What will it take?
In Friday’s SM Daily Press Letter to the Editor the owner of Blue Plate restaurant on Ocean Avenue and a 30-year business owner in Santa Monica cites the horror and heartache of operating a business in Santa Monica today. Her shrinking number of customers and threatened employees are causing her and other small business owners to consider doing the unthinkable - Closing down and moving out.
What will it take?
Diversity, Equality, Inclusiveness don’t pay the bills. Sustainability and climate change don’t bring in tourists. Instead, stories in the national, international media and the internet show “Santa Monica Is Not Safe” backed up by images of homeless people defecating on the 3rd Street Promenade, while visitors eating at an outdoor restaurant on Wilshire or walking on the Pier are attacked and stabbed.
What will it take?
Everyone knows the internet severely impacted brick-and-mortar retail stores. Everyone knows Santa Monica was severely impacted by the riots and vandalism three years ago. Everyone knows we all suffered during the Pandemic. What we citizens and business owners in Santa Monica cannot understand is how Century City Mall and Rodeo Drive – both of which were impacted by the Internet, May 2020 riots, and the Pandemic – are not only recovering but thriving. What are they doing that Santa Monica is not? Are customers and employees there being attacked and threatened? Is there a strong, everyday presence of police and private security? Can Santa Monica do the same? Why not?
What will it take?
On Tuesday, 13 June 2023 the Santa Monica City Council is holding its regular meeting. Perhaps in the words of Santa Monica Daily Press columnist Jack Neworth, “the people mad as hell who won’t take it anymore” will show up to voice their concern to the City Council.
SAFETY must be Priority Number One!
John Medlin, Santa Monica
