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PSC - Item 3D - Minutes of March 23, 2023 1 MINUTES OF THE ROSEMEAD PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING MARCH 23, 2023 The Regular Meeting of the Rosemead Public Safety Commission was called to order by Chair Michael Cao at 7:00 p. m. in the Rosemead City Council Chamber located at 8838 East Valley Boulevard, Rosemead, California. PRESENT: Commissioners Cao, Fonseca, Foutz, and Garcia ABSENT: Commissioner Wu PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: was led by Chair Cao INVOCATION: was led by Commissioner Garcia 1. PUBLIC COMMENTS FROM THE AUDIENCE Chair Cao opened the Public Comment period. No Public Comments were received. Chair Cao closed the Public Comment period. 2. CONSENT CALENDAR: Commissioner Garcia made a motion to approve the minutes from the February 23, 2023, Public Safety Commission Meeting, and was seconded by Vice-Chair Foutz. Motion carried by the following vote: YES: 4-0 Chair Cao motioned to excuse Commissioner Wu’s absence from the March 23, 2023, meeting and was seconded by Commissioner Fonseca. 3. MATTERS FROM STAFF A. LAFD Fire & EMS Incidents Report (February 2023) This item was Received and Filed by the Commission without comment. B. LASD Crime Statistics (February 2023) Vice-Chair Foutz asked whether the crime was affected during the rainy days. Lieutenant Tiwari responded that crimes tend to shift, with traffic collisions and family domestic issues increasing, and robberies and commercial burglaries decreasing. This item was Received and Filed by the Commission. C. Rosemead SAO Team Weekly Reports Assistant City Manager Bruckner presented a new item, the Rosemead Special Assignment Officer Team Weekly Reports. The reports feature the weekly activities of the SAO Team and are shared on a weekly basis with the City Council 2 and Rosemead This Week. These items will be brought to the Commission for review. Commissioner Fonseca thanked the team for the report as it is thorough and informative and provides transparency to the public. Chair Cao directed for the item to be Received and Filed by the Commission. D. Crime Prevention and Emergency Preparedness Activities Assistant City Manager Bruckner reported on the crime prevention and emergency preparedness programs and activities for the month of March as well as planned activities for the month of April. The highlight was the first Community Area Watch Meeting in reporting district 0530. The second meeting is scheduled for April 20th from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Rosemead Community Recreation Center for reporting districts 0531 and 0536. Assistant City Manager Bruckner commended the SAO and Public Safety Team who have been going out to the community and knocking on doors and handing out information which has given the community an opportunity to connect with law enforcement in the City through direct outreach and community-oriented policing. Chair Cao added that he appreciates the hard work and reaching out to the community to join the Community Area Watch program. Assistant City Manager Bruckner announced the Neighborhood Watch Meeting on April 3rd at 6:00 p.m. for the area surrounding 8459 Guess Street and will be hosted by Block Captain Jason Blake Moore. For more information or questions, the public can reach out to Mandy Wong, Public Safety Supervisor at (626) 569-2168. E. Report, Discussion, and Direction Regarding Public Safety Services and Programs (continued from February 23, 2023) Assistant City Manager Bruckner mentioned that the report was updated to reflect the previous discussion on the items listed. There were follow-up items after the agenda was posted regarding the MET Team Presentation on calls per service at Temple Station from MET. In 2019 there were 550 calls, in 2020 506 calls, in 2021 384 calls, and in 2022 there were 422 calls for the City of Rosemead at Temple Station. There was another question for the MET representatives on the proportion of calls that were for housed versus unhoused and their response was that they do not track that data. The MET Team was also asked regarding the costs for a dedicated City sponsored Met Team, as the College Bureau and the City of West Hollywood both have their own, and the City of West Hollywood’s Authorization for Service Level Form indicated that the cost is approximately $360,000. The service includes a deputy with a mental health clinician and a vehicle specifically assigned to the City of West Hollywood to respond to their MET-related calls. Crime Prevention Programs As per the last meeting, the topics to be discussed for this meeting are Crime Prevention Programs, Curb Markings and Permit Parking, and Anti-Camping Ordinance. The Public Safety Team along with Lieutenant Tiwari discussed the efficacy of the crime prevention programs and ways to breathe new life and make changes into programming. The City was divided into reporting districts which 3 were aligned with Temple Station’s reporting districts to provide the ability to pull crime data and information within those districts. In addition, an SAO was assigned to each district as the Area Watch liaison to connect with residents and businesses to allow community members to know their law enforcement team and help resolve any crime-related issues. The Community Area Watch program will continue through the end of the year. There will be in-person meetings twice a year for each district, which is a better model to follow than the previous once-a-year meeting in which microtargeted crime trends. Chair Cao asked if the SAO representing each district would be attending their assigned Community Area Watch meeting. Assistant City Manager Bruckner replied affirmatively. The entire team will be present for the first meeting in each reporting district to give residents the opportunity to meet the team and thereafter, will have the Chief, SAO Deputy, and Public Safety Staff at each meeting to facilitate and answer questions. The SAO Team now has business cards with their contact information to hand out during outreach. Chair Cao asked whether the Temple Station has multilingual volunteers to help translate for those that don’t speak English. Lieutenant Tiwari responded that the Station has a translating service used when responding to calls and two of the SAOs speak another language, Mandarin, and Spanish. Assistant City Manager Bruckner stated that there are 43 established Neighborhood Watch groups and 16 are still active. Last month, a block captain meeting was held to discuss revitalizing the program. It is a challenge to get people out of the house to connect and talk about issues with their neighbors, but the City is looking for ways to leverage technology to bring the programs into the 21st century. The City is looking into bringing in a program like the Ring for those that have been a victim of crimes where they can go to the Public Safety Center and receive a Ring Doorbell or some type of camera subsidy program to address crime issues. The Neighborhood Watch program is available to anyone that is interested and should someone want to start it in their area, they can contact Many Wong. The best crime prevention is neighbors knowing neighbors. Commissioner Garcia mentioned that a concern of hers would be inviting unknown neighbors into her home and inquired on whether the City provides meeting locations for the meetings. Public Safety Supervisor Mandy Wong mentioned that meetings are not held inside block captain homes but rather people gather on the front lawn or on the street if there is a cul-de-sac. Commissioner Fonseca asked where the public can access information for meetings and their reporting districts. 4 Assistant City Manager Bruckner mentioned the information will be available on the City’s website. The City is in the process of redoing the website and therefore reluctant to add information that will be torn down. Basic information will be added on the Public Safety Department page. Commissioner Fonseca recommended that the information is placed on social media platforms along with SAO introductions and their reporting districts. Vice-Chair Foutz asked if there is a platform that has more followers or if they are all the same. Assistant City Manager Bruckner shared that the City recently launched the Public Information Perception Survey and one of the questions asked was whether they follow the City on social media, and if so, what platform they use. Data is still being collected but based on the initial data, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube were the top three platforms people are using to consume news and information. The City has a strong presence except for YouTube which is more time-consuming to make and edit videos. Commissioner Fonseca mentioned there is a way to share an Instagram Reel and add it to YouTube. Chair Cao asked Assistant City Manager Bruckner if he could provide a summary of the presentation by Temple Station Captain Mark Reyes during the joint City Council and Public Safety Meeting. Assistant City Manager Bruckner mentioned that during the presentation, Captain Reyes spoke on response times and deputy visibility. Charts shown in the presentation showed calls going up as well as crimes; however, the number of deputies remained the same in Rosemead. The FBI keeps track of standards for law enforcement staffing nationwide. Based on the FBI statistics, the nationwide average of sworn staffing per 1000 residents is 2.4, per county agencies it is 2.8, Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department it is 0.9, and for the City of Rosemead, it is 0.58. There are 29.5 sworn personnel to serve the 50,000 residents in Rosemead, which is 1.82 below the national average, and 0.32 below the Sheriff’s Department. The message being conveyed is that the deputies are doing a lot and the best that they can even though they are nowhere near the national average for staffing. Lieutenant Tiwari added that the tracking for transparency purposes has also added to the demand on deputies’ time for a response call, but response times are staying steady. Commissioner Fonseca asked if the Board of Supervisors decides the staffing for the Sheriff’s Department. Lieutenant Tiwari replied that the Board of Supervisors approves the budget for services. Chair Cao asked about patrol and if there is a day and time when there is increased criminal activity. 5 Lieutenant Tiwari stated he is working with the Crime Analyst to pull data and break down information to pinpoint where additional support is needed. Vice-Chair Foutz directed his question to Fire Chief Gonzalez and asked about the activity and response times. Fire Chief Gonzalez mentioned calls and responses are lower in the winter and increase in the summertime. There are grassfires and people outdoors. Public Safety Vehicle Street Access, Curb Markings, and Permit Parking Assistant City Manager Bruckner mentioned he spoke with the Sheriff’s and Fire Departments and there have not been any issues related to access due to the onsite street parking. They have always managed to get all equipment to all areas. In terms of street access, first responders are able to gain access to anywhere in the City without parking issues. The Public Works Director is the liaison to the Rosemead Traffic Commission and items such as curb markings would fall under the purview of the Traffic Commission. Assistant City Manager Bruckner encouraged the Commission to let staff know if there are any issues with curb markings, then staff can direct any concerns or requests to the Public Works Department. To institute a permit parking program there would be several factors to consider: • Who defines the parking permit district? Residents or City? • How many permits per household? Are they single-family or multi-family? • How much do permits cost? Yearly vs. overnight. • Do permits cover the cost of enforcement? • Does the cost of the permit cover the cost of the service? • How do we factor costs for senior and low-income permits? • What about ADUs and the number of permits? • Will the City require residents to use garages for parking? • How is permit parking affected on street sweeping days. Staff recommended that if the Public Safety Commission wants to move forward with the permit parking, then they would need to make the recommendation to the Traffic Commission as it would fall under their purview. The Commission agreed to table the item. Anti-Camping Ordinance and Jurisdiction Assistant City Manager Bruckner informed the Commission that the City’s code prohibits all camping regardless of where it exists in the City. In recent case law, Martin v. Boise, the Ninth Circuit Court stated that the City of Boise’s Anti- Camping Ordinance was unconstitutional because it didn’t provide accommodations for individuals who were involuntarily homeless to be able to camp in public areas when there was no shelter available. The issue cities were facing was how they can shut down encampments when they don’t have the option to provide housing. In addressing this issue, some cities took the housing first approach to identify locations where housing could be offered so that enforcement can commence. This is where ideas like tiny homes came from. There were cities that were sued because they were not in compliance. The City’s code needs to be 6 reflective that sometimes individuals find themselves in situations where they need to camp and the blanket, thou shalt not camp is not Boise compliant. Before implementing enforcement, the City needs to offer shelter. The City was awarded $1.2 million in HOME-ARP funds, which are federal funds designed to prevent homelessness. The City will be entering into a contract with a homeless services provider to provide case management and housing application services. The goal is to be able to have the services available 40 hours a week to engage with the City’s homeless population. To become Boise compliant, the City will be offering case management and housing navigation services, and alternatives to camping on City streets before enforcement occurs, but the component missing is that the City’s code does not reflect Boise’s decision regarding accommodations for individuals that become involuntarily homeless and need a place to camp. The Commission is tasked with amending the code to reflect Boise’s decision and including a time, manner, and place restriction. Chair Cao asked what steps need to be taken for Sheriff’s to enforce the anti- camping ordinance, what happens after the individuals receive a citation, and what percentage of homeless individuals agree to shelter. Lieutenant Tiwari mentioned that Rosemead has not yet implemented enforcement or citations. Citations cannot be given until there is a clear ordinance to ensure that the City complies with the law and takes proper measures. Once enforcement begins, there are support services available like MET and L.A.CADA. There are few that take the services. During the outreach that took place, ten people were contacted and two agreed to the services. Commissioner Fonseca asked regarding the likelihood of finding a bed in Los Angeles County. Lieutenant Tiwari stated it was very likely. Assistant City Manager Bruckner added that part of the $1.2 million that would be funding the homeless service provider would include designated beds allocated to Rosemead. Chair Cao suggested postponing the ordinance recommendations until the return of Commissioner Wu and requested the following information: • Additional high-fire areas from Fire Chief Gonzalez • Recommendations from staff regarding places for restrictions • Suggestions from Lieutenant Tiwari regarding the perimeter for the restrictions, such as 100 feet from a school and so on. • Information from City staff as to where most families and children gather as well as seniors. • Staff to identify where most encampments are located. Assistant City Manager Bruckner reminded the Commission that the conditions could not be so restrictive that it blocks out any places for people to camp as it 7 would go against the Boise decision. The ordinance included in the staff report can be used as an example of the types of restrictions that can be included. Commissioner Fonseca mentioned schools, daycare centers, and after-school programs should be listed as restricted areas. Commissioner Garcia asked to include City facilities. Commissioner Fonseca asked that a specific timeframe is noted for the restrictions. Lieutenant Tiwari mentioned that in case of trespassing, residents and business members can file a Letter of Agency, which can be done at Temple Station, which authorizes Sheriff’s to act as an agent on their behalf to make an arrest. Chair Cao asked how much overlap the Public Safety Commission would have with the Homelessness Subcommittee. Assistant City Manager Bruckner stated that the Subcommittee has not yet met and therefore what they will be focusing on is undefined. The charter for the Public Safety Commission was for encampments and it is the Commission’s mandate. The Homelessness Subcommittee may also discuss encampments, case management services, housing navigation, and other elements that go into homelessness prevention. The Commission agreed to take items and prepare for discussion at a following meeting. 4. MATTERS FROM COMMISSION A. Commissioner Comments Commissioner Garcia asked if the meeting could adjourn in memory of Abel Reyes who was a long-time Rosemead Community Member. 5. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned in the memory of Abel Reyes at 8:52 p.m. The next Public Safety Commission meeting will be held on Thursday, April 27, 2023, at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers. __________________________________ APPROVED: Jennifer Pineda, Management Analyst _________________________ Michael Cao, Chair