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SR-01-14-2014-8DCity Council Meeting: January 14, 2014 Agenda Item: 6°-D To: Mayor and City Council From: Rod Gould, City Manager Subject: Community Civic Engagement Strategy Recommended Action Staff recommends that the City Council approve the Community Civic Engagement Strategy and direct staff to implement the initiative. Executive Summary In today's fast -paced world, attention spans have shortened and people's free time is limited. Information, both accurate and inaccurate, proliferates quickly. There is a generational gap of people who participate in local government. In order to maintain transparency and ensure that all voices have an opportunity to be heard, it is incumbent upon government to go to people. Civic engagement is an integral component of community life. Yet, local government has been slow to make use of emerging methods of connecting with citizens and promoting participation. Reliance on old models of engagement may mean that some segments of the population are left out of the process. The Community Civic Engagement Strategy (CCES) is a new and comprehensive initiative to experiment with ways to connect with and solicit input from a broad spectrum of the community. The CCES involves assessing the City's current efforts to engage community members; developing a two -year calendar of community activities that complement each other and inform the two -year budget process; providing different opportunities for community members to express their ideas and follow community issues; and designing tools and programs that maximize available resources and are replicable in other cities. The CCES would yield a platform that includes in- person, web - based, social and information media that sustains broad and diverse community involvement in civic affairs. When appropriate, staff would partner with local organizations. With more people informed about city and community issues, greater trust and confidence develops in local decision - making. The work of local governance is then more likely to be successfully completed. Staff would report back to Council with an evaluation of activities and outcomes. 1 Background Over the past four months, staff evaluated interactions between citizens and local government in Santa Monica, researched emerging developments in civic engagement, and best practices for educating, involving, and providing ways for community members to express themselves. Municipalities around the country are experimenting with ways to engage new people in local government. The Institute for Local Government devotes significant resources to collaborative civic engagement research and initiatives as part of their ongoing efforts to promote public confidence in local government. The International City/ County Management Association provides resources and a forum to develop, share and improve civic engagement information and practices. Research indicates civic collaboration not only helps build community, it brings new and more people into civic affairs. With more people informed about city and community issues, greater trust and confidence develops in local decision- making. The work of local governance is then more likely to be successfully completed. A civic engagement strategy should include a range of approaches with different opportunities to connect with as many community partners as possible. It is best practice to develop an integrated platform of in- person, web - based, social and information media that uses the public's ideas and knowledge in appropriate ways given the issues at hand. For example, a civic campaign that involved community partnerships, online resources, workshops and new technology coalesced to reimagine Philadelphia's primary waterfront on the Delaware River. The Citizens League, an independent non - partisan organization that works to effect change in Minnesota public policy, partners with local organizations to host Policy and a Pint — monthly conversations about policy in Minnesota over food and beer. Boston residents volunteer time and energy by shoveling out fire hydrants after major snow storms with the adopt a hydrant app. Candy Chang, a popular Taiwanese - American artist, placed fill- in -the- blank stickers that said '7 wish this was " on vacant store fronts as part of a temporary interactive art installation for residents to reimagine their community. 2 Depending on the community need and the desired outcome, a plan that includes varied opportunities to share knowledge and ideas helps to identify the most acceptable solution to the issue at hand. Santa Monica is well positioned for greater civic engagement. There is high voter turnout. Of the 60,909 registered voters in Santa Monica, 78 percent voted in the November 2012 elections — clear evidence that an interest in civic affairs exists among community members. Attendance at community meetings is generally good and new community groups are able to enter into the public discourse. The City provides people with information about proposed programs and plans, and regularly seeks their input. Staff has begun experimenting with new types of civic engagement. One recent example is MANGo, an interactive community workshop featuring temporary installations of potential Michigan Avenue Greenway improvements. The workshop included help from partnering organizations, complementary lunch, live music, bilingual services and activities for kids. Over 400 people attended the event, learned about the greenway, provided input, and weighed trade -offs. Pop -Up MANGo incorporated new elements to community workshops that successfully encouraged a broad spectrum of participation. However, the majority of the City's civic engagement relies heavily on one -way communication through well -worn channels. This typically requires citizens to seek out information from disparate City - related sources. During a "listening tour" staff met with residents and business owners in fall 2013, people expressed concern that public information is difficult to follow or too cumbersome to read. Some community members noted that they do not become more involved because they do not see a correlation between their participation and outcomes. For example, City Council meetings are a main component of Santa Monica's current civic engagement strategy. In order to provide input on key decisions, individuals wait sometimes two to four hours to address the Council for two minutes. 3 Many people do not regularly have that amount of time available. Voices not physically present at meetings may not have the same impact as those in attendance, which makes overall community sentiment difficult to gauge. Discussion In today's fast -paced world, attention spans have shortened and people's free time is limited. Information, both accurate and inaccurate, proliferates quickly. In order to maintain transparency and ensure that all voices have an opportunity to be heard, it is incumbent upon government to go to people. The old model of civic engagement where people bring their issues, questions and concerns to government does not make it easy for people to become aware of larger community issues or encourage a culture of being civically involved. It creates an unnecessary barrier between citizens and local government, which may result in misunderstanding and negativity. Recognizing the availability of new tools for connecting and communicating with the public, staff is proposing to explore new ways to improve access between community members and their local government. The CCES aims to increase current levels of civic participation to include a broad spectrum of community members, and better inform staff and Council of community sentiment, questions and trends. Staff would work with local organizations like the Jaycees, Santa Monica Spoke, the Santa Monica - Malibu Unified School District, Young Santa Monica, Santa Monica Next, the Chamber of Commerce, Zocalo and other community partners. Monthly meetings with the Neighborhood Council and the Planning and Community Development Department leadership would continue. Over the next two years the CCES would involve developing and evaluating new tools and programs that create access to learn about what is going on via casual, meaningful ways to be civically engaged, including: 0 A Civic Engagement Team Under the leadership of the City Manager's Office, a team of city employees would work together to shape, prioritize, and direct the development of CCES projects. This interdepartmental team would obtain public feedback to ensure that tools and programs are useful and accomplishing CCES goals. Specifically, the team would: ® Evaluate the City's current efforts to engage community members ® Develop a two -year calendar of community activities that complement each other and align with the organization's two -year budget cycle ® Assess ways to improve current City communication and social media strategies ® Provide community members different opportunities to express their ideas and follow community issues ® Design tools and programs that maximize available resources and are replicable in other cities Report to City Council and City leadership on progress Pilot projects would be evaluated based on effectiveness and the ability to be sustained by staff. Once projects launch, the group would transition to training staff, managing, measuring and improving the ongoing programs. While civic engagement is rich with information and resources and is a growing area of research, it is not always clear what government can and should do in this regard and what will resonate in Santa Monica. Some projects will be successful. Other projects may not. Staff would work in partnership with residents and community organizations to ensure appropriate and effective civic engagement initiatives. Ways to Bridge the Gap According to 2010 census data, 49 percent of Santa Monica residents are 20 — 50 years old (25 percent 20 -35 years old, 24 percent 35 -50 years old). Millennials and Generation X are an active part of Santa Monica. They bring entrepreneurial spirit and are a major force in the local economy. Generation Xers have families with children in 5 the school system. However people in these age ranges generally do not visibly participate in civic affairs. Similar to the Citizens League's Policy and a Pint program, the CCES would look to create similar programs that would bring civic affairs to places where people gather. Once a month, at various locations, community members would be encouraged to participate in an informal discussion about what is happening in the city. Topics would vary based on current events. Through casual conversation new people would connect, learn about what is going on and discuss decisions facing the community in an informal setting. Civic leaders would be encouraged to attend. Inter - generational events and programs for residents who speak English as a second language would also be explored to bridge the gap between people and local government. These could include roundtable series, policy tours, and happy hours. In turn, people all ages would become part of a culture of being aware and potentially involved in what is happening in their city. A Biennial Santa Monica Talks Formerly called "Can We Talk ? ", the original community meeting series kicked off public outreach to determine community needs and priorities for the annual City budget. Later called Santa Monica Talks, the community meeting series was revamped and offered residents the opportunity to meet face -to -face with City staff from all City departments. Because the City transitioned to a biennial budget process, Santa Monica Talks would be held in the second year of the City's two year budget and continue to serve as initial public outreach. At the meetings, staff would discuss what is happening in the city and take questions from the audience. Community members would learn about city services, quality -of -life issues, and provide first -hand information about their concerns and ideas to inform the biennial budget. Staff would improve the community meeting series and build upon lessons learned from previous years. Time and resources to conduct the community meeting series in the first year of the biennial budget would be used on other CCES projects and programs, such as the Citizen Academy. A Citizen Academy On May 7, 2013 staff outlined plans for a Citizens Academy to educate residents about their local government and encourage participation in local public policy making. The Academy would provide participants with an in -depth understanding of how local government operates and ways local government collaborates with community, civic and non - profit institutions. Coordinated by the City Manager's Office, the Academy would entail a series of six classes held on weekday evenings. Department Heads would be tasked with teaching the classes. For example, Big Blue Bus, Planning and Community Development and Finance would collaborate on a class covering mobility and land use. The Academy would be open to community members of all ages and backgrounds, with priority for Santa Monica residents. Individuals considering serving in leadership roles in the community, or who are curious as to how the City and its partners make decisions, allocate resources, and get things done would be encouraged to complete an online application available in February 2014. Staff would select the students. Those who participate in the Academy would gain a fuller understanding of City departments, current projects, and the public decision making process. A Technology Platform Emerging technology has the potential to broaden civic access and opportunity. New technology to amplify collaboration, create new avenues for participation, inform and promote participation in community discussions would be explored as part of the CCES. INA The interdepartmental team would work with other City staff, community partners, and experts in the field to research best practices and evaluate tools and strategies to: ® Develop the City's use of social media ® Make policy and financial information easier to find and understand ® Improve access to local government by providing push notifications in real time when topics of interest are heard during Council meetings ® Create two -way communication approach with constituents where appropriate Social media is a communication tool the City uses to provide information for the public. The CCES would look to incorporate best practices into current efforts to ensure social media is used efficiently and effectively. City Council meetings are a main component of Santa Monica's current civic engagement strategy. Staff reports are full of information on complex issues facing the community. A majority of community members do not regularly participate in the meetings, even when issues facing Council are of great interest. Staff would investigate ways for people to track specific issues on a Council agenda. A simplified Council meeting agenda where issues were briefly summarized could encourage more people to participate in meetings. Also, when Council is about to discuss an agenda item in real time, people could self- register to receive a push notification or email with a link to follow and stream live video or audio of Council's discussion of the topic at hand. Staff would also explore new ways for people to participate in the public decision - making process. For example, once Council agendas are publicly available, a likert scale would accompany each agenda item for people to rank the recommended actions of the staff report. A text box could also be available for people to comment on the report. Council would be provided with a summary of the rankings and comments prior to the Council meeting to inform their deliberation on the respective topic. t:3 At present these are only ideas and require vetting and further development. However a simplified Council agenda, push notifications, and ways for people to rate and comment on staff reports create access to Council and the public decision - making process. This access would be significant for a resident unable to attend a Council meeting or wait to speak on an item discussed late in the evening. A technological platform would complement, not supplant, other non - technology -based ways to connect community members with staff and Elected Officials. Focus would be to provide a well- rounded set of civic engagement strategies so local government remains accessible to a broad range of community members. Foster Civic Pride To cultivate and sustain new civic participation, a component of the CCES would focus on providing creative opportunities for people to share their personal experiences and why they choose to live in Santa Monica. Activities would be made available to the public at community events such as the Santa Monica Festival, planning workshops, and Santa Monica Talks. Projects may include temporary art installations, "share your story" audio recordings, and other interactive activities. With time and partnership, the CCES would modernize civic engagement, improve access between people and government, and create a culture of democratic participation in everyday life Alternatives If Council has a specific area of interest regarding civic engagement, Council could direct staff to investigate that area in greater detail. Council could also direct staff to focus on specific areas of the community civic engagement strategy. Or, Council could choose not to move forward with the CCES initiative. 9 Next Steps Based on Council's direction, the interdepartmental civic engagement staff team would be assembled, the citizen academy would move forward as proposed, and a comprehensive strategy to research and test new engagement tools would be further developed. The timeline for this work would span the organization's next two -year budget cycle. Pilot projects would be developed, implemented and evaluated by staff. Some projects will be successful. Other projects may not. Staff would report back to Council with an evaluation of activities and outcomes. Financial Impacts & Budget Actions There is no immediate financial impact or budget action necessary as a result of the recommended action. Staff would return to Council if specific budget actions are required in the future. Staff anticipates including funding to implement the technological platform component of the Community Civic Engagement Strategy in the FY 2014 -15 proposed budget. Prepared by: Matthew Mornick, Principal Administrative Analyst Approved: Forwarded to Council: Rod Gould Rod Gould City Manager City Manager 10