How LA can tackle homelessness with Measure H funds, GOP abortion clause makes CA health insurance ineligible for subsidies, Descanso Gardens Cherry Blossom Festival
How would you spend the money from measures H and HHH?
Los Angeles County voters on Tuesday gave the green light to a quarter-cent sales tax increase intended to raise an estimated $355 million a year to pay for an ambitious plan to battle homelessness.
The vote follows the approval last November of an L.A. city ballot measure to issue $1.2 billion in bonds to fund the construction of homes and shelters.
With the cash in hand, how should it be spent?
"It's the first step towards ultimate victory," said Rev. Andy Bales from Union Rescue Mission. "Don't feel like, 'Hey, we've crossed the finish line.'"
Stephanie Klasky-Gamer of Los Angeles Family Housing added, "Because it's all so new, it's a bit of building the plane as we're flying it that's going to happen."
Take Two talked with these two advocates for the homeless about how they would like to see taxpayers' money spent, and how the process will work.
Who is making the decisions?
For H, the county measure that funds services, a panel of 50 people who will have a say.
Reverend Bales is a part of that, and the money will be handed out to homeless providers and certain L.A. County departments.
The money from L.A. city's Measure HHH will be overseen by a committee too.
But while the city committee holds the purse strings, it will be service providers such as Los Angeles Family Housing that do all the actual building.
What's the timeline for how the money will be rolled out?
Officials are figuring that out now.
In the past couple of weeks — about four months after Measure HHH was approved in November — L.A. city asked homeless services providers to submit plans for new homes, shelters or facilities.
If they're approved by the panel, those providers could get a slice of the $1.2 billion. They have until this Friday to get those applications in.
Bales expects L.A. County will follow a similar timeline when it comes to money raised through Measure H — it will be about four months from now until providers can start applying for money.
What kinds of services can Measure H fund?
A lot. One example is called a "warm referral."
Let's say someone in prison is about to be released, or someone's been hospitalized and they're about to be discharged. That person might not have a home to go to.
"A case manager's going to come right into the hospital and work with that person," Bales said. "You don't just get a slip of paper. Someone's going to work with you to make sure that there's a warm hand-off' to another human being."
So that case worker is a stopgap to make sure the homeless person finds a place to live instead of heading to the streets.
Programs like this already exist, but in a limited form.
"With the passage of H, what it allows us to do is expand that system," Klasky-Gamer said. "We know that it works. H is allowing us to scale that up."
What kinds of housing can Measure HHH fund?
There are city-owned plots of land throughout Los Angeles, and officials invited homeless service providers like Los Angeles Family Housing to come up with projects to build on those sites.
"They are across the city, from the Westside to the San Fernando Valley, from South L.A. to East L.A.," Klasky-Gamer said.
If a provider is approved, it will get some of that $1.2 billion from November's Measure HHH.
But that's only the first step.
"The funds that were approved through HHH, that only represents about 30 percent of the financing we need on every building that gets built," Klasky-Gamer said.
However, a service provider can get the rest of the money it needs by turning to state and federal programs. The money from HHH can give a leg up in that process.
What else is on their wish lists?
"I would like to take over an empty hospital and open it up as quickly as I could for 24-7 comprehensive care, but shelter," Bales said. "It would be a lot better if the county would lease us an empty hospital for $1 and we could immediately house people and get them off the streets."
"Finding deeper rental subsidies, so when [homeless people] find permanent housing — apartments for them to rent — we can subsidize their low-wage earnings," Klasky-Gamer said. "The majority of our families are working. They're just earning such low wages that they can't afford a typical rent in L.A."
How can taxpayers find out how their money will be spent? How can they have a say in the process?
Start going to your local neighborhood council meetings. A homeless coordinator is assigned to every one.
"We work closely with all the neighborhood councils in our service planning area," Klasky-Gamer said.
She added that her organization will take what residents say in forums like those very seriously.
Also, don't be afraid to reach out directly to providers like Los Angeles Family Housing and the Union Rescue Mission to offer ideas or criticism.
What is a good date to see whether any of this money is making a difference?
"I hope we see some success within the first year," Bales said. "The biggest proof will be how many people you'll be seeing on the streets. Has it decreased? Has it increased?"
Changes won't happen overnight, but both Bales and Klasky-Gamer said to take a look around your neighborhood in March 2018 and tell them if things are different.
Part of the GOP's proposed health bill conflicts with California law
Republicans in the House are moving forward with their health care bill, even as their counterparts in the Senate are urging them to wait until the Congressional Budget Office weighs in on how much the legislation might cost.
There will almost certainly be changes in the initial draft, but one current provision is directly at odds with California law.
Instead of the current subsidies that help low-income people buy insurance, the Republican plan offers tax credits. The current bill says those credits cannot be used to pay for plans that cover abortion. California law, however, requires all policies to do just that.
For more information, Take Two spoke to California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones.
Click on the blue bar above to listen to the entire interview.
Families fleeing violence in Central America could be separated under President Trump
In an appearance on CNN's "The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer," John Kelly, secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, stated that the Trump administration was considering a new tactic to deter families fleeing violence from Central America from coming into the U.S.
Kelly told Blitzer that minors traveling with parents could be separated upon entry.
https://youtu.be/RIpTWHbxxSw?t=7m
No changes have been solidified, but immigrant attorney Lindsay Toczylowski told Take Two's A Martinez that the move is unlikely to achieve the result desired by the Trump administration.
Highlights
It sounds like the situation in Central America hasn't improved much at all.
The "Northern Triangle" of Central America — El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras — has continued to be one of the most violent regions on Earth. We continue to see hundreds of kids coming to us who have really suffered great harm and who have been victims of sexual exploitation, of sexual abuse. It's a very dire situation that they're fleeing from.
The Homeland Security secretary, John Kelley, confirmed earlier this week that he's considering separating migrant parents from their kids if they come together as a family. How would that work?
This would be specifically for families who are coming to seek asylum because for them to even have entered family detention under the Obama administration, they would have had to have expressed a credible fear that they thought they might be tortured or persecuted if they returned to their home country.
Specifically, for these families who come here fleeing violence, after they pass that credible fear interview and the parent was detained, it sounds like what Secretary Kelly is suggesting is that they would then detain the parents separately and then send the child to the Office of Refugee Resettlement and immigrant detention centers.
This is something that we have never contemplated before, but I think that it would be extremely harmful to the kids and to the parents if we were to see this happen.
Separating a kid from their parents. Why do you think the administration is considering something like this?
Secretary Kelly's own words were that they see this as a further deterrent. This is language that we've heard before. Initially, family detention was supposed to be a deterrent — something that would prevent people from coming from Central America. But I think this really misses the mark on why people are coming.
What we see are that families are not fleeing to the United States, they're really fleeing because there is just such incredible violence and their lives are at risk. So when we see parents who are coming across the border, the stories that we hear from the children and the parents is that they're really fleeing for their lives. They thought that if they didn't leave their home countries that they would die or their children would die.
It's unclear to me that any sort of mechanism for processing these families would act as a deterrent in the way that the department is suggesting.
Click on the blue bar above to listen to the entire interview.
(Answers have been edited for brevity and clarity.)
What starts at Geneva Motor Show eventually rolls into So Cal
It's 6,000 miles from Los Angeles, but this week, Geneva, Switzerland is center of the universe for cars. The Geneva Motor Show is an exercise in superlatives, debuting some of the fastest, most exclusive, most expensive cars on the planet, most of them built by European manufacturers but destined for Southern California -- a top market for high-end cars from overseas.
Italian sports car maker, Ferrari, debuted its fastest production vehicle ever; the 812 Superfast lives up to its name with a 12-cylinder engine propelling it from 0 to 60 mph in a mere 2.9 seconds. Not to be outdone, Mercedes' luxury division, Maybach, rolled out a super premium version of its coveted G wagon; the German Mercedes-Maybach G650 Landaulet off roader has reclining seats, cup holders that can cool and heat drinks and retractable partition glass between the front and rear seats. Just 99 will be made.
If the cars themselves seem a bit out of this world, the French firm Airbus showed a concept that literally takes to the skies. A combination car, drone and train, the concept can be driven like a car and, when parked, the cabin is lifted off its wheels by a drone, converting it into a quasi helicopter that transports the cabin to a rail line, where it operates like the car of a train.
Click on the blue bar above to listen to the interview with motor critic Sue Carpenter
Spring comes early for Descanso Gardens' cherry blossoms
The official start of spring may still be week or so away but at Descanso Gardens, the cherry trees are already in full splendor. Imagine a 25-foot-tree with flowers of every shade of pink blooming directly off dark branches– delicate image of loveliness made ever more precious by its temporary presence. For fans of the arborous beauties, this time of year evokes a contemplative sense of wonder.
"They really remind us of the ephemeral nature of life," says Cam Hall who's been a loyal visitor to Descanso Gardens for 40 years. "I just think they're so magical and poetic to look at. And very fragile like most of the important things in life. We need to relish them."
Celebrated for their dramatic, colorful, annual blooms, the cherry blossoms inspired Descanso to launch a Cherry Blossom Festival some years ago. It includes various activities celebrating Japanese culture through food, music, and art.
The two week event has become so popular, tickets to the weekend festivities sell out fast. Last year's festival was so highly attended it created a traffic fiasco for the surrounding La Cañada Flintridge community. So this year, you won't be able to get in on a weekend without a ticket purchased in advance. But don't worry, Descanso is open on weekdays and the fruit trees will continue to blossom for a few more weeks.
"They are deciduous so they lose their leaves in the winter time," said Rachel Young, Director of Horticulture and Garden Operations at Descanso Gardens. "It really reminds you of the seasons of the year."
Flowering cherry trees differ from the fruiting trees so you won't be able to pick any cherries for snacking. They originated in Japan and were planted for public enjoyment by the Shogun in the 17th century. "As cities grew more and more developed and there were less natural spaces to spend their time, the Shoguns started planting cherry trees along the riverbed so they could spend time there and enjoy the spring," explained Young who leads guided walks through the blossoming trees for visitors. The tree's history of providing natural beauty for the public to enjoy resonates especially for her as folks from all over Los Angeles flock to Descanso to take in their annual floral display.
Cherry trees at Descanso date back to the very beginning of the once private estate turned public garden. "We have over 60 trees and 9 varieties of cherries, " said Young. You can find them in the Japanese Garden among other places. "We have anther 15 varieties of flowering fruit trees that are related to cherry trees like apricots and plums." The other various fruit trees also give off an impressive annual bloom. Truth be told, most untrained eyes can't tell the difference between them so all together, the blossoms coalesce to create a wholly vernal experience.
The drought and subsequent rainy winter we've had make this year a bit unique for Descanso. "We're just having an incredible year for all the plants and flowers, " said Young. "The rain and cold weather means the flowers are lasting longer. So if you come to Descanso right now, you'll see both cherry and other fruit trees blooming and you'll also still see thousands and thousands of camellias in bloom. Even the tulips are starting this week."
More and more #tulips are starting to bloom along the Promenade 🌷🌷🌷 #exploredescanso pic.twitter.com/IiYIXvYaji
— Descanso Gardens (@DescansoGardens) March 4, 2017
You can even catch a guided walk today and tomorrow at 1pm.
Our Cherry Blossom Walks start today! Join us at 1pm March 6–10 to see #cherryblossoms and other blooming beauties pic.twitter.com/HahjGExKX2
— Descanso Gardens (@DescansoGardens) March 6, 2017
Want to plant your visit? General admission is $9. It's located at 1418 Descanso Drive, La Cañada Flintridge.
If you want to hear Take Two's Julia Paskin's trip to Descanso Gardens for a peek at their Cherry Blossom Festival, click on the blue Media Player above.