Mayor's Corner: A city divided will not stand

A collection of former Downey mayors recently gathered for a photo at the Downey Civic Center, including Mayor Bob Davila (1985-86), Mayor Roy L. Paul (1990-91), Mayor Gary P. McCaughan 1995-96, 1998-99), Mayor Keith McCarthy (1999-2000), Mayor Rick Trejo (2002-03, 2006-07), Mayor Kirk O. Cartozian (2003-04), Mayor Mario A. Guerra (2008-09, 2012-13), Mayor Roger Brossmer (2011-12), Mayor Fernando Vasquez (2013-14, 2016-17), Mayor Alex Saab (2015-16), Mayor Sean Ashton (2017-18), Mayor Blanca Pacheco (2019-20), Mayor Claudia M. Frometa (2020-21).

Dear Downey, these words have been uttered before, and these days, they ring truer than ever, “A Nation Divided Will Not Stand.” Similarly, a City Divided Will Not Stand.

It has been said by members of the greatest generation that when real Democrats and Republicans were running our country, we didn’t hate each other. We didn’t vote for parties. We voted for ideas that came from both parties that made us better as a country. We didn’t label ideas or parties as racist, sexist, or un-American. We did what was best for “WE THE PEOPLE.”

What has made our City of Downey the aspirational city it is, is the nonpartisan councils that have led before us. Historically, this city has been a beacon of progress, with a nonpartisan council leading the charge. As we continue to celebrate Downey’s 65th anniversary, let us remember that real leadership is putting political parties aside and focusing on ideas to move our communities and country forward for the benefit of ALL people.

The spectacle of today’s national political climate filled with hatred, division, retaliation, and personal agendas, has made its way to our regions and communities. Rest assured, my commitment to you, Downey, as your Mayor is that I will continue to lead this city with integrity, respect and transparency, placing the needs of WE THE PEOPLE as my priority.

I often say engaged communities are strong communities. In fact, I’ve said it so often since winning my election in 2018 that it is now part of my hashtags on social media. I want to encourage you and invite you to attend our city council meetings and share your thoughts and concerns with us. The meetings are held on the 2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month at 6:30 pm in our Council Chambers at City Hall.

Too often, only the voices of a few people, most of which do not live in Downey and are not involved in our city, are the voices that echo throughout our council chambers. These few voices continue to misrepresent facts, engage in character assassination, and make a spectacle of our government proceedings, painting an erroneous narrative of Downey. Civility matters to me, and I hope you will consider attending our council meetings. Your voices matter!

On another note, I hope you have enjoyed the summer months and are getting ready for the Fall season right around the corner. It is hard to believe we are four months away from closing out this year, and while we had hoped for a return to normalcy, Covid-19 and the Delta variant continue to impact our unvaccinated population.

The good news for Downey, according to the latest figures released by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (as of Aug. 19) indicate the vaccination rate for Downey residents 12 years of age and older is now 73.1%. For adults 65 years of age and older, it is now 91.2%.

I hope you will consider vaccination. Our goal in Downey is to surpass 75% before the end of summer and the return to fall and flu season, and we are almost there! Let’s keep on increasing our vaccination rate for everyone’s safety.

Please call the L.A. County Department of Public Health Vaccine Center at 833-540-0473. The call center is open daily from 8:30 am to 8:30 pm. Information is available in multiple languages by calling 2-1-1, 24 hours a day, 7 days per week. For more information, please visit VaccinateLACounty.com.

Fire stations return to full operations: Firefighters at Fire Stations #2 on Imperial Highway and #4 on Florence Avenue provided tours for the public as we held a ribbon-cutting last weekend. The community was invited to celebrate the reopening of the new state-of-the-art fire stations. Now all four fire stations are back at full operations, providing the service our community has come to expect.

We appreciate our Downey Fire Department for their hard work. We also thank our residents for overwhelmingly passing Measure S that allowed for the renovation of our parks, the rebuilding of our fire stations, and the great renovation of our city library, among other improvements and the hiring of 10 police officers.

My sincere appreciation also to our Downey Police Department for their continued work on public safety and speed enforcement:

As your mayor, public safety is one of my greatest priorities. Since taking office, I have been working closely with our Downey PD. I have asked to increase speed enforcement and focus on street racing activities, including those doing donuts on various parking lots around our city.

If there is street racing in your neighborhood, please report it to Downey PD. If you must report a non-emergency issue, please contact the Downey Police Dispatch at (562) 861-0770.

Rio San Gabriel Park is Undergoing Renovation: Downey, I heard you, this park (a former landfill that closed in 1940) had old and broken irrigation lines, uneven areas, and significant repair is underway for the safety of our residents and youth sports that utilize this park. I filmed a video earlier this week with the Director of Public Works, Delfino Consunji, detailing the work underway. I encourage you to watch it on our city’s social media page, City of Downey Government. The children’s playground remains open, as well as the basketball courts and the dog parks. We anticipate a reopening of the park by early 2022.

Back-to-School giveaways: Thank you to the various churches and non-profit organizations for holding Back-to-School supply drives and backpack giveaways over the last few weeks. A special shout out to President of G.O.O.D (Gangs Out Of Downey) Hector Sosa for his commitment to our community and the 700 backpacks that were given out to our Downey children.

I was also invited to attend the following events held by Downey churches giving several hundred backpacks, school supplies, and clothing to local families and foster children: LEV Church, Calvary Chapel Downey, New Season LA/Downey.

Summer Concerts in the Park at Furman were a great success! We had a fantastic turnout for the Twilight Summer Concert Series on Wednesdays at 7 pm for five weeks through the middle of August. Attendance increased steadily from approximately 500 people to about 900+. During two of the five weeks, a mobile vaccination unit was available to our community, thanks to L.A. County Department of Public Health and Assembly Member Cristina Garcia. The Mayor’s Super Hero Movie Night was also a great success. Thank you to all of you who attended.

ONGOING

Downey’s anti-litter campaign #BINIT: Let’s continue to do our part by putting all trash in its place. To report illegally dumped items to the City of Downey, please call (562) 904-1161. If you would like bulky items removed, please call CalMet at (562) 259-1239 (option 3) and save these numbers on your phone.

Better yet, I’d like to encourage all our Downey residents to download the Downey App on your mobile device. Through this app, you will be able to immediately report illegally dumped items, street repairs, trash, graffiti removal, neighborhood light repairs, etc.

COVID-19 Business and Rental Assistance: There is currently $750,000 in CDBG (Community Development Block Grant) funding available.

For Our Renters: There is $950,000 in funding available. Over $444,000 has been awarded. Currently, we have a 3-month subsidy. New applicants that qualify and go through the process will automatically receive three months’ rental assistance. Those that received one month of assistance previously, please contact our Community Development at (562) 299.6706 or visit our website at www.downeyca.org/rentalassistance.

To clarify, the lengthy application process is mandated by the federal government. Applicants must prove they have been financially impacted by Covid-19.

Regarding California’s Residential Rent Repayment Program: Downey residents can apply for the state rental assistance program through the state website, at: https://housing.ca.gov/covid_rr/program_overview.html#renter

For those of you who would like to get personal assistance, please call the regional office to seek assistance with submitting their state rental assistance program application. The office is located at:

Cal COVID Rent Relief Program
Community Family Service Center
6662 Loveland Street
Bell Gardens, CA 90201
(562) 806-7654

Also, the state has a program hotline for residents and landlords to call for further information or questions/concerns: (833) 430-2122, Monday-Sunday 7 am-7 pm.

Regarding Public Events in Downey: As we welcome summer events and activities, please remember there is a process in Downey to host or hold a public event in any of our parks, especially if vendors are involved, even if this gathering is of religious nature. City permits MUST be acquired, and the event must go through an approval process. To prevent any future event from being canceled and the organizers fined, please visit City Hall to ask about the event permit process.

Thank you, Downey, for allowing me to serve you as Mayor this year. It continues to be a challenging time as I lead on the backdrop of an ongoing pandemic. It is a privilege and an honor to serve you.

I want to extend my appreciation to our city manager, our city staff, Public Works, Community Development, Parks & Recreation, and Downey Police and Fire, who continue to work tirelessly to make Downey the great city it is.

Do not hesitate to contact my office with any questions or concerns at (562) 904-7274 or email me at CFrometa@Downeyca.org I welcome appointments for in-person visits.

You can also follow my Facebook page for regular updates at Claudia M. Frometa Mayor, City of Downey, along with our city’s Facebook page, City of Downey Government Agency, for regular updates.

#DowneyStrong, #EngagedCommunitiesAreStrongCommunities, #ThisIsDowney, #UnitingForce, #MayorFrometa