3.-A. ID 21-924 Action pertaining to budgeting American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) funds:
1. ***RESOLUTION - 30th Amendment to the Annual Appropriations Resolution (AAR) No. 2021-178 appropriating $38,155,000 for citywide operational support that will be funded from first tranche of ARPA funds (Requires 5 Affirmative Votes)(Subject to Mayor's Veto)
Dear Council President Chavez and Council members,
My name is Alexandros Acedo and I am a Fresno community member in district 2.
I urge the council to create a public process that is equitable, inclusive and responsive to the needs of the community who have been hit the hardest by the pandemic.
Why is it that in this budget the the police get about $10,000,000 (10 million) while the Parks, After School, Recreation and Community Services department only gets $50,000?!
This is absolutely absurd. We need to be supporting families and communities with resources, not criminalizing them.
I urge the City of Fresno to invest in systems of care and reject systems of harm.
I ask the Council and Mayor to NOT invest nearly $10 million of ARPA funding in police and to instead support real community safety by funding community health and well-being.
Funding needs to go towards housing stabilization, emergency cash assistance, youth and community resilience centers, infrastructure projects, free and on-demand rapid COVID-19 testing, vaccines, N95 masks, and other PPE, and health and wellness programs.
Fresnans deserve the opportunity to voice how they want these dollars spent through a participatory budget process and the city should make a diligent, good faith effort to listen to those needs.
I am a student at Sunnyside High school, and I am strongly against the use of ARPA funding for police. The police department in Fresno has continued to get obscene amounts of funding from the city while the community has suffered. This funding is the city's chance to finally invest in the PEOPLE. I urge the council to instead gather community input on how this money should be used. The people of Fresno are the ones who know best what we need, the city needs to listen to us.
I am a resident of district 1, and I oppose the use of ARPA funding for law enforcement in Fresno. This is an opportunity for the city to invest in our community. I believe the funding would be best spent on developing affordable housing.
Hello council members,,
My name is Grisanti Avendaño and I am a Fresno community member. The City of
Fresno is receiving $171 million from the American Rescue Plan Act
(ARPA) to address the unequal impacts of the pandemic.
I urge the council to have a equitable community input process on where those funds should go to . An investment to the police department should not be the option as a city we are going for. Community needs support in other areas and we need to invest in community supports rather than continue investing in FPD that causes more harm than good. We hope you listen to community on this one.
My name is Marissa and I am a Fresno community member. The City of
Fresno is receiving $171 million from the American Rescue Plan Act
(ARPA) to address the unequal impacts of the pandemic.
I urge the council to move these funds to sustain and provide accessible, low cost housing, as well as to mental health services that’s are rooted in harm reduction and youth services.
We have heard time and time again that the community needs and wants these things. The council once again has an opportunity to let voices be acknowledged and to move those voices forward in providing for the community.
I urge city council to conduct a deep community needs assessment and invest these dollars in youth jobs, safe housing and equitable solutions to our city’s injustices. These dollars are an opportunity to invest in our people and should be spent in a way that improves quality of life, addresses racial inequity and provides real community safety.
Dear Councilmembers,
I am a resident of district 7 and I write to oppose the allocation of ARPA funds to Fresno PD. Fresno needs to invest in public health solutions such as housing stabilization, infrastructure projects in South East Fresno, and as a therapist in the making i advocate for mental health and wellness programs to address the disparate outcomes exacerbated by the pandemic.
The city should create a public input process to determine the allocation of the $171 million. This process needs to be fair, transparent, and equitable.
My name is Sharrah Thompson. I am a community leader with multiple organizations, Im a resident, and a single mother of a child that will have a future of going to school here in Fresno. I am opposing this as I feel that there is a much needed approach to spending the funds from ARPA Funding. If we look at the crime rate of domestic violence on the news we can see that there is a need for a larger capacity for the Domestic Violence Shelters and programs (i.e. Stand Up Placer County does a great job in providing for victims). Also, the homeless population continues to grow, opening up more shelters and providing transitional programs for those in need is a great way to lessen the problem. If we work on making the community better and offering the programs, tools, and necessities for people to live here crime wouldn't be such an issue. I as a mother would like to grow and maintain roots here in Fresno but after moving back and seeing how Fresno has declined in their way of serving those who live here its not a place I want to invest in and stay and raise my child. Adding more vehicle and rifles to the force isnt going to change anything if the city doesnt try to take action in getting crime stopped in a preventative way. Housing/shelter, Infrastructure, and ways to assist the people through programs offer a better way to spend this grant dont waste 10 Mil on unnecessary budgeting. Lastly, public comment is imperative.
Dear Councilmembers,
I am a resident of district 2 and I write to oppose the allocation of ARPA funds to Fresno PD. Fresno needs to invest in public health solutions such as housing stabilization, infrastructure projects in South Fresno, and mental health and wellness programs to address the disparate outcomes exacerbated by the pandemic.
The city should create a public input process to determine the allocation of the $171 million. This process needs to be fair, transparent, and equitable.
Dear Council President Chavez and Council members,
My name is Ruben and I am the Policy Advocate for Fresno Barrios Unidos, a youth advocacy organization in district 7. The City of Fresno is receiving $171 million from the American Rescue Plan Act to help address the unequal impacts of the pandemic. we urge the council to create a public process that is equitable, inclusive, and responsive to the needs of young people and their communities that have been hit the hardest by the pandemic.
we urge the City of Fresno to invest in systems of care and reject systems of harm. We ask the Council and Mayor to NOT invest nearly $10 million of ARPA funding in police and to instead support real community safety by funding community health and well-being. The Council should give youth and their communities who have bore the brunt of the pandemic proper funding and allow them to be creative and help them build out communities that will allow youth to thrive and achieve their dreams. We strongly recommend that these dollars go towards housing stabilization such as transitional housing for youth who are coming home from incarceration, low-barrier emergency cash assistance for formerly incarcerated youth who are trying to get back into their communities, and for the community, youth, and community resilience centers, free and on-demand rapid COVID-19 testing, vaccines, N95 masks, and other PPE, and health and wellness programs.
Dear Council President Chavez and Council members,
My name is Alexandros Acedo and I am a Fresno community member in district 2.
I urge the council to create a public process that is equitable, inclusive and responsive to the needs of the community who have been hit the hardest by the pandemic.
Why is it that in this budget the the police get about $10,000,000 (10 million) while the Parks, After School, Recreation and Community Services department only gets $50,000?!
This is absolutely absurd. We need to be supporting families and communities with resources, not criminalizing them.
I urge the City of Fresno to invest in systems of care and reject systems of harm.
I ask the Council and Mayor to NOT invest nearly $10 million of ARPA funding in police and to instead support real community safety by funding community health and well-being.
Funding needs to go towards housing stabilization, emergency cash assistance, youth and community resilience centers, infrastructure projects, free and on-demand rapid COVID-19 testing, vaccines, N95 masks, and other PPE, and health and wellness programs.
Fresnans deserve the opportunity to voice how they want these dollars spent through a participatory budget process and the city should make a diligent, good faith effort to listen to those needs.
The allocation of these resources should go to help the communities get better, not the officers that don’t even live in the communities they police.
I am a student at Sunnyside High school, and I am strongly against the use of ARPA funding for police. The police department in Fresno has continued to get obscene amounts of funding from the city while the community has suffered. This funding is the city's chance to finally invest in the PEOPLE. I urge the council to instead gather community input on how this money should be used. The people of Fresno are the ones who know best what we need, the city needs to listen to us.
I am a resident of district 1, and I oppose the use of ARPA funding for law enforcement in Fresno. This is an opportunity for the city to invest in our community. I believe the funding would be best spent on developing affordable housing.
Hello council members,,
My name is Grisanti Avendaño and I am a Fresno community member. The City of
Fresno is receiving $171 million from the American Rescue Plan Act
(ARPA) to address the unequal impacts of the pandemic.
I urge the council to have a equitable community input process on where those funds should go to . An investment to the police department should not be the option as a city we are going for. Community needs support in other areas and we need to invest in community supports rather than continue investing in FPD that causes more harm than good. We hope you listen to community on this one.
My name is Marissa and I am a Fresno community member. The City of
Fresno is receiving $171 million from the American Rescue Plan Act
(ARPA) to address the unequal impacts of the pandemic.
I urge the council to move these funds to sustain and provide accessible, low cost housing, as well as to mental health services that’s are rooted in harm reduction and youth services.
We have heard time and time again that the community needs and wants these things. The council once again has an opportunity to let voices be acknowledged and to move those voices forward in providing for the community.
I urge city council to conduct a deep community needs assessment and invest these dollars in youth jobs, safe housing and equitable solutions to our city’s injustices. These dollars are an opportunity to invest in our people and should be spent in a way that improves quality of life, addresses racial inequity and provides real community safety.
Dear Councilmembers,
I am a resident of district 7 and I write to oppose the allocation of ARPA funds to Fresno PD. Fresno needs to invest in public health solutions such as housing stabilization, infrastructure projects in South East Fresno, and as a therapist in the making i advocate for mental health and wellness programs to address the disparate outcomes exacerbated by the pandemic.
The city should create a public input process to determine the allocation of the $171 million. This process needs to be fair, transparent, and equitable.
My name is Sharrah Thompson. I am a community leader with multiple organizations, Im a resident, and a single mother of a child that will have a future of going to school here in Fresno. I am opposing this as I feel that there is a much needed approach to spending the funds from ARPA Funding. If we look at the crime rate of domestic violence on the news we can see that there is a need for a larger capacity for the Domestic Violence Shelters and programs (i.e. Stand Up Placer County does a great job in providing for victims). Also, the homeless population continues to grow, opening up more shelters and providing transitional programs for those in need is a great way to lessen the problem. If we work on making the community better and offering the programs, tools, and necessities for people to live here crime wouldn't be such an issue. I as a mother would like to grow and maintain roots here in Fresno but after moving back and seeing how Fresno has declined in their way of serving those who live here its not a place I want to invest in and stay and raise my child. Adding more vehicle and rifles to the force isnt going to change anything if the city doesnt try to take action in getting crime stopped in a preventative way. Housing/shelter, Infrastructure, and ways to assist the people through programs offer a better way to spend this grant dont waste 10 Mil on unnecessary budgeting. Lastly, public comment is imperative.
Dear Councilmembers,
I am a resident of district 2 and I write to oppose the allocation of ARPA funds to Fresno PD. Fresno needs to invest in public health solutions such as housing stabilization, infrastructure projects in South Fresno, and mental health and wellness programs to address the disparate outcomes exacerbated by the pandemic.
The city should create a public input process to determine the allocation of the $171 million. This process needs to be fair, transparent, and equitable.
Dear Council President Chavez and Council members,
My name is Ruben and I am the Policy Advocate for Fresno Barrios Unidos, a youth advocacy organization in district 7. The City of Fresno is receiving $171 million from the American Rescue Plan Act to help address the unequal impacts of the pandemic. we urge the council to create a public process that is equitable, inclusive, and responsive to the needs of young people and their communities that have been hit the hardest by the pandemic.
we urge the City of Fresno to invest in systems of care and reject systems of harm. We ask the Council and Mayor to NOT invest nearly $10 million of ARPA funding in police and to instead support real community safety by funding community health and well-being. The Council should give youth and their communities who have bore the brunt of the pandemic proper funding and allow them to be creative and help them build out communities that will allow youth to thrive and achieve their dreams. We strongly recommend that these dollars go towards housing stabilization such as transitional housing for youth who are coming home from incarceration, low-barrier emergency cash assistance for formerly incarcerated youth who are trying to get back into their communities, and for the community, youth, and community resilience centers, free and on-demand rapid COVID-19 testing, vaccines, N95 masks, and other PPE, and health and wellness programs.
Why is so much being given to the police department? What about our health and safety?