By Jason Islas
Staff Writer

June 27, 2013 -- The City Council reduced funding for Santa Monica's Pico Youth and Family Center by about $90,000 Tuesday night, while boosting funding for job training and other youth initiatives.

The Council decided to reduce the youth center's funding, which has recently come under scrutiny for alleged book keeping and administrative issues, as part of its vote to approve the City's $520.9 million operating budget for 2013-2014.

Council members reassured the dozen members of the public who spoke in support of the PYFC Tuesday night that the reduced funding -- now $225,000 for the year -- was in no way an indication that the Center would be closing.

“The PYFC isn't going to close,” said Council member Gleam Davis. “All nonprofits... go through a maturation process and all nonprofits eventually have to become a sustainable enterprise.”

The $90,000 coming out of the 12-year-old nonprofit's grant would be allocated to other agencies within Santa Monica's Cradle-to-Career continuum, a network of youth-oriented nonprofits and City initiatives in the bayside City.

“I think recent events in this city has demonstrated that we have some unfortunate and gaping holes in our social safety net for youth,” said Davis.

In response to a shooting spree on June 7 by a 23-year-old Santa Monica resident that left seven dead, City officials announced that they would be “shifting” their youth services to better address those “gaping holes.”

“This $90,000 is going to... put boots on the ground,” said Davis. She added that the Cradle-to-Career program should be revamped to resemble the City's programs for the homeless with “dedicated staff and people forming a continuum of care” that focuses on “the most needy youth.”

While many showed up to speak in support of the Pico Youth and Family Center and School Board member Oscar de la Torre, the nonprofit's polarizing founder and former executive director, some called for changes in the organization.

Darrell Goode, president of the Santa Monica and Venice branch of the NAACP, supported the Cradle-to-Career collaborative, but underscored the need for change within the PYFC.

Goode said that de la Torre and some of the board members would level “unfounded” charges of racism against those they viewed as opponents, including City Manager Rod Gould.

“We sat in meetings where board members and executive director insisted that individuals, because they were Jewish were trying to give money away to other organizations,” he told the Council Tuesday.

Goode emphasized the need for a “strong monitoring organization to make sure that the youth that go there find a healthier environment.”

De la Torre has said that he has stepped down as the nonprofit's director and that the organization is currently undergoing a transition in leadership while attempting to diversify its funding base.

As part of the discussion Tuesday, the Council also voted to allocate an additional $124,000 to the Cradle-to-Career collaborative as well as $92,000 for a job training program in collaboration with the local hospitality industry.

Only Council member Tony Vazquez voted against the additional funding to the Cradle-to-Career collaborative because he said he wanted to see some benchmarks before “throwing money” at the program.

Along with the budget and the additional funds, the Council voted to use left over discretionary funds to increase Section 8 subsidies for low-income renters by $100,000.

Council members also voted to fund the Santa Monica Festival for two years to the tune of $100,000.

An additional $25,000 went to fund research for water self-sufficiency programs and another $25,000 was earmarked to study possibly putting in playgrounds north of the Pier.