Solutions in Answer to Questions Regarding Problems

By Gary R. Cook

Why I am running: To Renew & Restore Hemet: Since the necessary issues in this community have not been tackled to create a robust business-friendly environment. Perhaps for the City it was a question of funds, but there was no effort to rally the people, like Rebuild Hemet was able to channel, which could have accomplished such Quality of Life goals, as bringing better shopping, business development and skilled employment.

Solutions in Answer to Questions Regarding Problems

Why I am running

To Renew & Restore Hemet: Since the necessary issues in this community have not been tackled to create a robust business-friendly environment. Perhaps for the City it was a question of funds, but there was no effort to rally the people, like Rebuild Hemet was able to channel, which could have accomplished such Quality of Life goals, as bringing better shopping, business development and skilled employment.

Moreover, there needs to be a channel for increasing communications between the residents and City Council, so that the residents get involved, and experience more control over their neighborhoods; perhaps a system like Los Angeles' Neighborhood Empowerment Councils (1).

My Platform is and my efforts will be to help existing residents to create Jobs, assist them with Business development, tackle Environmental issues and improve the General look and feel of the community. It also includes services to the elderly, disabled and low-income communities. I would focus on these issues, in order to improve the quality of life, create jobs, enhance opportunities for business and consumers, and improve the community by working to develop income opportunities for the whole strata of society. I would not push to expel residents, when they are down on their luck, as a policy.

Because there is a high-end demand from those with the funds to shop, we need to create a better shopping environment for those residents. We can't wait for the Director of Community Investment to go twice a year to the International Council of Shopping Centers convention in Las Vegas to network and promote The City. My nonprofit can hire and put individuals on the phone, contacting prospective employers and work to bring those businesses to Hemet. The Economic Development department in Hemet is to my knowledge only focused on bringing retail here, where sales taxes will be seen. My focus is on bringing and building all good jobs, the outcome of which will provide residents the money to shop.

Jobs

There is to my knowledge not one employment agency in town, except for a day labor office on Florida near Palm. Many of the businesses I stop in at employ (for an unknown reason) mostly or only out-of-town residents. The residents of Hemet who have jobs therefore, must commute out of the city. The businesses who had memberships in the HSJ Chamber of Commerce went out of business to the tune of around 600 companies, in the years 2010-2011. The Chamber does not have numbers for 2012. They don't even know when a business actually goes out of business, except their membership does not get renewed, and (I would assume, the phone is no longer answered). This is only Chamber members, so imagine how many non-Chamber members shuttered theirs, if Chamber members equal 10% of the general business population. (Linda Krupa told me the City Business License department knows how many, but someone should tell the business license department, because they can't tell me).

What I would do: Assuming not all prospective employers would have this data on-hand, because few if any companies are looking to move themselves to Hemet, I would ask for an analysis of the skills of the workers in this community, from the State Employment Development Department. That way I would be able to have data to talk with companies about, where they may have an interest in coming to town.

Is it the fault of the Chamber or City Council, I don't think so but imagine the difference if there had been built a center for the development (An Incubator) of small businesses, with support services and The City had helped negotiate leases with the landlords by inspiring them to agree to month-to-month leases, at lower rates for new & start-up businesses until they received a balanced income statement. Mentors and advisers could be available just a phone call away, with all the retired business owners who must live in the retired population in Hemet. While I am interviewing business owners and managers to learn what The City and community can do to help them create more business, I am looking into the possibility of contracting to do business with The City be given as a priority to resident companies. I am also trying to find out the legality of private companies giving local residents a priority in hiring for any jobs.

I will also create and fund a private research and development team, within my nonprofit, that will identify companies that are in expanding industries and cross-reference those with higher paying positions, and further with those where training can be facilitated to create and sustain such positions.

I would cause to be built technical training schools to assist in filling the 100 vacant Emergency Nursing Positions in the local hospital. Next to the hospital, after raising solar on its parking lots and rooftops, I would open FQHC's (Federally Qualified Health Centers) where they would take the burden of cost and operations off the hospital, which spends 70% of its time and resources treating children for earaches in its emergency rooms. These FQHC's would provide services to other low to no-income populations, at a rate doctors would be happy to provide services at. The emergency room waiting time is about 3.5 hours, according to the interim CEO, Joel Bergenfeld, with whom I met a couple weeks ago for 1.5 hours in his office. He was having difficulty getting solar approved for the hospital roofs and parking lots. I put a word in for him with Mark Orme about this (But I never heard the outcome). He also has an issue with getting new boilers, as required by the EPA, to which he was appealing their replacement by the end of August. I also asked Mark whether The City could loan the hospital the money temporarily to replace these. I don't know if he then talked with Joel Bergenfeld about this idea.

The other positions I would work to develop training for are all those positions that companies say that have to import a trained workforce to do from around the world. I would export our trained residents to cities across America, where these good jobs exist and have gone begging for a lack of a trained workforce. I would educate our young people to do the kinds of jobs that could be done from anywhere, over the Internet, and develop fiber optic cabling from The City, where it would speed up the ability to perform such jobs online. I would build centers of telecommunication here, where people could commute from here, without actually leaving town.

There is one person in the City responsible for going out to find new businesses to bring to town, but to my knowledge, the only thing I hear about the Director of Community Investment doing is taking apart the going to the International Council of Shopping Center conferences twice a year. No one has discussed or planned yet after this disastrous period, to build an incubator to foster and support new and start up businesses, except me. I am looking for businesses and conferences to bring to town. My focus is on high tech, Green and Innovative. I am in touch with funding companies who may invest in these types of businesses, were they to establish themselves. I envision a Green Conference Center, where people come in from all over the world to attend workshops & retreats and see examples of lifestyles.

I would make a concerted effort to solarize all large, private & public buildings and develop Green Roofs like has been done in Chicago, with private investors, in order that we generate income from the sale of electricity produced on these buildings. I would make Hemet an example of what a small community can do, if we combine our private and public resources. This includes mixed-income & mixed-use property development.

I have looked at ideas like developing horse trails (besides the ones at Diamond Valley Lake) along the unused railroad tracks, and hitching rescued horses to carts (after restoring their health & vitality, so they pay for their own upkeep) and have them take tourists from the motels on Florida Ave., to the Casino at Soboba. I'm talking with Bluemoon Equine Rescue about this already.

I have been planning a meeting with the President of the Anza Chamber to discuss investment in agritourism, which could bring the region closer together economically. The concept here is to develop farms South of Hemet, one every 2-5 miles, along highway 74, where both previously homeless can live and earn income, and agri-tourists can pay to stay and work, to bring in aquaponic crops. These crops will be developed by managing growing systems (Tilapia fish and vegetables in the same greenhouse). In these greenhouses, manage the temperature by development of wind chimneys to control the air flow and climate inside. People need not move out of town, if these kinds of developments can occur on local fallow land. I haven't counted the empty acreage in town, but there are around 84 empty commercial spaces of varying sizes just along Florida Ave., some of which could easily be converted to indoor food-growing centers. This City could become a net exporter of both raw and processed packaged foods, including dehydrated fruits and vegetables, as well as fish jerky, for high protein snacks for school-aged children. The issue is developing wells to pull water from less than 100' underground anywhere around the City of Hemet. The water table is lower down than 100' in San Jacinto for some reason, according to the head of Eastern Municipal Water District. There is a cost of from $8-12 a foot, plus water pump and holding tanks, irrigation lines and sprinkler heads or drip lines. The use of water in an Aquaponic system is shown to be only 10% of the use of water in regular agriculture, but from what I've seen in person, with the recycling of water between fish and plants, there is very little evaporation and no loss into the ground.

A) The retired population, both for their experience, and their financial resources, which if converted in the main, from stocks and federal bonds, might be placed in municipal bonds, which could potentially be leveraged into public-private partnerships. These partnerships could include syndication of investments in real estate and different kinds of infrastructure, which would have a multiple effect of reinvesting money, as they say, 7-times back into the local economy. It could include buying and converting commercial spaces into mixed-use and mixed-income housing. I would stop all future development of tract housing and instead build only mixed-use, so that people could work from as close to home as possible. Residents may be able to lend to a consortium, to develop locally-owned businesses.

B) The land, for there is so much of it, at a good low price. Utilize it as to financially leverage it, to assist in development of other property, on rotational basis, so it benefits every landowner participating.

C) The sun, and geothermal, which according to the president of Eastern Municipal Water District is at around 100 degrees F, and in my opinion, if solar heat were to be added to that temperature of water, steam generation could be used to clean up the "gray water" The City generates and could be processed to fill in some of the aquifers, in order that subsidence of the land on top of other aquifers does not become a fact in The Valley.

I would engage enterprise developers to recycle all sorts of products from this area. We could take in tons of garbage and recyclables from all over Southern California and process it to reap the original raw materials and then reprocess those to build new things, creating jobs and bringing money into the area, when we export items.

We could turn burnable garbage into a source of natural gas. We could incinerate industrial waste at high temperatures that could not be processed in other locations. I would do this on the highlands away from view of the public, while keeping the waste high enough away from the water table, which is at around the 100 foot level beneath most parts of Hemet. It would allow us to rebuild the highways around here, to accept large trucks and trailers to haul in this waste. That in turn would allow such highways to be utilized by retailers and other businesses who would not otherwise relocate to areas such as this without being close to highways. There is technology available for clean incineratation, where the output is gas.

I spoke with someone at CR&R (Trash/Recycling Co. to which City of Hemet sold to), who I learned from that there are no teeth in the recycling law that went into effect July 1st.

I would create examples of community development, and new styles of housing as examples of how building could be done using less materials, such as strawbale building development with post and beam, along with channeling cooler air from underground into homes. All this would add to the conference center attendees and make training all-the-more a commodity item in this area.

I would enhance the wildlife areas, without the need for endangered species studies to bring in additional tourist dollars, while building places like shooting ranges and desert race car and motorcycle tracks for sports enthusiasts, not to ignore the hunters and drivers, to balance off the two needs, so as to ameliorate the issue of leaning towards the side of the environment. I would create a mountain rally for motorcycle enthusiasts from all over the state, to come through Hemet, and then drive over routes on Mt. San Jacinto.

General Look and Feel

I would work with land owners, or on city-owned land to clean up all the empty lots, by planting ground covers, give permission to some private landscaping or nursery company to plant trees along the roadside, where trees could be later be uprooted, when sold, then replaced by smaller trees, or groundcover cut and marketed as sod, and as other house plants, around Southern California. Part of the sales of those products could provide remuneration to The City coffers, by leasing city-owned land.

Some of these lots could be used to erect one or more Life Skills Colleges, which would double as homeless shelters with a purpose, such as empowering residents to take control of their lives again. These could be turned over to organizations like Valley Restart, and MSJC to operate jointly, so as not to duplicate their efforts. This would ostensibly rid the area of most panhandlers, which are a potential threat to others whom they walk up to in parking lots, the people who are approached not knowing whether they are being approached for spare change or their purse. Donations would support the Life skills college, and I would not support putting these within the city limits, but in the county area and not just in one place.

After graduates leave these skills centers, they would move on to private housing, owned cooperatively by the renters and supported by lenders. From there they would attend other training 5-days a week, to develop skill sets that are in demand by employers all over the country. I would create at least one car camp, where the homeless could live in their vehicles attended by security and operate a cooling center at the same location, with public restrooms, storage, cooking facilities, a computer room, with telephones, voicemail and mail receiving, so that homeless and disabled could be helped to apply for benefits they might qualify for, if they cannot work. I would put a Green Wall around this location, for privacy, and so it adds value to the community, not detract from it. (To look nicer than any property where otherwise walls surround warehouses).

Elderly, disabled (Mentally, Physically & Veterans) and low-income communities

There are elderly in Riverside, who have deficient mental capacity, or diminished physical capacity, due to infirmaties, illness or from just plain being poor. Some of these own property, and others live in mobile home parks, on limited income. Some of these leave their garage doors open, to channel air into their homes, but because of this they are wide open to criminals for theft and attack. These home owners should know better, but they don't and no one is looking after them. I don't know what the recent statistics are, but I have heard that a number of these do not have sufficient resources in order to have food they need to get by. Others do not have the funds to pay for utilities regularly. I propose to put a program together that will provide for insulation and sealing the building envelope of many of these homes, and will work to get the utility companies to sponsor this activity. I propose to assist in the development of a program of installing "wind chimneys" which would channel ambient air underground, through tubes reducing the temperature, before bringing the air into homes, connecting it with the air conditioning or swamp cooler ducts. This would save money because the temperature under the ground is much cooler than that of the air itself, so that it would take less energy to bring down the room temperature.

Further, on July 26th, I called a meeting of local members of the Riverside County Continuum of Care designed to discuss the establishment of a process for the mentally disabled and homeless to get funds they may qualify for, but have not yet applied for. It concerned the management of any benefits and the education & assistance of recipients, from various levels of government, including Social Security & the County of Riverside, as well as from banks who can teach them how to balance a bank account.

That due to the potential length of time it takes to get approved to receive some benefits, and the likelihood of the mentally disabled and homeless to have the ability to manage the application for and follow-through to ensure receipt of those benefits and their management after receipt, a process be created and managed by various licensed individuals and organizations who or which can assist and be responsible for the receipt of and proper dispensation of funds on behalf of constituents who elect to receive such support. Having created this process, it will provide for additional income to the greater Riverside County communities, and assist in the stablization of those requiring funds, whether short or long term.

Research into this has shown that the County of Riverside no longer provides for a Payee Program, except when indigent persons are released from hospitalization. That the County of Riverside itself is not doing Case Management for this purpose, and that if transitional housing and documentation of those receiving healthcare were a part of the process, the likelihood of approval on appeal from denial of Social Security funds increases.

Therefore the goal of that meeting was to identify which organizations can provide referrals of individual seen as potential recipients of such benefits, and what if any part in the development and management of this process any other organization, public, social service, private business or licensed professional might partake.

To this meeting, attendees such as attorneys at law, the Social Security Administration, various social service organizations, the Cities of Hemet and San Jacinto, The County of Riverside Department of Social Services, Certified Guardians and Professional Fiduciaries licensed by the State of California

I need to conduct a follow up meeting to that after I have a chance to analyze the results from the attendees who spoke.

Why Should the Community Endorse My Campaign?

Because change can't wait. People are suffering from lack of employment. The unemployment rate was 22% when I came to Hemet on July 4th weekend a year ago, and now it's officially 16%. I know that 6% of the unemployed did not get jobs, and most-likely fell off the unemployment rolls, ran out of money and may not have the resources even to drive to a job, if they are still looking; in fact the unemployment numbers do not show the real figures of unemployed, under-employed, or even those contract employees who cannot claim unemployment or those who are self-employed and not doing well. Further, the government manipulates the numbers (I forget how they do that) and there are numerous examples of people who are working under their capacity for their abilities, as lesser-paying jobs. Further vocational training in many areas does not prepare people for jobs in their own communities. For example, at our local hospital, there are today 100 jobs in the ICU, but no one seems to want them, according to the CEO of the hospital, and those positions are highly paid, but there is also no specific training for them.

Because I am willing to challenge the status quo, educating people on the possiblities; and learning to create language that will bring people along. Because I am willing to bring people together locally to invest in their own community.

Because my campaign actively seeks change: I am actively working to bring change to the community, and I am determined to see change occur. I am talking with business leaders such as Aaron Knox, Chief Communications Officer of Innovation Economy Corporation (IEC), which is structured to create ventures based on bringing capital together with entrepreneurs who have innovative ideas. They are having a conference at the Ontario Convention Center in May 2013 and I'm trying to get them to hold part of their event in Hemet.

In the beginning when America was founded, the people who had rights were the white male landowners but times have changed. It is inequitable for the residents of Hemet to believe that only land owners are residents of Hemet, and when people lose their home and their income that they don't deserve to be in the community any longer. Where are they to go, and why do their Christian Bretheren not support them in their hour of need?

In fact, any funds from any level of government that come into this area to support the poor, seniors on Medicare or Social Security and "There were calls for compassion (a this week's "Valley Congress" meeting ... but we need to get tough", the Interim City Manager is confusing the public. I say this because the comment "riff raff" as defined by the community includes a wide grouping of individuals, that may be categorized separately, including emancipated transition age youth, the retired poor, the working poor, mothers with children abandoned by their husbands, and the local gangs and independent criminals and panhandlers and section 8 renters. (All considered drags on the public purse).

I just do not want to see us throw the proverbial baby out with the bathwater. I am afraid that since in Mary Bono Mack's district over $4+ billion was pumped in from the federal government, we would be amiss to reject the money that goes to house and feed the poor and the ex-criminals, as they do not keep that money, because it is a pass-through that goes to Wal-mart, Stater Bros. And other commercial interests in town, including the landlords. It is not something we should seek for the benefit of those who commit crimes, but for the money that comes in already, if people are prepared to throw it away, so be it. This town is already suffering financially and could blow away like a tumbleweed.

(1) Neighborhood Empowerment Councils

The purpose of the Citywide System of Neighborhood Councils (in Los Angeles) is to promote more citizen participation in government and make government more responsive to local needs. Neighborhood Councils shall include and represent the many diverse interests of its community and shall have an advisory role on issues of concern to their neighborhood. Public funds should be used to support the purpose, mission and goals of the Neighborhood Council.

Many Los Angelenos are looking for ways to make a difference in their communities on the issues they care about most: crime, roads and streets, gangs and the economy. Neighborhood Council participants are empowered to advocate directly for real change in their communities. These Councils consist of residents, business owners, and property owners.

Local engagement is important because no one understands a neighborhood better than the people who live, work and play there. Neighborhood Councils are answering that need and strengthening democracy in Los Angeles by embracing and supporting the diversity of neighborhoods that comprise the City of Los Angeles.

Working together, Neighborhood Councils have generated success stories across the City + from community health clinics in Pico Union, to a greening strategy for Downtown, to addressing traffic and transportation issues in West LA.

Los Angelenos can get involved in EmpowerLA as much or as little as they like. From staying informed through our website, to attending local Neighborhood Council meetings, to running for a Board Member position, there's an engagement opportunity that meets everyone's needs and schedules.

Creation of Industry Clusters: An industry cluster is a system of businesses and institutions engaged with one another at various levels. Engagement allows individual businesses to increase their competitive advantage through the pooling of resources, knowledge and innovation. When properly implemented, industry clusters can also provide a competitive advantage for geographic regions. Industry clusters involve interconnected companies, specialized suppliers, service providers and firms in related industries + The concept of clusters goes beyond the analysis or recognition of a single industry sector or classification. The concept of a cluster is rooted in recognizing the important connections among different business types that support one another through their buy/sell relationships. Having local, quality suppliers creates synergy by allowing firms to adapt quickly and lower transaction costs.

What My Priorities are for the First 90 Days

Talk to voters about about gifting part of their life insurance and/or estate to the City of Hemet or local charities, through Trusts.

Work with one particular nonprofit I am familiar with to help families who are down on their luck, by placing their children not in the Foster System, which is essentially broke right now, but with other families.

Work through my nonprofit, to update, repair and renovate existing older and blighted properties in the City, to make the City more appealing & create jobs.

Continue promoting local groups that educate the public about remaining safe in their homes, places of work, schools and in public places.

Tap into the brain banks of seniors locally.

Develop committees to promote the San Jacinto Valley as a tourist destination.

Bring new industries to town, to provide jobs and import cash

Why My Goals are for My First Term

Work Hard to Create More Jobs, by developing a private team, through my existing nonprofit, to cold call business owners in industries that are fast expanding, which offer on-the-job training and higher wages, with upward mobility.

Entice Start up businesses out of their garages, into retail or offices & warehouses, where customers can legally visit them, due to zoning and businesses can collect sales taxes, because they can be audited.

Bring New Businesses into Incubators I'll set up through private ventures

Bring vocational schools to town, or assist local schools to develop.

Find and organize grant writers to get grants for Hemet police and fire departments

How I Plan on Communicating with my Constituents

Through my website: http://www.HemetCityCouncil.com

Organize Neighborhood Empowerment Coalitions, which will exist after the election, and be able to communicate on important issues directly to the City Council

Ask the City Council and Administrators to answer the people, when no communications

Discuss and propose plans to make the city a better place.
Email letters & by weekly meetings in public places.