Dear Santa Monica,
As a longtime resident, Recreation and Parks Commissioner, and Board member of the Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Coalition (Wilmont), I’m reaching out to you with strong conviction about why the Santa Monica City Council should continue its modest but essential funding for neighborhood groups.
If they kill us, cut us or shackle us, everyone loses.
Wilmont (www.Wilmont.org) is one of seven city-recognized neighborhood organizations. We’ve been around since 1990, older than some current Council members. Every council for the past 35 years has supported us, worked with us and respected us. Contrast that with certain members of the current council, who almost killed our funding just two weeks ago. Our 100% volunteer-powered organization has always worked not with fanfare or partisanship, but with steady grassroots dedication to our neighborhoods and our city. Our primary mission is to increase civic engagement, strengthen community ties, and bring understanding and information to our members, neighbors and friends.
Thanks to just $7,000 a year from the city, Wilmont and six other neighborhood groups host monthly zoom meetings that give city officials simple and convenient forums to reach residents about programs, issues and concerns. Wilmont also hosts neighborhood-building events such as our three “Second Saturdays” (Aug. 9th, Sept. 13th and October 11th) featuring free live music and movies for kids at Reed Park. We host yoga or tai-chi every Saturday at 8 a.m. Our Summer Finale last September was our biggest ever. City officials attended and good things kept happening. The city found money to reopen the Miles Playhouse. SMPD stepped up its presence at Reed. And now the city is preparing to hold the Annual State of the City Address there, kicking off a series of events celebrating Santa Monica’s 150th Birthday. I don’t think it would be happening if not for Wilmont and others.
And we do more. We send timely emails about city issues and council agenda items. We maintain a professional website with current news, city contact information and info about local events. Every current Council member has attended our meetings, along with city staff from virtually every city department. If Council eliminates, reduces or handcuffs funding for the Neighborhood Grant Program, some neighborhood groups may not survive.
In the coming days and weeks, certain Council members will be telling you all about how they admire and support neighborhood groups, resident input and public discourse. When they do, please remember this… They were going to cut our funding just two weeks ago. Only a last-ditch effort by a handful of residents, and the eloquent guidance and leadership of Santa Monica’s Police Chief, convinced a 4-3 majority of Council members to keep neighborhood groups alive.
Now some Council members are gunning for us again.
Why? Well, the most obvious reason is the smallest neighborhood group decided to endorse four other Council candidates last November.
Wilmont has never endorsed Council candidates, even though the IRS says we and most of the groups are “501(c) 4” non-profits, which are allowed to do so. Our main goal is to inform, enlighten, discuss and explain city issues to our members and residents. We’ve always followed the rules and provided receipts to account for every penny of the $7,000 dollar grant we receive each year.
I wish the Council gave the rest of its $800-million dollar budget such scrutiny and attention. Perhaps they should be focusing their magnifying glass on the many real and pressing challenges and problems bombarding our city every day.
Why IS this City Council the first in 35 years to make such a big stink about funding neighborhood groups? They even took the rare step of releasing a statement to the media, claiming it’s all about issues like fairness and accountability.
A certain guy in the White House is always saying the same thing and I don’t believe him either.
Sincerely,
John Cyrus Smith,
Wilmont Board Member and Santa Monica Recreation and Parks Commissioner