A significant but overlooked on last week’s Anaheim City Council agenda was a report on the distribution of core city services throughout Anaheim.
I say significant because a core contention of the left-wing coalition pushing for single-member council districts is that East Anaheim receives a disproportionate share of city services and amenities, and that the Flatlands — especially Latino areas — are getting short-changed. This imbalance was the major underlying factor for the “unrest” in July 2012 (along with “racist cops” running around “murdering” innocent Latino males minding there own business in stolen cars or playing look-out for illegal gun deals, to listen to Genevieve Huizar, Donna Acevedo and their apologists).
Single-member council districts will magically remedy solve alleged imbalance, according to advocates of thus carving up the city. This was the mantra parroted month after month, over and over and over again by OCCORDites, UNITE-HERE members and pother assorted of this coalition at meetings of the Citizens Advisory Committee and City Council. These folks adhere to the strange theory that severing any ballot-box accountability between all councilmembers (save one) and voters in a particular council district will somehow make those councilmembers more responsive to the needs of that district. [Hey, I’m just presenting their thinking; I don’t claim it makes sense.]
The report prepared by city staff cuts the leg out from under that “the flatlands are short-changed” myth. If anything, it shows the opposite is true — an inconvenient reality for the pro-single member council districts side.
Anaheim Councilwoman Kris Murray’s most recent e-newsletter sums up the report’s findings:
Anaheim has emerged from a lasting recession with a stronger, sustainable economic climate due to years of innovative planning and significant private sector investments that enabled the City to hit the ground running as the state and national economies recovered. This past fiscal year, the City Council adopted a balanced budget, restored city cash reserves, and invested in core city services across all neighborhoods. The financial health of our city is a direct reflection of the strength of Anaheim’s business climate and economic growth. The nexus is clear – a strong economy grows city revenue that is reinvested into our communities. This is great news for all of Anaheim!
At last night’s council meeting, City staff presented a report on the allocation of core services to each of Anaheim’s Neighborhood Council Districts: West, Central, South, and East. The report included day-to-day costs of services such as police and fire protection, library programs, and street and park maintenance; as well as investments being made by the City’s Capital Improvement Program into community amenities and infrastructure such as parks, libraries, and community centers.
The report found that the proportion of each neighborhood’s costs are closely related to the size of its population and that investments being made through the Capital Improvement Program demonstrate a true commitment to our most distressed neighborhoods of West and Central Anaheim.
I hope you will take a moment to review the charts and graphs below that illustrate the distribution of city resources within our community.
Core Services Funded by the General Fund for FY 2013/2014
Summary Results of the Report
Total Net Cost by Neighborhood
Per Capita Net Cost by Neighborhood
Capital Improvement Projects by Neighborhood
In addition to the programs and services covered by the General Fund, investments are being made into improving community amenities and building new neighborhood facilities in our city. Oftentimes these capital improvement projects have one-time costs and are funded by restrictive grants and developer fees – not the General Fund. Therefore it is important to also consider these investments being made through the City’s Capital Improvement Program when considering the distribution of resources into our city’s neighborhoods.
Investments in Community Amenities from 2005-2012
Investments Anticipated over the Next Five Years
Note: While the report included all areas of the City, it did exclude services provided to the Resort in an effort to avoid distorting analysis of the services provided to residents of the South neighborhood. The report also excluded projects and programs funded by outside restricted funds and special assessments.
The charts and graphs above have been pulled directly from the Budgeted Costs for Core Services by Neighborhood report prepared by the City of Anaheim Finance Department. To read the full report, click here.
Best regards,
Kris Murray
Council Member
City of Anaheim
I have no illusions any of this information will matter to those for whom the campaign for single-member council districts is about trying to elect liberal Democrats to the Anaheim City Council to push for liberal policies that are being stymied by the present Republican majority.
Matt – do you think perhaps that the investments in the Resort and Platinum Triangle should have been factored into this equation?
Jason, if they had, it would just amplify how much more goes to the Flatlands than to the Hills.
Allow me to hazard a guess that APD costs are at least double per capita in the flat lands compared to the hills.
If Tom Tait, who has no following except a few convicted felons, public employee unions, and a busybody lady that will do anything for attention, would stop trying to kill private sector jobs in Anaheim, this wouldn’t even be an issue.
Actually Tait is no different than Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson.
He makes money off governments and taxpayers by opposing jobs projects in Anaheim so they will go to Garden Grove (where his dad’s company then gets the contract).
And for cover, he aligns himself with a few so-called “victims” who claim “the system and the police are targeting them.” This crap might work in Chicago, but I am convinced he will not get away with it for much longer here. Just a matter of time.
Great report, and about time. You know it’s on target when big mouth hacks like Greg Diamond and Cynthia Ward have nothing to say.