Money's list for 2017 takes into account a healthy economy, affordable homes, and a high quality of life.

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SANTA MONICA, CA – Santa Monica has made Money's list of the best places to live in America – are you surprised? Coming in at number 18 out of 100, the website sites the accessibility of the coast, gorgeous views, the walkability and environmentally conscious efforts of the local bike share program. In addition to the perfect weather, its high school graduation is 92% and Moody's Analytics predicts continued job growth in the area through 2021, according to Money.

The median home price in Santa Monica is $533,083, and the median household income is $82,963, according to Money.

Read More:  https://patch.com/california/santamonica/santa-monica-top-100-best-places-live-u-s

AND: https://www.surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2017/September-2017/09_20_2017_Santa_Monica_Ranked_18th_in_Money_Magazines_Top_100_Best_Places_to_Live.html

To read more about the study or to read the rest of the list: http://time.com/money/collection/best-places-to-live-2017/

By David Pisarra

There’s an epidemic of Hepatitis A going on in San Diego and if we’re not proactive, it could be just as bad here. We have a huge homeless population, and if they’re not using bathrooms on a regular basis it could become a health hazard for our city.

I know that port-a-potties are unsightly and expensive. But good lord we have to do something to address these health issues that we are facing. We pay a huge amount of money in social support to services like Samoshel, and Ocean Park Community Center to provide services to the homeless and they need to tapped for solutions.

Read More: http://smdp.com/homeless-hygiene-requires-city-action-immediately/162582

BY LEA YAMASHIO AND MATTHEW HALL
Daily Press Staff

City Hall has released the second draft of the City’s Wellbeing Index and the results are similar to the inaugural findings: life in Santa Monica is pretty good but there are still areas to be improved.

The index measures six dimensions, Outlook (tracking social media commentary on life), Community (how residents involve themselves in local issues), Place and Planet (feelings on open space, buildings and social environment), Learning (academic and life experience), Health (how healthy people feel and the resources available to help them) and Economic Opportunity (the ability of residents to improve their economic situation).

Read More:http://smdp.com/wellbeing-index-issues-second-set-of-findings/162598

Despite all the housing-related proposals in Sacramento, lawmakers have apparently yet to learn that more government involvement, making housing more expensive and less profitable, is never going to solve the state’s housing affordability problems.

Discussions of housing oftentimes tend to focus on single-family developments or other types of housing for purchase, and neglect rental properties, which is unfortunate, since rentals make up nearly half of the housing stock in California.

Read More: http://www.sgvtribune.com/opinion/20170915/rent-control-defies-basic-economics

September 15, 2017 -- -- A bill authored by Santa Monica Assemblymember Richard Bloom that would channel more money to local governments to finance construction of affordable housing was appproved by the State Senate this week.

AB 1568 -- which allows local governments to use new sales tax and increased property tax revenue to finance infrastructure improvement projects -- passed out of the Senate on a 29-11 vote on Wednesday.

Read More: https://actiontakesaction.com/admin/website/system-pages/?pageId=1837908

From Elaine Golden-Gealer

How To Handle Homeless Individual On or Around Your Property

There have been a lot of back and forth's about homeless individuals on SM homeowner property (storing things in lockers, sitting in driveways etc)... here is some new info I have not seen shared. I just spoke with two very nice SMPD officers who instructed me to fill out an online form due to a homeless individual on my property.

He had left the area by the time they arrived and should he return without me being present, the form gives them authorization to treat him/her as a trespasser. So, if you have a homeless person on your property this is what SMPD recommends you do:

1) Call the SMPD non-emergency line 310-395-9931 to report the individual to officers. Or call 911 if you are in danger.

2) Fill out this form: https://www.santamonicapd.org/trespass/

3) They gave me badge # 3486 to put on the form.

4) Call 310-458-8953 to inform the homeless team about the individual and let them know you completed the form. I am told they send teams to follow up on these written requests. 5) Hope that our hard earned tax dollars go to work. 

Some 1,000 homeless people live on Santa Monica’s streets, without a guarantee of a warm bed or roof over their head. It is a social problem that is region, state, and nation wide, affecting communities large and small, urban, and beachfront.

The City clearly recognizes the severity of the issue and in many ways, and at many levels, continues to make monumental efforts to find solutions to help alleviate the numbers of individuals that are living on the streets, in their cars or in shelters, but unfortunately without major successes. As such the homeless population in Santa Monica rose some 26 percent this past year alone.

Read More: https://smmirror.com/2017/09/sma-r-t-gimme-shelter-borrow-phrase/

September 13, 2017 -- The Santa Monica City Council Tuesday approved the creation of a full-time senior advisor for homelessness, agreeing to allocate $320,159 over two years for the job.

Reacting to a 26 percent jump in the population of homeless people -- including a 40 percent jump in those living on the streets -- the council voted unanimously and without discussion for the position in City Manager Rick Cole’s office.

Read More:  https://www.surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2017/September-2017/09_14_2017_Santa_Monica_City_Council_Approves_New_Post_of_Senior_Advisor_on_Homelessness.html

On Tuesday, September 26, 2017, at 11 a.m., the Santa Monica City Clerk and LA County Clerk will host a National Voter Registration Day event at City Hall and introduce LA County’s new voting system. That evening, the LA County Clerk will give a presentation to City Council on the future of voting.

Read More: https://smmirror.com/2017/09/september-26th-national-voter-registration-day/

Launching September 13, City Rising is a multimedia documentary program that traces gentrification and displacement through a lens of historical discriminatory laws and practices. Fearing the loss of their community’s soul, residents are gathering into a movement, not just in California, but across the nation as the rights to property, home, community and the city are taking center stage in a local and global debate.

In 2016, residents in five Bay Area cities went to the ballot to pass new rent control and eviction protection laws, including a successful effort in Mountain View, the home of Google. Earlier in the year, the City Council in Santa Rosa, just north of San Francisco, passed the first of these ordinances that California has seen in three decades, thanks to a sustained community organizing effort.

Read More: https://www.kcet.org/shows/city-rising/the-new-tenant-movement-for-housing-justice

Watch at: https://www.kcet.org/shows/city-rising