Community Commentary:

At last week’s special budget session, staff reported an additional $8-million revenue shortage for this fiscal year (“Budget gap is gaping,” Feb. 4). When added to the original projection of a $10-million deficit, the shortfall now stands at $18 million this year. To remove the $18-million shortfall, the council cut 65 vacant positions and two filled positions. It also removed the three school resource officers from the middle school campuses. Next year, the city is projecting another $7.3-million deficit that will require additional cuts.

Several members of the public weighed in on how they thought the city should approach these staff reductions. Some made the argument that police and fire should not be considered for any reductions due to the greater importance of public safety as compared to other services.

City staff members said that if that were to happen, to bring spending in line with revenues, all non-public-safety departments would experience a 20% to 30% reduction in their budgets. This is because police and fire constitute around 55% of the overall general fund budget.

As a retired Pasadena police chief, I am well aware of the importance of the role public safety has in a community. But the concept of public safety does not stop at the doors of the police and fire departments. Public safety in any community, to be effective, must go beyond our safety institutions. It is also manifest in our schools, churches and organized social service organizations such as the YMCA, Boy Scouts and the many other programs that teach good citizenship and build character during the formative years.

Many studies have shown that the best investment in public safety is to invest resources in our youth. Under the premise that it is easier to teach a child than to repair an adult, public safety should begin by giving our youth structure and organized activities that promote responsible behavior.

The taxpayers get a better return on their public safety investment through prevention. By maintaining good parks and recreation programs and a healthy library system, the city of Glendale can play an important role in the development of productive adults coming from this generation of youth.

Just imagine if our Library and Parks and Recreation departments had to reduce their overall budgets by 30%. If parks are not maintained, the enormous all-volunteer youth sports programs that are the heart of our AYSO, Little League and other programs will be in jeopardy. If they collapse, these kids will not experience the kind of activities that contribute to their healthy growth.

If parents cannot bring their children to their local neighborhood branch library to encourage a lifelong habit of reading, our next generation will be deprived of important formative development.

 BRUCE PHILPOTT is a Glendale resident and a candidate for City Council.