The following is a press release from an organization unaffiliated with Voice of OC. The views expressed here are not those of Voice of OC.

For Immediate Release:

March 2, 2018

Contact: Lisa Murphy

(916) 651-4029

Ten North Orange County Police Chiefs & Senator Josh Newman Discuss Regional Plan to Address Homelessness, Public Safety

 Group discussed regional solutions to address public safety and homelessness in OC

 Sacramento, CA – Senator Josh Newman (D-Fullerton) today was joined by law enforcement leaders from ten North Orange County cities to publicly launch the North Orange County Public Safety Task Force.  Senator Newman and the ten law enforcement leaders discussed public safety specifically as it relates to developing gang activity, the homeless crisis, and proposed regional solutions to both.

Said Buena Park Police Chief Corey Sianez:

“When cities are able to use new funding from the Task Force and collaborate to problem solve, we can be more effective and produce greater results. What is unique about this Task Force is that our 10 North Orange County cities are working together with community based organizations, sharing resources, and teaming up to invent new ideas about how to address public safety issues that have no city boundaries. It’s no longer just about enforcement. Together, we can address the deep root causes of these issues.”

The 10 North Orange County law enforcement leaders and Senator Newman were also joined by City Net Executive Director Brad Fieldhouse, who provided an overview on a multi-city homeless census that will be conducted by City Net in mid-March and early April.

Said Brad Fieldhouse, Executive Director of City Net:

“The funding we’ve received from the North Orange County Task Force has been critical in developing our homeless census. Even more encouraging, the access we now have to our local law enforcement leaders is unprecedented. It makes such a huge difference when we can have an open dialogue with our local law enforcement, and work in collaboration to tackle homelessness in Orange County.”

 Background:

The North Orange County Public Safety Task Force is comprised of the police chiefs of the following North Orange County cities: Anaheim, Brea, Buena Park, Cypress, Fullerton, La Habra, La Palma, Placentia, Stanton, and Yorba Linda. The Task Force was created through $20 million in state budget funding secured by Senator Newman. The Task Force is a multi-jurisdictional four-year pilot program specifically geared to developing new and more effective interdisciplinary approaches to gang prevention and homelessness outreach and intervention in North Orange County.

The Task Force first met in October of last year and since then has been working in collaboration with over 30 community-based organizations from each of the 10 cities. The CBOs provide services that hold promise for engaging at risk-youth and homeless populations.

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Senator Josh Newman represents the 29th Senate District, which includes cities across Orange, Los Angeles, and San Bernardino Counties. Visit www.sd29.senate.ca.gov

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