East LA residents overwhelmingly support a community council

This story first appeared on The LA Local.

An overwhelming majority of East Los Angeles residents who participated in a series of community forums support creating a local community council, according to an interim report released this week that details the community’s priorities.  

The report, produced by the Los Angeles Economic Equity Accelerator and Fellowship (LEEAF), summarizes six community meetings held between February and June as Los Angeles County explores new forms of local governance for the unincorporated community of nearly 120,000 people.

Among the findings, 93% of participants supported establishing a community council, either a town council or Municipal Advisory Council (MAC), to give residents a stronger voice in county government. Another 95% said council members should be elected rather than appointed. 

Across more than 300 participants and 200 written comments, transparency and trust were the most frequently raised concerns. Issues around public safety, including homelessness and police reform, ranked as the second most common concern from the thousands of conversations prompted by the report’s research. Uplifting East L.A’.s residents’ political voice and influence was also among the top concerns. 

The report also details several governance models, including a county-recognized MAC or an independently organized town council. LEEAF estimates a startup cost of a community council to be around $13,500 with an annual, running cost of about $33,000 a year.  

“Founding a community council that genuinely serves the people of East L.A. would be a major step toward advancing political voice and equitable power in East L.A. – and putting East L.A. in the lead of a movement to open opportunity and amplify voice throughout the county and beyond,” the report reads.

Visions for a community council

Community members also suggested alternative models, The Republic of East Los Angeles and Neighborhood Councils for East L.A.

The Republic of East Los Angeles calls for an elected town council with authority over local infrastructure, services, and development and was framed as a first step toward full incorporation as an independent city.

The proposal also called for community control of the Sheriff’s office serving East L.A. and an annual itemized budget detailing tax sources, county contracts or associated salaries with a council of its type.

Neighborhood Councils for East L.A. proposes a system of multiple advisory councils, each with 15 to 21 members, modeled on the existing Los Angeles Neighborhood Councils system. Participants consistently emphasized the need for neighborhood-based representation to address each community’s unique needs.

Representing the community 

Residents also emphasized accountability. More than half of participants said any future council should have regular and responsive public oversight.

More than half also said “an effective council should bring real resources to East L.A., with programs like youth activities and public health support mentioned roughly twice as often as funding alone.”

About 61% of community members suggested that members of a council should be residents, while another 22% noted a “long term connection to the community” should be a characteristic of any council member. 

One community member quoted in the report said they want to see the next generation of leaders in East L.A. include a wide demographic of residents.

“I want to make sure groups that know about the area…are included in conversations. There is so much talent and so many people who want to be involved.”

What’s next?

LEEAF will hold two public feedback meetings next month before submitting a final report to L.A. County. The meetings will be held on:

• Aug. 8 at 2 p.m. at Garfield High School, 5101 E. 6th St., East Los Angeles.
• Aug.15 at 10:30 a.m. at Salazar Park, 3864 Whittier Blvd., Los Angeles.

The meetings will sharpen the results from the report while offering a chance for community members to refine and guide its priorities, according to an email from a LEEAF representative. 

A virtual question and answer session about the interim report will be held July 29 at 4:30 p.m. RSVP here.