Did anyone else find it remarkable that Santa Monica's budget passed this year with nary a cross word about our city's neighborhood groups?

Last year, after contentious debate, a bare Council majority dramatically and unexpectedly cut support for neighborhood organizing to zero. The assumption seemed that those pesky grass-roots neighborhood organizations would wither and die.

Instead, a June full of Santa Monica neighborhood group annual congresses has just ended with a chorus of success stories. Also last month, I helped former Recreation and Parks Commissioner Doris Sosin organize the first-ever North of Montana Association of neighbors.

What went right?

It turns out democracy is messy (for that unfriendly council majority, apparently) but exhilarating (from the grass-roots). The withdrawal of funding backlashed into a renewed outpouring of volunteer vigor.

Had too much staffing and easily-available support turned local activists into "passive-ists"? Well, the action is back.

Four existing neighborhood groups formed shared committees, the most successful of which addressed our city's need for more parks. Although the city budget continues to include a disappointingly small, thus ineffective, set-aside for park purchasing, neighborhood representatives worked with City staff on creative implementation of the new Recreation and Parks Master Plan.

My own Wilshire/Montana Neighborhood Coalition forged new links to cooperate on shared challenges. Working with the Chamber of Commerce, St. Monica's Church, the Downtown Business District and the City, we're focusing on parking solutions in the vicinity of Reed (formerly Lincoln) Park.

Community participation actually has been enhanced by the challenge of organizing without previous levels of city support, but for this new energy to remain sustainable, wide knowledge of involvement opportunities is essential.

The City of Santa Monica has stepped in to help appropriately. Resident-driven volunteer work on issues and mobilizing will remain core, but the new budget quietly provides for neighborhood group communications, limited to periodic informational outreach.

There are now six active neighborhood groups in Santa Monica: Wilshire/Montana, Mid-City, Pico, Ocean Park, Sunset Park and the new North of Montana Association. We have no paid staff, nor do we ask for any, so we need volunteers like you who care about the city we live in.

All it takes is a phone call: 450-5578. No tax dollars were harmed in the writing of this letter.

Kevin McKeown
(kevin@mckeown.net)
Chair, Wilshire/Montana Neighborhood Coalition
Santa Monica

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