Gang Violence Outreach and Interruption Services Contract on Monday’s Consent Calendar

As part of Monday’s consent calendar, the City Council will vote to authorize the City Manager to amend a contract with Ricky Pickens by $85,000 to $343,000 for gang violence outreach and interruption services in Fiscal Year 2024.

In August, the City Council authorized the City Manager to amend Pickens’ contract by increasing the value and expand the scope to hire two additional interventionists through September 30. 

“The additional interventionists have demonstrated success to reduce potential gang tensions by working with recently released individuals and youth. As a result, the Public Health Department recommends extending the term for the additional interventionists through June 30. If approved by the City Council, the engagement is expected to increase the value of the agreement by $85,000 from $258,000 to $343,000 in Fiscal Year 2024.

On August 15, 2022, the City Council authorized the City Manager to enter into a contract with Pickens and approved two purchase orders to implement the work of a four-member gang interventionist team to provide gang outreach and violence interruption services. The contract issued to Pickens was for two years with the option of an additional one-year extension at the sole discretion of the City Manager.

The Office of the City Manager originally administered the contract, which has since been transferred to the Public Health Department. 

Between 2019 and 2021, the Pasadena community experienced a rise in gang violence leading to a 125% increase in confirmed shootings. In response to this crisis, the City initially contracted with Ricky Pickens to provide gang outreach and violence interruption services in January 2021.

At that time, Pickens and his team began providing mediation, conflict resolution, and negotiated stand down agreements to reduce the incidence of violence. In Calendar Year 2021, Pasadena Police Department data indicate there were 31 gang-related or possibly gang-related shootings. In Calendar Year 2022, there were 18 gang-related or possibly gang-related shootings, showing a 58% decrease from the prior year. 

Beginning in early July 2023, there was an increase in tensions within and between local gangs necessitating a significant increase for gang violence outreach and interruption services. 

The Public Health Department assessed that the increase in gang activity involved young individuals. To reach this population, the Public Health Department recommended temporarily adding two outreach members to more effectively disrupt the cycle of gang violence. 

Here are the remaining items on Monday’s consent calendar.

• The City Council will vote to authorize the City Manager to enter into a contract with The FID Group dba Friends In Deed, as the result of a competitive selection process as specified by Section 4.08.047 of the Pasadena Municipal Code to provide weather activated motel vouchers and operate a congregate winter shelter, for a contract term of five years with a total contract amount not-to-exceed $1,900,000 consisting of $380,000 from the Housing Department’s Fiscal Year 2024 Operating Budget plus funding for the balance of the contract term which shall be subject to City budget appropriations. Competitive price bidding is not required pursuant to City Charter Section 1002(F) contracts for professional or unique services; and c. Authorize the City Manager to approve no-cost amendments to the contract with Friends In Deed which extend the term with no impact to the total not-to exceed amount. 

According to a City staff report, the City has selected Trinity Lutheran Church to host the City’s Bad Weather Shelter.

Two community meetings were held in the church gym where the shelter would be located on September 12 and September 21, 2023 to engage surrounding residents and businesses about the proposed use of the property and hear concerns. Staff also met with the Playhouse Village Safety Committee as a key stakeholder in the area. 

Following these meetings, staff coordinated with the church, Fire Department, Planning and Community Development Department and Public Health Department to identify necessary building improvements and requirements that need to be addressed before the shelter can open. Based on quotes gathered and provided by the church, it is estimated that collectively the capital improvements will not exceed $275,000.

In July 2023, the Department released a Request for Proposals (RFP) that was open to non-profit organizations and homeless service providers that are experienced in providing congregate emergency shelter services to people experiencing homelessness with the primary objective of selecting a program operator that would be responsible for administering a low-barrier congregate winter shelter program. Friends In Deed was the only entity to submit a proposal.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Pasadena’s seasonal winter shelter (the Bad Weather Shelter) was operated by Friends In Deed for over 30 years out of a local church gym.

 After over three decades, Friends In Deed lost its long-time lease of a church gym in March 2020. 

During the pandemic, non-congregate shelter, primarily motel-based shelter was recommended as the preferred shelter model by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HDD) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to mitigate the spread of infectious disease. Since December 2020, the City has funded weather-activated motel vouchers for the purpose of hypothermia prevention among persons experiencing homelessness in the absence of a congregate winter shelter. 

Although the Department does not directly administer motel vouchers, the City contracts with nonprofit agencies, such as Friends In Deed, and has transferred funding to the Public Health Department to serve people experiencing unsheltered homelessness during inclement weather.

For the last three years, weather-activated motel vouchers have typically been available between December through April when the overnight temperature is predicted to fall below 40 degrees, there is more than a 40% chance of rain, or winds are predicted to exceed 40 miles per hour. Presently, staff are considering switching to county standards for activation during rain events based on forecasts from the National Weather Service.

• A resolution of the City of Pasadena City Council to accept a $5 million award from the State of California Department of Housing and Community Development’s CalHome program to provide financing for the rehabilitation and construction of accessory dwelling units and to provide down payment assistance to low-income households; and The State of California Department of housing and Community Development issued a Homeownership Super Notice of Funding Available (“Super NOFA”) on January 6, 2023, announcing the availability of approximately $170 million in funds for two homeownership programs, including the CalHome program. 

• Authorize the City Manager to enter into a contract with L N Curtis & Sons for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Cleaning, Inspection and Repair Services in an amount not to exceed $380,000 for five years. Maintaining personal protective equipment (PPE) is imperative for protecting firefighters from serious injuries while on the job. Cleaning PPE properly reduces employee exposure to the harmful substances that contaminate the PPE during fire incidents. The reduced exposure helps in lowering the risk to developing cancer and other diseases caused by chemical exposure.

• A $98,369 purchase order contract award to JCL traffic services for barricade rental. The Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department (PRCS) annually rents wood barricades for the Rose Parade. Barricades are used to manage pedestrian traffic and crowd control near the VIP grandstands along Orange Grove Boulevard and the post-parade float viewing area at Pasadena High School and Victory Park.

• A $281,780 contract award to Quality Fence Company for fence repair and installation. The Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department (PRCS) hires a contractor to repair damaged fencing throughout City parks and open spaces. Fencing is needed to protect City property from vandalism and unwanted guests. Occasionally, fences are damaged by accidents, corrosion, and fallen trees. Repairs include the closing of breaks in chain link fence, replacement of chain link, posts, railing, panels, and welding repairs. In addition, new fence installation is required when repairs can’t be completed.

• Adopt a Resolution Updating the Salary of the Economic Development Director Classification. As part of a recent classification and compensation review, Human Resources recommends updating the existing salary control rate of the Economic Development Director classification. The recommended salary control rate was determined following an analysis of internal alignment with comparable classifications within the City. The recommended change is intended to support the City’s ability to recruit and retain skilled personnel in a highly competitive labor market as well as provide internal equity among members of the executive leadership team.

• A five year contract $687,500 contract award to George Salinas tree preservation for citywide tree and stump removal services. The City of Pasadena has a rich tradition of maintaining mature City trees, having been awarded a Tree City USA designation for 33 years and Tree City Growth Award for 23 years. With nearly 64,000 City trees to maintain, the Department of Public Works is also responsible for removing dead, dying, diseased, and hazardous trees. Priority removal is given to trees and stumps that warrant an emergency or hazardous condition, while all other tree and stump removals are completed after public tree notices are posted on subject trees. The City uses private contractors to augment tree and stump removal services performed by City Staff. The selected contractor will continue to supplement city removal services by removing large scale and time intensive trees and stumps that the City is unable to accommodate.

• A $2,012.292 Contract award to California Professional Engineering Inc., for street light infrastructure series circuits on Linda Vista Avenue. This project provides for the systematic replacement of deteriorated electrical substructure components on the existing high voltage street light series circuit on Linda Vista Avenue, between Fern Drive and Afton Street. This circuit is part of a multi-phased project to convert the remaining 18 high voltage street light circuits citywide to low voltage circuits that benefit the public with safer, more reliable and energy efficient street lighting. The conversion of this specific circuit requires a coordinated effort from the contractor to install electrical substructure including new metal conduits and pull boxes. Following the completion of the electrical substructure, Public Works field crews will systematically refurbish and convert each of the existing poles and luminaires to the low voltage electrical system while maintaining the historic appearance of the lighting system.