Press Release- Jayaraman Convenes ANC Call
ANC Commissioners Send COVID-19 Recommendations to City Officials; Warn of Small Business Collapse
More than 50 of the District's ANC commissioners convened on a virtual call last Wednesday, March 25th, to discuss the needs in their neighborhoods as a result of the COVID-19 crisis and to develop recommendations to city officials based on their on-the-ground experiences.
ANC 6B Vice-Chair Chander Jayaraman, who organized the Zoom call, shared the commissioners’ questions, concerns, observations and recommendations with the mayor, council members, city administrator and the Mayor’s Office of Community Relations and Services. The call was for ANC commissioners only and included representatives from all eight wards.
“The city has been doing a good job of pushing information out,” Jayaraman said. “This was an opportunity for the city’s 296 elected neighborhood representatives to share intel from the field and send information back to city leadership. The commissioners were really engaged and came up with some great recommendations and questions.”
Top concerns that came out of the meeting: a request for a daily update on the number of new COVID-19 cases reported by ward; clarification on how the city is supporting homeless individuals and other vulnerable populations; concerns about spreading the virus at construction sites, which are excluded from the mayor’s list of non-essential activities; and immediate relief for small business owners, including deferring the payment of business sales taxes, property taxes, and BID taxes during the state of emergency.
“Small businesses are hurting badly,” Jayaraman said. “If we fail to take action now, many of our treasured small businesses may not return. This would have a ripple effect and cause irreparable harm to our city and our local economy.”
Commissioners also shared several strategies their communities are taking to address unmet needs, including the creation of neighbor check-ins on the most vulnerable residents, food collection and preparation, and the creation of neighborhood volunteer networks.
Several commissioners said the call was extremely productive and asked Jayaraman to make them regular - at least once per week - to continue the sharing of resources with each other and information with city officials. They scheduled a second ANC Commissioners-only call for Monday night.
With the pressing and growing needs of local communities, the commissioners asked Jayaraman to virtually convene them every few days to continue discussions.
“ANC Commissioners step up in times of need and the current crisis is no exception,” Jayaraman said. “I am grateful for all those who participated and look forward to keeping our discussions going so that we can be a conduit for gathering and sharing information that will enable the mayor to make informed decisions and address any challenges that are identified.”
More detailed notes on the Commissioners’ discussion
Daily Updates of COVID-19 cases: Several commissioners requested that the mayor provide information to the public daily on numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases by ward, as well as the current state of hospital capacity across the city. That is, how many residents are being tested and hospitalized, on average daily.
Supporting the Homeless: Several wards have a high percentage of people who are homeless. There were many questions about what the city is doing to protect this population - including those in the shelters and temporary housing, as well as those on the streets - from the spread of the virus. They asked if there are special safety net supports being put in place to provide on-the-ground health care to this population. Commissioners said their neighbors are asking these questions.
Ongoing Construction/Development Activity: Given the tremendous amount of development across the city, the mayor's inclusion of construction projects as “essential businesses” has residents very concerned about the spread of the virus among construction workers. They want to know if builders and developers are being properly held accountable for the safety of their workers. They asked what, if any, steps the city is taking or considering to temporarily suspend some construction during this time.
Support for Small Businesses: Small businesses are in real trouble, as few had a safety net to absorb the enormous financial consequences of being closed for weeks. They need assistance now, call participants said, and also temporary relief from property and other tax burdens. They reported:
A number of small businesses and individual property owners are worried that the city has not extended the quarterly deadline for property taxes. Many will not be able to make their quarterly payments and are worried about incurring late fees and penalties.
Small businesses that are not or will not be current on tax payments are worried they will not meet the criteria for being eligible to apply for grant/loan relief through the city’s small business emergency assistance.
Small businesses are worried about the time it is taking for the city to make financial assistance available - it may be too little too late if adequate resources are not received soon.
Memo on Citywide ANC Conference re COVID-19.pdf: https://drive.google.com/file/d/15rwC99hZANH--LIyP1JKcWVEqgF1xkgB/view