The push to halt handouts
CITYWIDE — In efforts to get everyone on the same page when it comes to City Hall’s strategies to combat homelessness, city staff has teamed up with business leaders and the Convention and Visitors Bureau to launch a new information card people can use to help the down and out find shelter and other services.
If a homeless person needs medical attention, a hot shower, medicine or is committing a crime, all people will have to do is pull out their wallet-size cards and look for the appropriate number, city officials said.
“We wanted something that was more widespread so residents and businesses had an understanding of what services are out there and if they felt the need to help homeless individuals, they know where to go,” said Mona Miyasato, acting human services manager at City Hall.
“The bottom line is we would like people to not enable homeless people to continue to live on the street,” Miyasato added. “That is not good for the individual nor for themselves. We want people to help in proactive ways by linking homeless to services and letting residents and others know that if they want to give money, they should give to those agencies that are providing these services and not just give a handout.”
City Hall spent close to $1,500 printing 10,000 information cards, which can also be downloaded off the city’s Web site, www.santa-monica.org, Miyasato said. There are larger cards as well as the wallet-size ones. The cards are available at select locations throughout the city, including City Hall.
The cards read: “We’re in it together.” The Chamber of Commerce, in conjunction with the Conventions and Visitors Bureau (CVB), printed 7,500 cards of their own and 2,500 wallet-sized cards. They mailed them out to members and are distributing them at the chamber and CVB. The cost was just under $2,200, which included mailings, and another $250 for the wallet-size cards.
“We certainly hope it was a good investment,” Kathy Dodson, president of the chamber said. “We feel it is really important to get everyone working together to deal with homelessness. We wanted to give people a solution because so many times they don’t know what they are supposed to do when they come in contact with someone who is homeless and in need of help.”
Miyasato said the cards have been distributed widely and she is considering ordering another batch.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on April 22, 2006. Read the original PDF.