By Susan Motander
According to City Manager Oliver Chi’s weekly report, the Monrovia City Council will be presented with the staff recommendations regarding the homeless in Monrovia and especially in the Old Town area. According to that report the city staff has been working for several months to develop the strategies for address this issue. The work was done in conjunction with the Homelessness and Park Conduct Committee. The following are the recommendations that will be presented to the council next Tuesday, April 5.
The first is to purchase and install video surveillance cameras for every park and water facility in Monrovia. This is being presented to the council for approval next week.
The second recommendation is to establish “special” Old Town Monrovia police patrols using both bicycles and the T3 electric standup police vehicle. These patrols should be operational within the next few weeks.
The third is to enhance Park Ranger patrols of Library Park in Old Town as well. Currently the rangers only patrol in Friday evenings during the Street Fair. City staff is considering expanding their use to provide an additional “presence in our downtown core,” per the city manager’s report.
In addition to all this, the staff of the Community Services division has been studying how the city can better assist the homeless. One staff member has been tasked with being the liaison responsible for “serving as a conduit to connect those in need with homelessness service providers.”
Again, according to Chi’s report the city plans “on discussing our overall strategies with the City Council on April 5, 2016, and we will continue to assess the options available for addressing the complex issue homelessness.”