PACOIMA | PETITION TO RELOCATE HOMELESS S...

<p>To: Council Member Felipe Fuentes</p><p>Council District Seven</p><p>13520 Van Nuys, Suite 209</p><p>Pacoima, CA 91331</p><p><strong>PETITION</strong></p><p><strong><u>RELOCATE HOMELESS SHELTER IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD </u></strong></p><p>We, the residents of Pacoima, petition the city to relocate&nbsp;the emergency homeless shelter of <em>The Greater Community Missionary Baptist Church</em> due to the high crime ramifications it has had on the place we call home.</p><p>In the last year, our community has witnessed changes that have negatively affected our neighborhood, a predominantly residential area, as a result of the decisions that have been made solely by one person (Rev. Dudley Chatman) in our community without regard to the tax paying residents of Pacoima. Although a noble cause; we can no longer stand by and see drug deals, prostitution, and violence consume the streets we have worked hard to move forward so that our families can form a stable safe place for the children of our neighborhood to thrive in. The development of this shelter was not created to service or solve an issue Pacoima was already experiencing; however it was an issue that was uprooted and placed in our neighborhood, a close knit community that has been working hard to bring prosperity to its streets. Those being affected are some of the most vulnerable people in <u>any</u> society:</p><ul><li>Elementary children walking to <em>Pacoima Charter Elementary School</em>.</li><li>The elderly living in the <em>Pledgerville Senior Citizen</em></li><li>Residents whose livelihoods have been affected by this and cannot escape these circumstances.</li><li>Businesses that are losing commerce due to unsafe activity near or in front of their location.</li><li>Women walking to and from the bus stop on Van Nuys and Norris Ave.</li></ul><p><strong><em>NOTE: All of these communal institutions are less than a block away from the shelter where crime is taking place daily. </em></strong></p><p>As a community, we are prepared to do what is necessary in order to gain back the security we once had. We <u>demand that the shelter be closed</u> and require that a consensus be reached with all members of our community on any affairs that impact our way of living in the future.</p><p><strong>Location of Emergency Shelter: The Greater Community Missionary Baptist Church |11066 Norris Ave, Pacoima 91331|&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;Rev. Dudley Chatman</strong></p><p><strong>Funded by: &nbsp;<em>Hope of the Valley Rescue Mission - </em>Ken Craft, CEO</strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Name| Address|Phone#|Signature|</p>