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Home My WebLink AboutCORRESPONDENCE - 25CSalas, Diana From: Nathaniel Greensides <mynci90@gmaii.com> Sent: Saturday, May 16, 2020 11:08 PM To: eComment; Villegas, Juan Subject: Public Comment for Agenda Item No. 25C I am Nathaniel Greensides and I oppose item 25C of May 19 City Council agenda. Costing the City approximately $37,000 per month (which happens to be approximately the same amount it costs to attend a UC for one year), helicopter policing services does not improve the quality of life for residents. To the contrary, Helicopter policing causes disruption and criminalization of the lowest income portions of the City. The use of police helicopters does not reduce crime either - the 'crimes" occur irrespective of helicopters flying overhead. The noise, disruption, and criminalization (not to mention the fear) caused to neighborhoods and residents by the use of helicopters are detriments far outweighing any purported benefits of using helicopter policing. Exhibit A of the staff report offers that "Due to the inherent unknown nature in the need for airborne law enforcement service, SHERIFF will adjust daily service levels to coincide with the above table". This one sentence alone offers two things: 1. we have no idea if we will need helicopters for law enforcement, and 2. the SHERIFF will still be receiving the money anyway. I urge the city council to prioritize funding initiatives which allow for better economic opportunities for residents instead of increasing police spending which further criminalizes our city and communities. Best regards, Nathaniel Greensides Ward 5 Resident Salas, Diana From: Maria Ceja <ceja.maria95@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, May 19, 2020 2:58 PM To: eComment Subject: Item 25C Hello Mayor and City Council Members, Our community does NOT need to continue to be hyper -policed by helicopter police that disrupt our community's livelihood. A three-year $1.5 million dollar helicopter police contract will not reduce crime. Helicopter -police criminalize our communities and ignite unnecessary fears of the safety of our neighborhoods and are a disturbance. These funds should be invested into our city's youth, parks and recreation, and libraries. We do not need to continue pouring our money into the police (42% in the fiscal year budget of 2019-2020. We need to stop destroying our youth and communities with constant policing and surveillance. We need to direct our energy into our community, into our youth who are our future. Thank you, Maria `J ■ Orozco, Norma From: Bulmaro Vicente <vicentebulmaro@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, May 19, 2020 3:47 PM To: eComment Subject: Item 25C Public Comment My name is Bulmaro Vicente, and I oppose item 25c of the May 19th City Council agenda. This item will execute a three-year agreement with Orange County Sheriff's Department for helicopter services from 2020-2023, costing the city around $1.4 million dollars from the general fund. The general fund already allocates over 40% of its budget to the police department. In the midst of the pandemic, we need to focus our priorities to investing in our public health, not on policing and enforcement. The city has yet to address the excessive use of force incident that occurred earlier this month. Our focus has not been in protecting residents or holding our department accountable. This $1.4 million could go to other funds, services, and relief funds to benefit residents during this time. I urge the council not to pass this item and re appropriate these funds to address the crucial needs during this public health crisis. Best, Bulmaro Vicente Resident of Santa Ana Ward 4 3 Orozco, Norma From: Marlha Sanchez <mamadragonrising@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, May 19, 2020 3:47 PM To: eComment Subject: 1.5 million for police helicopter City Council Members, I'm writing to voice my opposition to this proposal. My concerns are that before such a large amount of money gets approved for something like this I would hope that there would be studies done looking into the effectiveness of helicopter use and also the effects on the communities that helicopters are most used in. I live in one of these areas. I have two children. Last year one of our friends/neighbors was missing. She is a friend of my daughters. The helicopters flew around as the search went on and it was pretty traumatic for my kids. Our street was full of cops with lights on we were all outside and spoke to our neighbors. It was hard for the kids to relax even after our friend was found. She had been at a friends house. I understand that perhaps a helicopter can be a helpful tool. But imagine growing up in a neighborhood where it's so commonly used. Long before this incident we often hear helicopters going overhead and sometimes am sharing information over the speaker. How are our kids supposed to sleep? How are they supposed to feel safe? I feel that empowering communities and doing things to work towards our basic needs being met is the way to cut down on crime and to ensure that future generations grow up with less trauma, feeling safe and being able to be healthy community members and leaders. Gracias. Marlha Sanchez Gracias, Marlha Sanchez Salas, Diana From: Sent: To: Subject: Dear Mayor and City Council, Yoselinda Mendoza <yoselinda.mendoza@gmail.com> Tuesday, May 19, 2020 4:23 PM eComment Regarding Agenda Item No. 25C I am writing to urge to NOT authorize the agreement with Orange County Sheriffs Department for helicopter services for a total amount not to exceed $1,468,144. This will not reduce 'crime" in Santa Ana, it will only produce more fear and distrust between our community members and the police. We need to disinvest in surveillance and the hyper-criminalization of our community and invest these funds in sustainable aid for our community. Thank you. Best, Yosi Mendoza I Salas, Diana From: Mextli Lopez <mextli9239@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, May 19, 2020 4:39 PM To: eComment Subject: Public Comment regarding item number 25C My name is Mextli Lopez, I oppose item 25C. We are in a pandemic and we don't quite yet understand the financial impacts of it, as such we should be conservative with our spending on things such as helicopter policing. There's little to no proven studies about the effectiveness or usefulness of helicopter policing and yet the city is considering spending millions of dollars to continue to fly helicopters with no proven results. Additionally, the noise pollution is unbeatable, and the constant presence of police helicopters in communities of color is traumatizing to children. Please do not approve the spending of millions of dollars on helicopter policing. We are not experiencing a rainy day, we are experiencing a full on pandemic storm and we should be saving city funds to help our communities survive this moment and recover beyond it. All the best, Mextli Orozco, Norma From: Kayleigh Levitt <kayleighlevitt@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, May 19, 2020 4:44 PM To: eComment Subject: Public comment against agenda item 25C Dear Mayor and City Councihnembers, I am writing because I am against approving the budget increase for helicopters, when there is not a proven need and there are funding initiatives that there actually is a proven need for. Best regards, Kayleigh Levitt Ward 5 Orozco, Norma From: Liliana Mora <13moral@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, May 19, 2020 5:00 PM To: eComment Subject: Item 25C Public Comment Good afternoon, My name is Liliana Mora and I oppose item 25C of the May 19th City Council Agenda I believe that spending $1.4 million dollars on helicopter services from the Orange County Sheriffs Department will not help our city when we are already spending 40% of the general budget on the police department. The people of Santa Ana would be better served, kept healthier and safer, if the money is allocated towards public health and relief funds during this pandemic. Thank you, Liliana Mora, Resident of Santa Ana Ward 4 D