhood outreach programs. The programs have developed over time, usually in response to specific needs, and their relationship to programs in other departments is minimal. However, where their programs overlap or mesh with those of another department, a team approach to providing neighborhood programs is fivquendy used. These efforts, in conjunction with those of Community Development and Police, point to the need to re-examine the-way the City views neighborhood services. The philosophy of community oriented policing and neighborhood "wellness" is based on the premise that the City should start- thinking holistically about neighborhoods — not to view services as "free-standing" within individual departments, but as a part of a greater City-wide coordinated effort to serve the whole community at a neighborhood level. For example, traffic calming efforts ties to improving the overall atmosphere of neighborhoods while addressing•City-wide traffic issues. The issue of the homeless in a neighborhood park relates to a commtmitys social concerns. /C- �► A City Of Sa UIS OBI SPO COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT Staff Report Page 7 The Human Relations Commission is actively working to develop neighborhood self-sufficiency through meetings and workshops. This is in keeping with comments from the neighborhood groups which indicate a preference to develop their own programs with the support of the City. Program Limitations There are some limitations that need to be acknowledged in the City's efforts to implement the neighborhood programs. Expectations of neighborhood groups may conflict with current laws or existing City policies. Economic forces cannot be controlled by the City or neighborhood groups and the resources of the City are not infinite. Neighborhood programs must be balanced with other City goals and objectives. As we move further into this area, two fundamental issues need to be kept in mind. First, if we are going to "empower" neighborhood groups they must be open to all. Second, zoning, planning and enforcement power cannot be delegated Yo private committees. RECONEMMATION The Community Development Department has historically been involved in neighborhood programs through the code enforcement efforts of the Building and Safety Division. Other contacts have been established with neighborhood groups through the development review process. Therefore, the Community Development Department is the logical choice for continuing the administration of neighborhood services efforts. Create a Positive Idga ty for Providing Neighborhood Services Cu mint neighborhood outreach efforts should be redefined and clarified to provide a greater emphasis on the.positive aspects of providing for neighborhood service and support rather than the more limited(and somewhat negative) scope of code enforcement. This can be accomplished with minor adjustments to existing staging. While zoning and building code enforcement is still an important function, it should continue in a supporting role for broader neighborhood improvement efforts. To accomplish this, staff is recommending the formal establishment of a Neighborhood Services Office within the Building and Safety Division to: 1. Serve as a central source for information about all City neighborhood efforts—supporting City sta$ neighborhood groups and their representatives, and the general public. 2. Collate.and identify neighborhood programs operated by the City or by neighborhood groups; evaluate the success of those programs.. /C- i MY Of sar alts OBI SPO COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT Staff Report Page 8 3. Implement a Neighborhood Action Team approach to better coordinate neighborhood services and improvements. 4. Redirect the City's current neighborhood efforts toward a community-wide approach to - improve the tangible and social environment of neighborhoods. Ensure that the focus of neighborhood efforts remains on the principle of neighborhood wellness instead of a reactionary response to specific problems. S. Work on a par with the City's environmental and economic management staff to develop appropriate strategies for addressing neighborhood issues.' Provide for Anandate Staffing In conjunction with the creation of a neighborhood services office, it will be essential to redefine and expand the function of the Zoning Investigations Coordinator as a Neighborhood Services Manager This would be a mid-management level position supervising clerical support staff. Doing so will broaden the scope of providing neighborhood support without adding staff. Specific duties would include: 1. Provide specific support and administration for the Neighborhood Action Team. 2. Develop a Neighborhood Services Plan which would establish City-wide guidelines for the delivery of services in a prioritized, coordinated and efficient manner at the neighborhood level. 3. Foster the development of additional neighborhood groups and encourage appropriate representation within those organizations. 4. Develop more effective methods to communicate the success of various neighborhood programs to the Council, City sta$ and the public. 5. Planning and building code enforcement fimctions would remain. It is important to specifically note that there are things the Neighborhood Services Manager will t14t do: 1. He will not identify the needs of the neighborhoods or develop solutions to their problems —that is the responsibility of the neighborhoods themselves. 2: He will not create neighborhood groups or play a leadership role in them—neighborhood groups should be independent of any City direction or intervention. 1�-9 city Or sm ,IIs OBIspO COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT Staff Report Page 9 3. The Neighborhood Services Manager will not manage neighborhood programs within individual departments, but rather provide general oversight and review of all City neighborhood programs as a representative of the Neighborhood Action Team Clerical support will continue to be provided by the Administration Division of the Community Development Department. Essential to the success of this program is a minor increase in clerical staffing requested in the 1995-97 Financial Plan. Improving.on Existing Proograms Staff is recommending that steps be taken to "fine-tune" current programs to improve past perceptions of limited involvement in neighborhood issues and to ensure that neighborhood efforts are coordinated and adequately implemented. Due to limited staffing resources the focus should be on improving existing programs shown below, rather than taking on additional responsibilities: • On a regular basis, provide information on the status of the City's neighborhood efforts to the Council, individual departments, neighborhood groups, and the news media. • Identify current neighborhood groups and develop a working relationship with their representatives. • Meet regularly with neighborhood groups and their representatives to establish a dialogue and begin problem solving. • Encourage the formation of additional neighborhood groups wherever possible. • Work to resolve differences of opinion between vA advisory bodies and neighborhood groups. •. Develop and implement the Neighborhood Action Team concept whereby management staff from the City Administrator's Office, Community Development,.Parks and Recreation, Public Works, Fire and Police meet regularly to better coordinate existing programs, establish priorities, and work cooperatively to support neighborhood efforts. • Provide an education program for neighborhood organizations to explain exactly what city government does, who is responsible, how various departments can assist neighborhood groups, and how to solve various problems without governmental intervention. • Create an internal education program to alert City departments to neighborhood needs and concerns,fostering cooperation and problem solving, along with enhanced customer service. a� City OF Sa► 'UIS OBISPO COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT Staff Report . Page 10 • Provide internal direction to reflect neighborhood oriented services in departmental mission statements and priorities • Encourage all departments to develop and implement programs aimed at neighborhood wellness and manrtem an awareness and sensitivity among City staff to neighborhood needs. • Encourage the ovation ofa,volunteer-directed "Paint Your Heart Out" program to paint and do minor cosmetic repair for elderly low income home owners. Create a front yard maintenance program called "WIN" TWorlang to Improve Neighborhoods)utilizing the Water Conservation Division of the Utilities Department. • Streamline notification procedures to ensure early warning of projects or issues affecting neighborhoods. • Work with Cal Poly and Cuesta faculty and administration to develop courses that incorporate neighborhood wellness activities; work with students and student groups to develop and organize neighborhood maintenance and improvement projects. Alternatives Alternative 1 -Confine with Existing Pros Continuing with the existing program will not negatively impact the City's current efforts. However, the City will not fully realize the benefits of improved coordination of neighborhood efforts. Ongoing dissatisfaction with City efforts will continue. Aft_cmative 2---Enhanced Neighborhood Protection Pmeram A Field Services Technician would be hired to provide expanded field support similar to that now provided by the Police Field Services Technician and building inspectors. This position would assume some of the current duties of the Zoning Investigations Coordinator, allowing more time to . be devoted to additional neighborhood programs. Cost: S47,S00. This alternative expands the recommended action by providing for additional field support. Doing so will free up time of the proposed Neighborhood Services Manager, allowing him to implement additional programs where it is now impossible due to limited staff resources. With additional time available for supervision, the Neighborhood Services Manager would also be able to recruit volunteer student interns to fiuther provide support where needed. Cost: none. Current zoning and building enforcement service levels would be retained. a pp city of Sar. -:31S OBISp0 COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT Staff Report Page 11 CONCURRENCES Police,Parks and Recreation,Public Works, and Fire Departments. FISCAL EMPACT The recommended action can be achieved with minimal additional cost ($8,200 per year). Reclassification of the Zoning Investigations Coordinator to the mid-management position of Neighborhood Services Manager would cost an additional $2,200 per year. Some of this staffing cost may be offset by the fact that,as a mid-management staff;the proposed Neighborhood Services. Technician would not be eligible to collect overtime pay which is not currently the case as the Zoning Investigations Coordinator. To allow for occasional overtime for clerical and inspection staff,an extra$1,000 per year would be needed. Additional funding of$5,000 per year would also be necessary for extra office expenses such as printing, copying, photographic film and processing, newspaper advertising, and meeting expenses. Funding to support these costs has been included in the draft 1995-97 Financial Plan, in anticipation of Council action on this recommendation. The recommended action would also have an impact on Parks and Recreation, Public Works, Fire and Police Department staff who would be participating as members of the Neighborhood Action Team. The cost and operational impact of this component on those departments is unknown. 'Alternative 1 would use existing staff resources and would continue without additional cost. Alternative 2 would require a significant additional appropriation of$47,800 per year in salaries and benefits for the Feld Services Technician. As additional programs would be undertaken, $5,000 per year would be also be needed to cover the operating costs of those efforts. It would be possible to reduce the Field Services Technician to a part-time position, thereby reducing the scope of the program and the cost by a proportionate amodat In addition, -an enhanced program would have be impacts on the Fire Department (primarily inspection), Police Department (primarily enforcement), and the Attorney's Office(legal support). Specific projects may require additional funding(for example, if the City was to purchase materials for a neighborhood project done by volunteers), and therefore separate appropriations for those projects may be requested if needed. I I j� city Of saiews OBI SPO MfAM COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT Staff Report Page 12 ATTACHMENTS A—List of neighborhood and environmental groups B—List of City programs and activities involving neighborhoods C—Summary of neighborhood comments D—ACAO Report on Assistant Exchange with the City of Champaign, Minois /Cq; r ATTACHMENT A Neighborhood- Orginizations_' Old Town Association 714 Buchon St.:. ;< Sah,Luis Obispo, CA..93401 . San Luis Drive Neighbor- hood Association - 1950 San Luis 'Drive . 'San -Luis' Obispo, CA 93401 - - Brizzolara-Nipomo Neighborhood Association 651 Brizzolara #3. - San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 ; Monterey Heights.Neighborhood Association 1874 McCollum Street San Luis Obispo, CA 93405 Greater Alta Vista Neighborhood Association 244 Albert San Luis _Obispo, CA 93405 .. Friends of Prefumo Canyon 987 Capistrano _: San Luis Obispo, CA 93405 Chorro Street Neighbors 806 Murray Street San Luis..Obispo, CA 93405 Augusta Street Neighbors 2275 Flora Street San Luis Obispo, CA 93401: '' Residents for Quality Neighborhoods Post Office Box 12604 San Luis Obispo, CA 93,406 I�_I� Attachment B CITY PROGRAMS AND ACTIVITIES INVOLVING NEIGHBORHOOD AND COMMUNITY GROUPS,:_ • Staff presentations to neighborhood group meetings—City staff from the City Administrator to traffic officers to planners have addressed neighborhood groups and attended meetings with neighborhood group representatives • Downtown Physical Concept Plan—Developed.with the input froin a broad cross- section of citizens • General Plan Circulation Element —Addresses traffic issues within neighborhoods and identifies areas of particular concern • Bicycle Plan —Developed with extensive community input • General Plan Open Space Element—Involved broad community input and public comment and continued neighborhood involvement with specific areas • Laguna Lake Master Plan— Utilized focus group meetings and telephone surveys • Cable TV Franchise Renewal—Involyed public input and surveys • Emerson and Anholm Park Development—Designed with neighborhood input and built with neighborhood volunteer labor -: • General Plari Parks and Recreation Element- Involves`neighborhood inpuf to identify and resolve park access limitations • STAR Program .—Implemented'as a team effort of the.CAUs Office and Parks and Recreation _.. .. . __ -16_ • Property Enhancement Ordinance—Developed with eictensive iriput from neighborhood groups in response to their concerns ' • Urban Water Management Plan—Community meetings held to obtain input • Water and Sewer Rates—Flyers sent out with utility bills to promote awareness • Salinas Reservoir Expansion— Extensive and ongoing staff presentations to all those interested, particularly with respect to environmental and North County concerns • Water Conservation and Solid Waste—Programs developed to inform and educate t the public ` • Human Relations Commission Has a standing committee to increase awareness of HRC activities and improve-communications with respect to social-service issues • Human Relations Commission—Working on"Self Reliant Neighborhood" pilot . programs to make neighborhoods safer • Public and Neighborhood Notification Efforts—Special efforts are given to ensure extensive notification'of pending planning applications and advance notice provided to neighborhood groups for projects affecting them • Economic Stability Program'-Involves working with business groups and business leaders and may become a more significant function • Environmental Quality—'Continued input from the members of the environmental community . . s • Business Visitation Program—City staff working with the business corgmun'ity to develop improved communications and understanding of business concerns • People's KAchen Program —Staff is working with community groups to develop a successful location for this program • General Plan Land Use Element-Extensive ad hoc committee involvement and public workshops were used to solicit input • Community Development Block Grant Program=Involved public input through a housing needs workshop , • Police Department Outreach Program—Block Parent Program, Neighborhood Watch, Operation ID, Police Department Seairity Surveys;­Student Neighborhood Assistance Program (SNAP), Good Neighbor Program, Abandoned Vehicle Removal Program = Special Projects In support of'program'such-as the Little Theater;Children's Museum, and.La Festa • Homeless Shelter—Extensive involvement with neighborhoods and meetings with concerned property owners and neighbors _- Tree Plariting Programs Involves volunteers and City staff • Neighood Parking Districts— Established in response to needs of particular neighboihbortioods .. .. s �C�1 Attachment C SUMMARY OF NEIGHBORHOOD GROUP COMMENTS Role of Neighborhood Organize ions • People consistently say they want a stake inestablishing neighborhood values. :: • .Some values .are dearly. cornmunit_'d' a versus specific or. unique to individual neighborhoods. • Neighborhood groups could assist in clearing various problems without the need for intervention by government _ • .:-Neighborhoods should foster improved communications—neighborhoods should work with other neighborhoods, and neighbors should talk to other neighbors.. • Common problem-solving techniques could and should be shared. • Consensus on problems and issues is necessary, particularly where a problem may not be unique to a particular area. • Local neighborhood newsletters could be generated that facilitates communication between neighbors, government and adjoining districts. • Neighborhood groups should be involved in defining a sense of neighborhood in their local area. .: :. • Issues for one neighborhood may not be a concem of others • ..The City should not be involved.in the form on of.neighborhood groups.but could _ ._ ... facilitate their estabiishment • There is a need for neighborhood ` 'V - group leaders to identify a spec person to contact _':at City Hall—this can be more effective than dealing directly with the Council in order to have certain problems solved.. _+ - E credences with the City • The service level,in the Community.Development Department has greatly.improved since 1890. • The communic Dons are better now but there is still a real or perceived lack of action on the part of the City in implementing programs or doing things. /C-17 - f `Deadlines are established (which,are perhaps unrealistic) and when they are missed, it creates a lack of bust in what the Council says they will do and what actually happens. Accessibility to City staff members is outstanding. • There is.still a need to provide a list of who to.call as a direct reference for.getting action: : • Response to neighborhood requests sometimes seems to be slow—perhaps due to staffing, workload or budget limitations. Highest Priority Issues • Property maintenance • Overcrowding due to single family residences used as rentals and resulting parking impacts. • Noise (both traffic and social) • Traffic"calming" and the reduction in the number of vehicles and speed. • Graffiti (if the current level increases). • A central coordination of services to or for neighborhoods. • Loss of property values because problems left unattended worsen. Neighborhood Programs • Education of citizens on how to problem-solve, with or without government assistance. • Guidelines for groups to set up their own.programs. • "Paint Your Heart Out'—or other similar programs that benefit the disadvantaged, performed by volunteers. • There is a need for program coordination and facilitation—but the City shouldn't run the neighborhood groups • Tree planting (street trees and throughout the neighborhood). • There is a need to find out what the various city programs are, then include them in neighborhood newsletters and public literature. /C �Ig r • There is a need for a motto, bua�+rord or theme that can be used to promote w e ni hborhood awareness and .. .: 9.: .. .. .Programs in general such as the WIN Program). • Clean-up days should be extended or held more frequently, coupled with a helpful cheddist. _ Front yard improvements similar to water conservation programs (WIN Program). r ATTACHMENT D 71 AjM0PAML1M October 19, 1994 TO: Arnold Jonas, Community Development Director Tom Baasch, Chief Banding Official John Mandeville, Long-Range Planning Manager °Ron Whiseaand;Development Review Manager Allen Hopldns, Administrative Analyst Rob Bryn, Zoning Investigator FROM: Ken Hampian, AssistantCity Administrative Officer SUBJECT: REPORT ON ASSISTANT EXCHANGE WtM THE CITY OF CHAMPAIGN, ILLINOIS. . BACKGROUND' - As a part.of the 1994 ICMA Conference, the Illinois Association of Municipal Management Assistants offered an 'Assistant Exchange Program' with cities in Illinois. Because of our community's.recent interest in the`Neighborhood Wellness Program; I requested an exchange with the City of Champaign. -Attachment 1 represents an.outline of the day, which was followed almost exactly.: Prior to the exchange, I had conversations or met with various neighborhood representatives in San Luis Obispo, including members of RQN and the Briaolara,Neighborhood Association. Janet Koialds also touched base§ with'a representative of the San Luis Drive neighborhood to solicit their questions in advance-of our meeting *itli-RQN. ' I also met with several staff members, including the Community Development Director, Current Planning Manager, Zoning _Investigator,-Personnel Director 0MC),.'and the Police Chief.--All of ttie specific questions posed by some of the above parties (Attachments 2.& 3) were answered during my visit in Champaign aiid the information >s provided later in this report. . ...e— .f 1.Y .1 . it.�i�v 4�.1 ,.:.jL:iV ..• • .4.:1- _ J. t. - ..'1:[{ ..... _ 'OF THIS'REPORT ;.z !:.!z,. �• SCOPE This report is not intieaded to"fully'descn'be and evaluaLe:Chanipaign's Neighborhood Wellness program: That program is fully described is thea Nesghboiliood Wellness Action Plan, which has been-widely cir66W among staff and various neighborhood representatives. 'The program will be eval iated,by the Community Development Department as a part of a larger analysis of the City's neighborhood outreach and service efforts. Instead, this report primarily focuses on „ 1 is-ao the added information I obtained during my visit to Champaign,. Some evaluative information and summary observations are provided, however, to make the information more meaningful. The attached outline lists the 11 persons that I met with while•in Champaign. Although most . of these meetings were focused on neighborhood and planning related issues; duw'relatively brief meetings were held related to budget,economic development;-and their Convention and Visitors Bureau. While I gathered valuable information in these sessions, and brought back certain materials that may be useful in San Luis Obispo, the focus of this report is solely on the Neighborhood Wellness Program and related issues. In addition, this report descnt; s mostly how.the- community of Champaign is working to improve the physical and social atrnosphere of neighborhoods. It does not, however, shed much new light on methods of notification;citizen participation;and consensus building as related to planning, land use, and development issues. .-Although Champaign officials recognize the relationship.of the latter to the,former, these considerations are not addressed at length for the following reasons: From a "hierarchy of needs"standpoint, Champaign is under pressure to address more basic neighborhood needs (e.g. blight, crime, deterioration,etc.). This is their priority, and this is where they spend their time and energy. ■ While there are occasional differences of opinion about development issues, the community is generally supportive of development (or, as one staff member put it: "developers tend to have their way"). Thus, they do not have the same pressures for.citizen input on land use policies and standards as we do in SLO. ■ When they have had input on the of citywide land use policies or regulations (e.g. ;.•.zoning and subdivision.regulations), the structured input (e.g- focus groups) has consisted mostly of development representatives - - real estate.professionals, developers, lawyers, etc. . :. ; : ■ .. •Based..on the above, and .other information..-J 1. e, gathered in .my interviews, it is apparent that SLO is more' ". o-histi"-e . nd diligent, in terms of citizen Participation with respect ..-., .sop o land use policy Issues.than is Champaign, _ . -- . - -AND DIFFFRFtirCEC BE'j'8=_CH A `M f Thr ANDS N LMS 013TSPO ?he City'of Champaign is a Uveiatp toovn with a population of approximately 65,000. :The City Urbana is located immediately adjacent to Champaign, and-togeiher the metropolitai area population is about 100,000. The University of Illinois has an enrollment in excess of 36,000. Unlike SLO, however,students are not.widely disbursed:throughout the community. _Instead, : they are located on r�npns and.m an;area known as °Campus Town',.:whiai mmunds the U" pas students tend to live, socialize,,and shop ia.the Campus,Town area. The communities code enforcement prubleans, ..therefore,-.do .,not .involve students to; any 2 r overwhelming degree. Noise problems are also largely confined to the student area. The Police `Department has the equivalent of a SNAP'Program. '.In terms of housing, as mentioned earlie;; students tend to live near the University: The University contracts with the City to provide a'Housing Certification Program',which involves city on to ensure proper building gide consistency. The University works with the city to the appropriateness of the student oriented aspects of the living unit, such as desks, appropriate lighting,.etc. Freshman,and sophomore students must live.in a city certified, unit. Approximately 62 buildings of a total of 300 are under the certification program-, Participation in the program is totally yoluntary. The average household size in Champaign is'2.29; SLO's is at The racial breakdown of the community is approximately81% white, 14% black, 4% Asian, and 2% Other.. Champaign has approximately 269000 housing units as compared to about 18,000 in SLO. Of this amount, approximately 44% are owner-occupied (47% in SLO) and 54% are rental units (53% in SLO). 52% of the units are single-family (53% in SLO),.and 47% are multi-family units, and 1% are mobile homes (39% and 8%, respectively in SLO). .Their vacancy rate is 7%, compared to 5.5% in SLO. . Champaign Urbana is at the junction of three interstate highways which connect to large cities (e.g. St. Louis, .Chicago). Consequently drug traffic is a significant problem. In fact, some neighborhoods (those which are the major focus of the Wellness Program) have all the problems one would fiiid in major metropolitan areas: drugs,prostitution, gangs, abandoned housing, etc. As a result of Champaign's more severe crime problems•, the community has approximately 120 •registered' neighborhood watch areas. Some are active; and some are not...The Neighborhood Wellness Program is an effort to use these watch area as building blocks in creating larger and more formal neighborhood associations..-The goal is to have these associations augment city services through various 'self-help' methods, as discussed later in this memorandum. CXetgAJGN STARTED THE WELLNESS PROGRAM . When City Manager Steve Carter was hired, he was surprised by the number of run-down neighborhood&-:5e noted:signs of blight outside formally defined CDBG and redevelopment ..target areas.:.Because it was simply too;expensive to.approach.the problem in the traditional mode of redevelopment (e.g. 'clearing. 'and rebnr7ding'), a new approach was needed. In developing this new approach, the three main.quesdgns the city asked itself were: 1. How can we evaluate our neighborhoods more systematically? 2. - How can we better coordinate neighborhood services and improvements? 3. How do we know when were done; when we've succeeded? 3 lC-� _...Ile Wellness Program evolved over a number of years, as the city workgd to answer these queions�' Ia-the-early years, there was no.'Wellness.Pro organized around code enforcement; CDBG . 1'� ' Per rather, efforts were Programs, and neighborhood watch (though not nay coordinated with one another). The appointment of a new Police Chief in 1991 who _ aggressively iaiplement a commU% oriented- ficin Po g Program, gave'momentum to amore comprehensive and coordinated effort:'The formal Neighborhood.Wellness Action Plan was.actopted is 1992.1 The Neighborhood Senrice.Departnient was established in the same year. NII9RAOOD ' -T NTRCC pA ^meq err nni, �' .. . -_ la.short, the Neighborhood Wellness Pro `� Program concept involves fire establishment of criteria against which the health of a neighborhood can be evaluated. To do so, the city broke its community into 15 defined neighborhood areas, and thea evaluated each area against the criteria. .sifter completing the evaluation, the neighborhoods were assigned to one of the following four categories: . 1. . Healthy (5) 2. Conservation: (3) 3: Preservation- (5): . �. . . 4. Restoration (2) The id of co gh - en; arse; is for the city ci and the neighborhood to work together to either prevent a neighborhood from decline, or to improve a neighborhood which is already MI decline..In order to do this, city semens are delivered in an organized and coordinated way, and focused on priorities and strategies identified in the Neighborhood Wellness Action Plan. This is in contrast to the often ad hoc and reactive way that neighborhood services are delivered in many other cities. As mentioned earlier, the full plan outlines the program in detail, and has been provided to staff and RQN members previously. :, There was no strong or organized opposition to the creation of thero concerns were expressed and some challed es continue to slow napl' - P However, some concern are: g ementation. .These areas of significant portion of the program was funded through an increase m ...die otz7ity tax (from 24b-to 2.75%), those in 'Healthy' neighborhoods wondered ...what they were getting is:return.for the-tax increase.2. Residents in e3iisting 'CDBG"target areas 'express cbricera about spreading - resources outside their areas. . 310 ming staff resistance to dmnge in. the way services are delivered (see .attached memo frorri - = City Manager). 4 f 4. .::,.. Staff turnover in the Neighborhood Services Department. :. 5." Lack of action/sophistication among neighborhood residents._ 6. Having adequate.staff time ava0able to help neighborhoods 'get going.. :ECKB7RHOOD WELLNFtt "ORGANIZAnONAND FUNDING -'..:. ,Neighborhood Services.has departmental status in.Champaign,-with.the Neighborhood Services Director reporting tothe City Manager:The Neighborhood Services Department(NSD)consists -..of-the following three divisions, each .with its own supervisor, .Program Services; Property Maintenance; and Neighborhood Coordinadon.—7bese divisions compose a °three legged stool" which includes the. 'carrot ((Program.Services), -the.=.'stick":'...(Property.-Maintenance), and education and outreach (Neighborhood Coordination). ` Program Services delivers.various programs to the neighborhood, with an emphasis on home ownership..and rehabilitation. : .. In addition to :the supervisor, the division includes two rebabtiitations technicians, one secretary, and a summer intern. property Maintenance is essentially.the code enforcement arm of the-city. In addition to the supervisor,ffie division includes fourcode enforcement inspectors, and four interns.during the summer.mon --Neighborhood Coordination consists solely of the Neighborhood Coordinator who.is the "point person" in education and outreach efforts. . An.organiradon chart of the.department is provided, as Attachment 49 and further information about each division is provided below. Neig boyhood Coordination Division. As mentioned previously, one of the major challenges in implementing the program .is. to. cultivate .leadership within.the neighborhoods so that .-neighborhoods_ran carry a significant amount of responsibility.for identifying their own needs and solutions to problems. _This is.primarily the job of the Neighborhood Coordinator, .who is the sole employee in this division. Thus far, success has been quite uneven. As an example, a utility tax. increase (from 2% to 2.75%) generates approxumately $300,000 annually for, an 'Urban Renewal:Fund.(URF)': „These monies are to be. used:for capital improvement projects identified.by the neighborhoods themselves.: ;80%:of the URF are to be invested.in Preservation and.Restoration neighborhoods; the remaining:20%, to Conservation or Healthy neighborhoods. Projects to be completed with these funds-include such things as sidewalk repair:and replacement, street;lighting; tree removals, and drainage improvements. However,the Urban Renewal Fund has been largely unspent because neighborhoods have not been able:to,:identify:appropriate prgects: :_The.fund now,has..a:balance. of $3 million. Consequently, staff continues to spend.a considerable amount of time worldng to build the needed "self-help' rapacity. .5 /C - r As mentioned earlier,::Champaign. currently has 120 neighborhood watch However, not all of-these organizations are actio organizations. - e, .and staff is currently in:the process of determining which are and which are not.- The neighborhood watch organizations have served as the.bu0ding'blocks in the establishment of larger neighborhood associations and thus far 18 such associations.exist. Creating these association's, however, is done without requiring such things as formal Councg recognition; bylaws, etc.:_. ....:; .: ...:To-finprove the effectiveness_ of these organizations, and to encourage'the creation of additional ones,' the city has*-adapted a:0Citizen Participation Action Plan'.-'The'plan is provided as Attacbment 5:tAs a follow-up to the plan, brochures have been -beprepared which descriwhy neighborhoods should organize (Attachment 6) and how neighborhoods 'worlong city staff, can identify'their own needs (Attidliment'7:. The fundamental Premise upon which the entire Program is based is that success 'depends upon the direct participation of residents in activities which improve conditions in neighborhoods". As mentioned earlier, it is taking a considerable staff effort to build this capacity, and without the resources available in Champaign, it would be virtually imposable to engage in the level of'handholding" (as by staff)needed to stake progress at this stage.-- There have been recent successes in some neighborhoods, which in•turn is helping to build greater interest in other neighborhoods.'-One notable example involves the identification of a sidewalkmstalmon Project to be funded through the Urban Renewal Fund (one of the few Projects funded from this source thus far). In this case, residents help city staff identify the appropriate locations and develop the project specifications. By canvasing the neighborhood to inventory the skills .and resources of various neighborhood residents, the neighborhood 'assigned' a contractor and former city official to work with Public Works staff. `Neighborhood canvasing' is an encouraged part of the Neighborhood Wellness Program. Another early success has been the Neighborhood Clean-up Program. In essence, the city makes large dumpsters ava0able to a neighborhood, and the neighborhood itself organizes and carries out the actual.clean-up. :.A significant amount of staff time is necessary for the'initial clean-ups ;Until residents have the capacity to carry out the program-more independently. :_C"tly, the program is offered fou=times per year With each dean-up targeting a different neighborhood. As mentioned earlier,-this division consists of a supervisor, two .�btiitation Lechaiicians; onesecretary; and a summer intern: The intent of this division is to urage ---• . mvide programs and incentives to enconeighborhood improveinents on-a voluntary basis '= as 40o to'being caused by regulation and enforce6im " The ProBraai emphasizes home - ownership and i+ihalniitation programs,but also includes finding for ­summer oudi-eaipioynierit, `= neighborhood deariups;and other activities. The program is funded thrviigh Federal Community Development Block-•Grant fiords (CDBG);'which the Mt-allocates-'entirely y >�. to the Program Serr m Division (Attachment�P 'r A'' substantia implementing the housing rehabilitation loan ro percentage of the'divisions,time is spent p gram, which composes about 80% of the-annual - CDBG entitlement, which •L _ 4 nut over Sl mi�licn.' 6 �c-a5 • r In contrast; San Luis Obispo'sy1994-95.CDBG program funds.the following diverse activities: -`: Blackstone'Hotel Rehabilitation $2009000' , ■ High Street Family Apartments 101,750 * . m Downtown.Housing Study 509000 n: SLO Horpeless Shelter. . ... .; 1209000 . 0 Handicapped Ramp Installation ■ . Architectural Barrier Removal/Paiks 402000.. mi At:Risk Youth Services -: .... :. 80,000 ' ■ .. Seismic Retrofit Loan Program :.- 1201000. m` Program Administration ` : 85.750 Total $8579500 (' can be considered somewbat comparable to Champaign's'CDBG uses) . In addition to Champaign's CDBG funded programs,the Division adnfin stere the URF Program, a repaid Urban Development Action Grant (know as 'UDAG', which is for economic development/housing purposes), and.other Federal funding (target toward housing programs). I have separately provided a copy of Champaign's C.H.A.S. and CDBG Final Statement to the Community Development Department. Together, these documents provide substantial detail concerning Champaign's housing stock and its home`ownership/rehabilitation programs. The division works in tandem with the other.two divisions of the department. For instance, the Neighborhood Coordinator attempts to direct neighborhood residents to the programs offered by the division to assist with such flags. as abandoned building demolition and.building or home improvements. The enforcement division,Property Maintenance, will issue citations related to ._ trash ihd debris, but then offer the cited party the option.of resolving the problem through the Neighborhood Cleanup Program managed by Program:Services. In other.words, they target a neighborhood just prior to'a scheduled clean-upday: ..Empga Maintenance M-ision. ..With four inspectors and a supervisor, Champaign. has an .. aggressive code enforceaieat and property maintenance program, and does.conduct.what some call "systematic nuisance:inspections':.. The program.is closely intertwined with an other Neighborhood Wellness efforts.:..Just recently, the division was reorganized to assign inspectors to fou=geographical areas of the city. This is,done in cider.to install a sense of'ownership• among the.inspecbpis;for the oaaldition of'their neighborhoods': .This conixpt is consistent with . the"philosophy of community oriented policing aurreatly being advocated by.rhe,PoliceChief: Champaign has a property maintenance ordinance, and.enforces it aggressively. The ordinance in landscape;uiair►teraance;and as eaaniple of plant growth guidetirfes,is provided.within Attachment 10.. The inspectors are aspected.to with propeS r>. . conditions o be farni7iar� the . . in. their.areas on a daily..baih and to_issu. eitations.proactively .(and not just in response to .. ... . ; . .: - compIaints). Neighborhood residents are encouraged to help identify problem properti_es throu the completion of a "Problem Property Identification Sheet' (Attachment 9)- 7 In of enforcement, the:city has an abatement procedure which-begins with informal :telep_terms hone calls to property owners, and then progresses to various levels of abatement and enforcement. They are currently in the process of developing case management and enforcement guidelines. The MY.'.contracts with various landscape maintenance campaaies :and abates violations if necessary.".This includes weeds, unniowed lawns, and other plant .growth Problems. The city thea;'sues' property owners to recover the cost of,abatement, with a goal of recovering approumately 75% of expenditures. Included as Attachment 10 are various door hangers and other.forms'of notification to property owners. Enforcement goes well beyond plant growth maintenazice, however, and includes Paint, gutters, bmk=.windows, and abandoned building problems: - The­City does not have a 'landscape ordinance" which dictates the t= of landscaping that should be done by property owners, or the percent of turf versus shrubs, etc. Champaign staff stated:that recent court rases have indicated that there are a number of legal constraint to reg lation of this kind. In summary, Champaign has a Proactive code enforcement program that invo es " P 1 Iy systematic inspections'. Inspectors are assigned to geographical areas, which emphasis on the preservation and restoration of neighborhoods. Because code violation problems are far worse in Champaign than in San Luis Obispo, the City invests resources at a fairly high level in the program. Thus far there has been absolutely no community opposition to the program; in fact, it is strongly encouraged by residents and by city council members. Neighborhood 'Action Teams, The Neighborhoo_d Services. Department does not operate independent of other departments. Instead, and in order to institutionalize amulti-disciplinarym and coordinated'approach to neighborhood problem solving, Neighborhood Action Teas are formed. This relatively simple concept is one of the most positive and powerful contributions coming out of the entire effort. - Aaraa teams consist.-of representatcv-'%of several departments; includirig_the.City Managers Office, Neighborhood Services Department;Police Department, Public Works Department, and PLrnning Department. Different staff members chair these teams;. dependent.upon the:deeds of the neighborhood. .Although these teams currently'consist of departim nt heads or higher level managers;the goal.v to eventually include more people at the.operat0' level who deliver the services on a day-to-day gaifu=t training at this levet, h -eeded bases. 'Si owever, IS'needed before this Funding Of 114efiliborhood Services Dees~ nd Pro ma' '. o :Neighborhoodlenient the Service's Department, two positions were newly created:To implement Services Director and 'Neighborhood Coordinator:. Pro - gram_Services already adsted as a division of the.City Manager's_Office. The ftmty'Maintenaace activity was located in the Flit 8 IG-d7 1206 _ t Together; the 'old' ad the new positions far exceed the staffing levels currently.available in SLO. The Neighborhood Services Department has between 13 and 18 staff,positions'at any one time (depending upon the ;number of. .intems)..,, We have .approximately J.5; a Zoning Investigator and one-half a Building,Inspector... The departmental operating cost (staff and supplies) is Champaign is approximately $760,000 annually,,compared to,$ 79,250.in SLO. -� . .. . In -addition •to :the staffing and support-costs, :additional riesources exist'in.Champaign to implement specific programs and projects.-_Program and project funding is available as follows: :$113342000 ■ Repaid UDAG Grant: :.' W7 . 197009000 ■ Other Federal Funds :. . 4009000 ■ Loral Urban Renewal 3.000.000 :.Total Program/Project Funds $694342000 The UDAG Grant repayment and the'Other Federal Funds' are one-tine in nature.-In addition, $2.7 million of this Urban Renewal Fund should also be considered *one-time", since it consists of prior year unspent revenues and a fairly large initial "seed" deposit. On an annualized basis, . therefore, the department is funded at a level of about $2.4 million: $760,0Woperating (staff and support), $1.33 million in CDBG (programs), and $300,000 in URF (capital projects). -- Current annual funding in San Luis Obispo is approximately $451,000; $79,250 in operating costs plus $371,750 in CDBG funds allocated to comparable programs. (This is a fairly 'high end' estimate in that I have been somewhat 'generous', in the designation of CDBG funds considered 'comparable'. ... . .. 41 COMMUNITY ORIENTED POLICING The police Brief of Champaign has made the implementation of community oriented policing his top departmental priority. I have obtained a substantial amount of material from his department on this subject which shows that he is attempting to institutionalize the concept in the department by not only selling the concept, but by integrating it into the department systems of'penalties' and 'rearwds".-._For example, sensitivity to community oriented policing is part of the criteria for selecting.and promoting Police Department•employees. It is also a formal part of all employment appraisals.-These materials have been provided to our Police.Chief.:.A.program brochure.and.memo describing Champaign's progress in implementing community policing are provided as Attachments 11 and 12. Ia_terms of.speafic Champaign polioe�grams; they:_bave the.student patrol program.;which we studied prior to establishing our own "SNAP' Program. They also have students on foot patrol; however, this would not be.particularly.applicable to SLO in that most of their student population is clustered around-the University.in 'Campus Tower". : :: ;. ChampaigmIs crime problems are also more severe than San Luis Obispo's, and a growing foot patrol program is in direct response to targeted high crime, high density areas. SLO does not 9 r have neighborhoods with problems comparable to those found in Champaign's •Restoration• aaghba�rhoods• - _. _ . SttU, there are some programs in placein Champaign which 'may be transferable to San Luis Ob' for le the 'Palk and Waik Pro • . . . p gram • In this . the Police Department regd=its officers to identify specific'park and walls"loiitions in each of their beats.. These locations are areas with particular problems, and typically involve high densities and the high ably of people; The goal`is that at some point during any given shift, "available patrol time'. will be used fora park and walk location. -For the walk to be effective, it should be for a minimum of 20 to 30 minutes, and if possible up to one hour.. The purpose is not only to enliance visilbility, but also to establish lines of communication*and rapport which will result in better information to the department. 'Park and Walk' is in its early stages and success thus far1111s depended Primarily of the commitment of individual officers. Like the property maintenance'program,.the community oriented policing program is heavily coordinated with theoverall overall Neighborhood Wellness Program. Police officers serve on Neighborhood Action Teams, and in some rases the Police Chief.chairs these teams. Training on the Neighborhood Wellness concept is part,of the police officer.training curriculum: The Police Department has a'Ci&=Advisory Boards, which consists.of representatives from the'ministerial association,- school district, chamber of commerce, high school students, and neighborhood associations. The board exists to advise the Police Chief on citywide policies, and specific operations in neighborhoods. -. ... _ In order to faster ft aself help' concept in neighborhoods eluded to earlier, a •Citizens Police Academy has been formed to help train residents in the concepts of neighborhood watch. A brochure about the academy is provided as Attachment 13. Lrlce the code inspectors, the chief is also working to instil a.sense of ownership for geographic areas in police officers• .This is done through the assignment of beats;and by requiring officers to:create .'beat profiles'. 0-Some:profiles have .been well developed, and others -have been prepared in a..half-hearted way. Thus, constant reinforcement of the concept is n In summary; the police chief feels that the traditional definition of the police role is too narrow-, that the near definition Woes into account all factors which enter into the •peace and quiet" of a neighborhbod..=Fie is attempting to align both the attitudes and the procedure of the department. to work with other departments, and with neighborhood-residents in broader and more creative ways. _ ' .'L+ .., ,._.;.:'s ROLE/ 'DAY To-DAY• NOTE MCAT RON PROCEDLroFc Department drafted•:.the.-Neighborhood:Wellness :Plan and the-N4ghborhood Services Department is responsible for-implementation:•Still.-the Planning Department remains involved in the program through participation on the Neighborhood Action Teams, and in oommtnticating:with specific neighborhoods with unique problems. Attachment-14 provides 10 /C-a9 examples.of newsletters.prepared by,the department; "The Daily Planner's' primary target audience is the City Council. 'Due to workload,these newsletters are only prepared for certain neighborhoods, and they are not.prepared consistently. However, they are effective especially when used.in 'adv_ance'of.a..planned neighborhood meeting. . The goal is to encourage neighborhoods to prepare their ownnewsletters;_but as noted earlier, building such capacity is neither easy nor fast. ' While the department has utilized focus groups,-subcommittees.:and .tasks forces for citizen input,is mentioned earlier,. San Luis Obispo is far more active and aggressive in the solicitation of broad base�oosimunity input on citywide land use policies._.Therefore; I will not spend added time in this report describing these endeavors in Champaign: _Champaign city staff is hopeful, however, that greater neighborhood activism will begin oto:balance what has been largely a 'developer drives community". For example, Champaign's commercial zoning and subdivisions standards are fairly weak and:they hope that greater neighborhood involvement will lead to stronger regulations in the future. Currently, however, neighborhood input on standards is obtained in a more ad-hoc, informal way. They are also hoping to improve the linkage between development applications processed by the Planning Department and the Neighborhood Services Department(NSD). .Prese fitly, there is no formal system for referring applications to the NSD for review and comment, and informal referrals have not been consistent (resulting in one or two 'blow-ups"). They .do not assign planners by. neighborhood. .They.feel that this.will-actually inhibit communication by reducing'the number of.persons available to answer questions or concerns posed by neighborhoods. They have had, however, some customer service training for staff to try and instill a greater problem solving orientation and a sense of ownership for the condition of neighborhoods (when a "symptom of a problem is noticed,do something about it instead of waiting for a complaint). . CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS As mentioned earlier, this report .is not intended to be "the last word' on Champaign's Neighborhood We11ness Program ,or to pres=be what more the City of San Luis Obispo can or should be doing relative to neighborhood issues. That more comprehensive analysis is being completed by the Community pevelopmeat Department. This report is primarily intended to add further informatiogfoi the Department's.consideration. In order to make this information _ more_useful, some concluding observations are offered: ■ The City of Champaign and San Luis Obispo are different cities with quite different problems. .Champaiga is focusing most of its efforts on correcting and tin deterioration to homes, businesses, and public areas. Priority Alen. g phi _. .. ....._ . . . _ gn f� social.problems ime neighborhoods have si cant and high cr .Becaiise..of- these_added .demands, .over a. period of many years ` -'established programs`'and'positions in' the City Manager's Office (Program 11 /C 3d r Services) and. the Fire Department (property Maintenance) .and allocated substantial..program resources from CDBG and.other Federal sources"to these areas. Therefore, when the City:decided. to create a Neighborhood Services : Department only tpvti vdditiwial positions needed to be created since the.others a]ready.erdsted (adding about$125,000 is cost for salary` befits and supplies). Thus, the financial 'shock' was ' miainrized. ,::,. ■ If we attempted to.duplicate their program. .the financial t'shock' would be gBemg. By way of comparison, their$760,000 annual.oPeiating cost is about the same as the annual operating cost for".the City's entire`Transit Program; it .� exceeds the annualcost of our Parking Prograrti; it is more.than the combined departmental,budgets-of the City Clerk's Office, City Attorney's Office and City :.'.Council- The-annual program and project:revenues of over $1.6 mr'Won is more han twice of our annual citywide street maintenance budget. ■ Therefore, San Luis Obispo cannot come close matching'tile resources invested by the City of Champaign, nor should we: Our problems are different, and our solutions should evolve over time and in.step with what present circumstances }, rewire, and what is feasible financially.. .Y ■ While Champaign is different than SLO (both in terms of problems and resource availability),and even though we do some things better;there is still much that we can learn from their experience and perhaps adapt to.our.own circumstances. Areas that I feel are especially worthy of added review'by the Community Development Department are: 1. .The underlying principles of Neighborhood Wellness make sense: citizen cooperation with local government; early detection..(being proactive); service delivery based on neighborhood needs and priorities (not 'cookie- crttee,and not just reactive); and greater targeting to smaller areas(more 'precision use" of limited resources). 2. ;1n order to integrate a above principkes (to one degree ` _ the or another) some 'rational evaluation i . . .. - . . process to.identify::and,characterized the conditions of _.different neighborhoods is required. : Most dties never"do this, .which sakes of the principles outlined uadec pointl.virtually..impessrble m" leve. The..Champaign-model ,6ffers:.a very sophisticated and somewhat complex approseh tdsuch an' A simplified approach could suffice hem 7 77 • '.The internal Neighborhood Action Teams.is aRvery`powerful idea that - : requires no added staffing, and a madmal,amount:of added resources. ` While we currently consult with otlrei departments on an ad hoc basis to - _ address specific naghborhood issues, we have not institutionalized compzehensive".and :ongoing irtradepartmental . collaboration around 12 r neighborhood issues. Yes,'it would be essential to'set, priorities in order not to spread staff.too thin;which is why steps 1 and 2 above would need .. .... io be taken first. = 4. Related to the above, the process of involving.employees ai various levels -of the organization in`addressing broader neighborhood concerns has the advantage of 'consciousness raising" in this I area. In other words, recnnting:snore` .eyes and ears".with respect to'neighborhood problems, .so that more problems can be referred to the appropriate department for .resolution."(and not overlooked; or ignored because "its not my job"). City employees work:in neighborhoods on'a daily basis police officers, the zoning investigator, street and park workers, `meter readers, etc. . Improving.communication, and creating a greater sense of ownership and teamwork with respect to overall neighborhood issues; would be a powerful step forward. • 5. Symbolism is important? "Neighborhood Wellness" may sound a bit "new age-ish" or corny to some. However, it has served as a powerful way of communicating a fairly.complex program to residents, decision makers, and staff. No, Champaign has not achieved the idealized vision of 'Neighborhood Wellness" and probably never will. .However, it has established a.common understanding of the goal for all parties involved, and the process and "label" has offered a spirit of.cooperation and a vision around which efforts are organized. I would like to elaborate on the last point: We are doing a number of things in terms of neighborhood services, citizenparticipation and notification, and community oriented policing right now. Therefore, it frustrates the staff tremendously when these efforts are not recognized. For example in the Police Department, programs ?sloe nuisance abatement,'SNAP, graffiti hotline,bflm helmets for needy kids, the STAR program, DARE, Jr. Giants;and a cadre of over . 20 volunteers, and participation in numerous community:service organizations; demonstrate a commitment to utilizing all available resources in meeting community needs.,- . However, it seems that more should be done to effectively communicate what we are doing beyond the usual staff explanations (which can sound overly campleii;or even drab, at best; or defensive at worst). - Some examples: `Oar 111' ss..in"coordinating capital"projects with downtown businesses came to life only after Council took"the,symbolic 'step of adopting a resolution setting forth our "values" in this regard.`Ide6d*i_ng an."Weconomic development contact" in City Hall has done much to allay concerns that""city'Hall'doesn/t care about business at all" (even though this was*not true, even in the absence of a contact person). Champaign's "Park and Walk" program is a great way to communicate practices which many officers probably follow anyway (and to encourage those that don't.to do so).:. This is not to say that "an we need is more sizzle"; but rather, as we evaluate our own practices, we need to consider the best ways to better communicate what we are doing, or what we should 13 lC 3p .4-MAL, :.be doing to the 909nca7,community,.and staff. Sound practices and improved services go hand- in-hand with changed perceptions. Both must exist together to achieve success. In other words, . if one's practices and selviees are not•as effective as they. should be (whatever the available resources), then"trying to communicate and •sell° them Will Only create more negativity. On- the other had,n -if.practices and services are effective, but not well communicated so that they are recognized and understood, then perceptions will.remain negative, no matter what. when the two are in greater.alignment, then.success is not only possible, but can be furthered over time throughthe more sof.all parties.involved (synergism). vNovir that,the-,'philosophizing" is completed, ,.I willclose on a more mundane but very important note, which is: wIu'le I believe that several improvements are possible within existing res0 q.any nmjdr yup in.service levels, intended to be sustained over time, will require some amount of added staff. resources. . . For example, any program intended to involve significantly more neighborhood outreach and education,or more code enforcement,•will require added staffing. One point made very clear by Champaign Officials is that 'self-help" capabilities do not come easy or fast. It takes constant and substantial efforts by staff specifically assigned to the.task. : . . . Therefore, recommendations coming,out of the Community Development Department should provide various service level alternatives, with those involving staffing ultimately channeled into the Council Goal Setting process for consideration in preparing the 1995-97 Financial Plan. In ..this way, these options can be evaluated against all other competing community needs. ATTA 1. _Meeting Outline 2.... Staff Questions 4. .- Ddpartment Orpmzation'Chart, .. :. 5. (Mizen Participation Plan - 6. . . •Why.Organize.Your Neighborhood? 7. g .Your Neighborhood Needs , 8. CDBG Programs 9.: ; Problem Property Identification Sheet 10. Property Maintenance Door Hangers/Brochures _ .. . _. ... Community Onent- Pohang Brochure 12:.. . .. •13. _ CCtizeas��ce Academy Brochure _. .._: 14. . .. . . __.._ _.. .Sample.Newsletters .74 a John Dumt(memo ody) _ j r F=GuTow(mems and Amts 11, 12 and 13 ody) - 14 • V s���/�_ ME, JG AGENDA DATE Z'� •f ITEM# . Monterey Heights "A Neighborhood Association ". May 14, 1995 �ife, ! 0 Dodie Williams - c� City of San Luis Obispo ,yb 990 Palm Street San Luis Obispo,CA 93401 Dear Dodie Williams, I would like to go on record as supporting the establishment of a Neighborhood Services Office in the Community Development Department. The idea of a central location and office where one could go with any concern or problem,and have the resources of all city agencies pertaining to that concern or problem set in motion,is a great idea. I believe mediation would be an excellent idea either as a first step to resolving a concern with a neighbor, or as a needed step for those situations that can not be:addressed through Municipal Codes or Zoning Ordinances. I would like to see a mediator as an integral part of the proposed Neighborhood Services Office in the Community Development Department. Thanks, Larry Allen Batcheldor, 1874 McCollum Street, San Luis Obispo,CA,93405 CouNCa CDO DIR Email: lbatchel@slonet.org phone: 547-9621 (7:00 P.M. to 9:00 PM) P CAO O FIN DIA O FIRE CHIEF nORNEY O PW DIR 2ERKIOMQ O POLICE CHF O MWT7EAM O REC DIR O FILE O.UTILDIR J O PERS DIR Ou"Vim+erw d+Q1 +HM+Rehda HMO+Leon*+McC4MM+Pio Rotas+eon Lsaw+sorra woo+swu Yna+Smek AFOCEIVED MAY 1 61995.1% CITY CLERK SAN i!JI^!."'�•.^ ��� Kt51UtNl 5 Mot QUALI I Y Nt1UHGUKH000S P.O. Box 12604, Sar ' ''is Obispo, Ca. 93406 May 23, 1995 To: Arnold Jonas, Director, Community Development Department � j From: Janet Kourakis, 543-4425 'y�°'''�� 9y�. �s .Thanks for agreeing to meet with some of the people who are interested in the Neighborhood Services proposal Thursday, May 25, 1:00, at your office. am enclosing the following questions and expressions of concern as a focus for the meeting as you suggested. 1. We feel the City is not fully able.to enforce existing ordinances now. If the enforcement function is expanded to include Neighborhood Sevices' activities, will the City be able to keep up existing enforcement levels or will enforcement levels be lessened by added responsibilities? °2. Will the Neighborhood Services office deal with neighborhood problems such as high traffic levels, loud parties, impacts from commercial activities, etc.? Are we talking about a contact person or an advocate? Will the office act as a liason or as an ombudsman? 3. How does the proposed Neigh. Services Office implement the Neighborhood section of;the GP? 4. We are unsure of the purposes and goals of an 'Outreach' program. 5. We are unsure of the makeup and job of the Neighborhood Action Team. For instance, will the team be composed of representatives from all the neighborhood groups? Or will the Team identify the need for additional ordinances or ordinance changes, such as stiffer enforcement procedures for the noise ordinance? 6. Page 7 of the agenda report speaks about 'empowering' neighborhood groups and membership open to 'all'. What does this mean? 7. What is the role of the HRC? To date, neighborhood groups have only . dealt with the ARC and the Planning Commission. Will those Commissions have roles? We have other questions and suggestions, but I think these questions will give us a start and keep the meeting time to about an hour. I hope this helps. Thanks again, J ATTACHMENT.2 Nl",=MG AGENDA DATE TEM # RQN RESIDENTS FOR QUALITY NEIGHBORHOODS P O Boz 12604 Mr COUNCIL P'CDD DIR San Luis Obispo CA 93406 �AO 13 FIN DIR ICAO 13 FIRE CHIEF June 17, 1995 0/►TR)RNEY ❑ PW DIR Or CUDWJ RIGi ❑ POLICE CHF ❑ MGMT TEAM ❑ REG DIR Honorable Mayor and Council Members ❑ C FJEAD FILE ❑ UTIL DIR City of San Luis Obispo i ® ❑ PERS DIR P.O. Box 8100 _ San Luis Obispo, CA 93403-8100 Subject: Proposed Enhanced Neighborhood Services Program Dear Mayor Settle and Council Members: The RQN Board of Directors has been giving this program a great deal of thought since its proposal. There has been much thoughtful input from many neighborhood leaders as well as discussions with the city staff. Generally, our consensus is that we are in accord with the program' s concept and thoughtfulness — especially Alternate # 2. Any concerns and questions that we had regarding specific details have been deliberated and clarified. Therefore, RQN recommends the council's approval of the establishment of the proposed Neighborhood Services Office. We wish to emphasize our overriding concern with enforcement because of the backlog of cases involving illegal garage conversions and poor property maintenance — as well as continuing parking violations in neighborhood preferential parking districts. We hope that the city won't abdicate its enforcement role by expecting teams, made up of neighborhood leaders, to deal with code violation problems. We are also hopeful that. the Neighborhood Services Office will work within the framework of the General Plan' s goals, programs, and policies that support and enhance our neighborhoods — and will not erode our present -level of services . Sincerely, Raymond Nor quist RQN Chair RECEIVED ,JUN 1 r.� 1995 CITY CLERK SAN i.UIS OBISPO.CA