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SR 01-14-2020 3A City Council Report City Council Meeting: January 14, 2020 Agenda Item: 3.A 1 of 7 To: Mayor and City Council From: Karen Ginsberg, Director, Community & Cultural Services Andy Agle, Director, Housing and Economic Development Subject: Approval of Fourth Modification to Agreement with Downtown Santa Monica, Inc. (DTSM) for Park Ambassador Services Recommended Action Staff recommends that the City Council: 1. Authorize the City Manager to negotiate and execute a fourth modification to Services Agreement #10402 (CCS) in the amount of $206,640 with Downtown Santa Monica, Inc., a California -based company, to extend the Reed Park Pilot Ambassador program. This will result in a six-and-a-half-year agreement with a new total amount not to exceed $5,252,439, with future year funding contingent on Council budget approval. 2. Authorize budget changes as outlined in the Financial Impacts and Budget Actions section of this report. Summary The City has invested in a variety of site-specific strategies to help all people feel welcome and safe in public spaces, including City parks. As part of that effort, City Council initiated a six-month pilot to extend the City’s ambassador program to Reed Park. This pilot, designed to test the idea that the presence of hospitality and restroom ambassadors might improve the park’s cleanliness and safety and the public’s perception of the park, began on August 1, 2019. The pilot has been a success. Overall, feedback for the pilot program has been positive and data indicates that the Ambassadors are a key component of the multi-pronged approach to maintain equitable access to safe, fun, and healthy open spaces. Therefore, staff recommends extending the Reed Park Pilot Ambassador Program through June 30, 2020 through a Fourth Modification to agreement #10402 with Downtown Santa Monica, Inc. at a cost of $206,640. 2 of 7 Discussion Located on Lincoln Blvd. between Wilshire Blvd. and California Ave., at the edge of Santa Monica’s downtown, Reed Park opened in 1892, making it one of Santa Monica’s oldest parks. The 5.2-acre park, formerly known as Lincoln Park, is home to the historic Miles Memorial Playhouse, tennis courts, basketball courts, playgrounds, a senior lunch program, and offices for the City’s CREST afterschool program. When not used for the senior lunch program, the auditorium in Joslyn Hall is a popular meeting spac e for groups of up to 90 people. These diverse uses bring people of all ages to the park at different times of the day and throughout the week. This heavy use is not without its tensions, however, as neighboring residents and the Parks and Recreation Comm ission have raised concerns about safety and security for park users. To further activate the park and improve both the reality and perceptions of safety there have been strategic capital projects, experiments with park programming, and most recently the pilot hospitality and restroom ambassador program as well as stepped up Police and Public Safety Officer presence and patrols. Reed Park’s playgrounds, landscaped areas, gardens, buildings, and restrooms have been significantly renovated over the last ten years. Smaller-scale improvements have included upgrades to exterior lighting, new permanent signage, and “See Something Say Something” signs to empower park patrons to call the non-emergency police phone number or connect with an Ambassador when witnessing dangerous or concerning behavior. A strategic redesign of the historically underutilized lawn in the northeast quadrant added pathways, seating, exercise equipment and a platform suitable for outdoor performances. These changes have activated the lawn in new ways. For example, organized fitness trainers and individuals now exercise there, an outdoor cultural and recreational program, Meet Me at Reed, has taken hold, and the lawn has been a site for a variety of City community classes and camps. Beginning in 2020 community members will use the lawn for a variety of pop-up social, educational, and cultural programming. 3 of 7 While the improvements and new programs were designed to, and have, drawn more people and uses into the park, community members and the Council inquired about the feasibility of assigning dedicated public safety personnel to the site in response to several well-publicized incidents primarily focused on the rest rooms and greenspace at the corner of California and Lincoln. In response to direction from Council, staff developed cost estimates for dedicated, onsite sworn public safety personnel and a cost estimate for a pilot restroom and hospitality ambassador team. Both were considered as staff prepared the FY2019-21 biennial budget, however due to funding constraints neither was included in the proposed budget document. During the June 5, 2019 budget study session, after hearing from community members and staff and considering the issue, Council directed staff to include a six-month Reed Park Ambassador pilot program at a cost of $250,000 in the FY 2019-21 budget funded by Council discretionary funds ($150,000) and General Fund dollars ($100,000). Staff committed to return to Council with a report on the pilot program and recommendation to continue if it proved to be valuable. This report serves that purpose. Park Ambassador Program DTSM launched its hospitality and maintenance ambassador program in 2009 following the establishment of the Downtown Santa Monica Property-Based Assessment District (PBAD) in which property owners voted to fund supplemental and enhanced services to benefit the downtown area through a special assessment. Ambassadors are uniformed sidewalk concierges trained to assist those seeking information about downtown, report maintenance or other public safety issues to the appropriate parties and provide a welcoming presence for all visitors to the area. Restroom and hospitality ambassadors are currently stationed in Tongva and Palisades Parks with the goal of improving t he parks’ cleanliness and safety and the public’s perception of the parks by offering directions, recommendations, escorts, etc. and reporting maintenance or safety issues to responsible City departments. Reed Park Pilot Ambassador Program The six-month Reed Park pilot program began on August 1, 2019, providing 228 service 4 of 7 hours each week between the hours of 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. The deployment consists of one Hospitality Ambassador and one Restroom Ambassador during the daytime. Two Hospitality Ambassadors and one Restroom Ambassador are present during evenings and weekends. Ambassadors are stationed near the public restrooms and roam the park. They engage visitors; offer directions, recommendations, escorts, and other assistance as desired by visitors; aid City public space management; and provide minimal custodial services as needed in the Park such as picking up and disposing of litter, conducting intermittent restroom cleanings, and checking and replacing the stock of City-provided restroom supplies as needed. The Ambassadors are trained on the applicable provisions of the Santa Monica Municipal Code pertaining to the use of public space, work closely with the Santa Monica Police Department, and alert the Santa Monica Police Department if they witness any illegal or dangerous activity. They constantly monitor for criminal behavior, illegal vending, and other illegal activity and advise Reed Park users if an infraction is taking place. Ambassadors may not enforce municipal codes. However, they often work in concert with local social service providers and the Santa Monica Police Department's Homeless Liaison Program (HLP) Team to offer service referrals when appropriate and maintain close communication and coordination with patrol officers and Public Safety Officers who also regularly visit the park. Pilot Program Metrics Prior to the launch date, representatives of DTSM and multiple City departments agreed that a desired outcome for Reed Park is “Maintenance of equitable access to safe, fun, and healthy open spaces” and identified a comprehensive set of metrics related to public safety, cleanliness, service connections, and use of space. The Santa Monica Police Department, the Community and Cultural Services Department, The People Concern’s C3 multidisciplinary team, and DTSM collect and report data monthly. Metrics are organized into four project domains: Cleanliness, Public Safety, Service Connections, and Use of Space. See Attachment A for a list of metrics and August - December 2019 data. 5 of 7 The City and partners tracked and analyzed data collected during the pilot. For certain metrics in the Cleanliness and Public Safety domains, an increase (e.g. amount of trash/debris collected by Ambassadors) reflects the positive impact of the Ambassadors at Reed, while a reduction in another metric (e.g. calls for SMPD service) may also indicate improvement. Steady increases in Service Connection metrics (e.g. referrals by Ambassadors or services provided directly by the C3 multidisciplinary team) confirm that the City and DTSM are working together to provide resources and information to those in need. The success of park activations like Meet Me At Reed and a consistently high number of restroom users (on average more than 200 every day, with an 86% of users reporting a positive experience) shows progress toward the goal of equitable access to a park that is safe, fun and healthy for all to enjoy. DTSM has also conducted an Activity Survey to measure how Reed Park has been used and by whom. “Secret shoppers” deployed to interact with Ambassadors, assess the environment, and complete qualitative reports have reported that the Ambassadors are friendly, upbeat, and helpful. Park visitor feedback has included the following: • “The Ambassadors’ presence made the venture and time spent at the park and restrooms feel much more safe and clean.” (Danielle L., August 1, 2019) • “I am thrilled to bring all of my kids back to the park!” (Dominique S., August 27, 2019) • “As a mom of a preschooler who has frequented all parts of Reed Park for the past three years, I’d like to give you my thanks. There is no question that the work of the Ambassadors has tremendously improved the situation at Reed Park.” (Anastasia F., November 18, 2019) Commission Action In preparation of the Council’s consideration of this item, the Recreation and Parks Commission received a similar report on December 19, 2019 and unanimously supported authorizing the City Manager to negotiate and execute a Fourth Modification to agreement #10402 in the amount of $206,640 with Downtown Santa Monica, Inc., a California-based Company, to extend the Reed Park Pilot Ambassador Program 6 of 7 through June 30, 2020. The Commission appreciates the investment in the pilot and its future. Past Council Actions Meeting Date Description 12/6/16 (attachment B) Authorization of Services Agreement with Downtown Santa Monica, Inc. to establish a pilot ambassador services program for Tongva and Palisades Parks 06/25/19 (attachment C) Third modification to expand ambassador services to Reed Park for a six-month pilot program Financial Impacts and Budget Actions Staff seeks authority to approve funding from the General Fund to increase the amount of the services agreement with Downtown Santa Monica, Inc. to continue the Reed Park Pilot Ambassador Program through June 30, 2020. Agreement Modification Request Agreement # Current Authorized Amount Modified Request Amount FY 2019-20 Budget Dept Account Total Revised Contract Amount 10402 $5,045,799 $206,640 01800004.550250 $5,252,439 Award of the agreement modification requires the following budget actions: 1. Release of fund balance from General Fund reserve account 01.380256 of $206,640; 2. Appropriate $206,640 to account 01800004.550250 (Ambassador Program – Reed Park). Future year funding is contingent on Council budget approval. 7 of 7 Prepared By: Danielle Noble, Assistant Director Approved Forwarded to Council Attachments: A. Attachment A Pilot Program Metrics B. December 6, 2016 Staff Report (web link) C. June 25, 2019 Staff Report (web link) Attachment A Metrics DTSM = Downtown Santa Monica, Inc. CCS = City of Santa Monica, Community and Cultural Services Department SMPD = City of Santa Monica, Police Department TPC = The People Concern (*) = No Meet Me at Reed Programming this month Project Domain Metric Agency/Dept. Aug 2019 Sep 2019 Oct 2019 Nov 2019 Dec 2019 Cleanliness # of maintenance requests/work orders DTSM 16 23 25 11 8 Cleanliness # of drug paraphernalia collected DTSM 9 5 24 47 18 Cleanliness # of trash/debris collected DTSM 2712 3284 3936 4129 3188 Cleanliness # of bills/stickers removed DTSM 15 26 30 11 17 Cleanliness # of graffiti removed DTSM 13 3 6 5 5 Cleanliness Negative Responses to Restroom Cleanliness "Smiley Terminal" DTSM 11% 13% 16% 10% 14% Public Safety # of incidents in CCS Reed Park log CCS 1 0 1 0 0 Public Safety # of calls for SMPD by Ambassadors DTSM 0 0 8 0 2 Public Safety # of SMPD contacts (arrests, citations, field contacts) at Reed Park SMPD 55 35 46 41 52 Service Connections # of social service referrals DTSM 146 121 127 148 180 Service Connections # of SMPD HLP/DMH referrals/contacts SMPD 11 9 11 8 3 Service Connections # of services provided by C3 team TPC 31 63 57 62 48 Service Connections # of substance use treatment referrals/linkages by C3 team TPC 2 1 2 3 3 Service Connections # of medical services provided by C3 team TPC 5 6 6 7 6 Service Connections # of VI-SPDAT/CES assessments completed by C3 team TPC 2 1 2 1 2 Use of Space # of "Meet Me At Reed" and other events CCS 0 3 6 2 0 Use of Space # of participants in "Meet Me At Reed" & other activations CCS 0* 90 822 15* 0* Use of Space # of restroom users DTSM 6329 6617 5778 5577 4421 Use of Space # of recreational equipment rentals DTSM 92 13 209 167 201 REFERENCE: Modified Agreement No. 10402 (CCS)