Seaside public safety has improved tremendously in the two decades I have lived in the City.  Violent, drug-related and property crime statistics show they are a small fraction of what we suffered in Seaside during the 1990s.

This is partially attributable to improved policing (including a now fully staffed Police Department) and until recently, also to a larger, better Seaside economy which indirectly discouraged crime by providing gainful, legal employment opportunities for all people.

With the housing crisis in full swing and with numerous developments not compelled to pay their fair share of needed public amenities such as police and fire stations, we are unfortunately at great risk of loosing many of these advances.

Since about 2008 Seaside is, for example, again experiencing an explosion of graffiti affecting commercial and residential properties as well as City owned properties, including parks.  This was a leading indicator that more crime problems were (and are?) headed our way.  Indeed, in 2009 there seems to have been an increase in violent crime.

What’s of even greater concern is that the Police Department has ostensibly been micromanaged by the City Manager’s office, leading to additional financial stress on the City and a host of embarrassing press in from August 2009 until well into 2010.  The deplorable situation is chronicled here.

More recently, the City undertook a plan to participate in a Joint Powers Authority (JPA) for fire and emergency medical protection.  Cost cutting and community based measures like this are good in concept, but the JPA in its early form (note: these problems are not yet fully corrected) would have ceded significant command authority and, possibly, financial benefits to the City of Monterey at the expense of Seaside.  Fire Department JPA developments are chronicled here.

Proposed Solutions:

Ensure adequate funding for Police and Fire Departments to ensure proper staffing, training and physical resources.  This is best handled by appropriate fiscal responsibility on the part of the Council, which should immediately clarify consistent standards for what considerations and participation is expected of all development projects.

It should not be necessary to further increase the tax burden on Seaside residents if we make intelligent development decisions that benefit all stakeholders and not just a few special interests.

There are also significant non-traditional aspects of public safety that need to be taken into account at multiple levels.  One of the most obvious is the need to eradicate gang presence.  Uncombated graffiti gives gangs a sense of turf entitlement.  Graffiti can be fairly easily dealt with tools other than police involvement.

One proactive step would be to encourage (or even require) new developments and significant remodels to paint exteriors with graffiti resistant paint or use other graffiti resistant building methods and materials.

The property maintenance ordinance must also be uniformly and swiftly enforced, particularly with regards to graffiti removal.

The police and fire departments must also continue their school outreach programs.  We should consider expanding with similar programs to educate Seaside residents and business people regarding public safety offerings in the community.  These types of programs will reinforce the reality that Seaside is well protected and that public safety employees are our partners in keeping the community safe and helping to improve it.

 

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