At the Nov 14 meeting, Rotary Club President, Gudiel Crosthwaite, called the meeting to order.
Before the presentation by the speaker, there was a brief discussion of several items.
There was a brief discussion again of getting the membership data current for the District Rotary, to complete the data required for the grant application. (The grant application is for funding for the Food Pantry for LUSD. Then there was a brief discussion about the Second Food Festival which was held on Fri, Nov 15, at the home of Ramon Rodriguez, 12120 Phillips Avenue, Lynwood.
The sale of tickets for this event was an important part of fundraising. Maria Viera said she has sold about $600.00 worth of tickets. The principal food was pozole, along with other tasty items.
A repeat from last week’s minutes, In terms of Lynwood Club Outreach, among many activities, Rotary should set up info tables at various community events, and order extra banners to ensure that Rotary is prominently displayed at any volunteer events.
There was a brief discussion again of getting the membership data current for the District Rotary, to complete the data required for the grant application. (The grant application is for funding for the Food Pantry for LUSD
Daniel introduced the speaker, Eddie Sarmiento, Deputy City Clerk, City of Lynwood, noting that Eddie is well-known throughout the Lynwood community.
Eddie talked about the results of the Nov 5 Election within Lynwood on Measure PS. Lynwood voters acted to continue the sales tax overwhelmingly. From a brochure produced by the City of Lynwood, herein are several quotes.
What is Measure PS? It is a one cent sales tax that brings more services to our residents. It is used to fund repairs and improvements to Lynwood’s streets, sidewalks and alleys, improve public safety staffing and maintain recreation and community services. Will our taxes go up? No, the amount of sales tax you pay will not change. What happens is if Measure PS passes, the money it raised will stay in Lynwood. If it fails, the sales tax will be spread to all of LA County, severely reducing what the city will have available to spend on programs and services.
Eddie cited some impressive statistics of what the penny tax pays for within the city. It passed with 76.3% yes and 23.7% no among a total of 1800 votes. Of note, there are about 70,000 residents in the city, with currently 29 polling places. Other statistics of note, the PS Measure produces 3.8 million dollars a year, within a city budget of 34.9 million a year.
Then Eddie talked about the new voting procedures for 2020. There were “Mock Election Vote Center locations throughout the county on Sep 28 & 29, which included Lynwood Bateman Hall. The new system will be more electronically oriented and will take place at voting centers which will receive voters for a larger number of voters rather than the previous precincts. Voting will take place over 11 days, instead of just one day. Rotary member Raj asked how secure the new system will be from fraud?
On another issue, Eddie noted that of the five Lynwood city council members, two will be termed out in Nov 2020: Aide Castro and Salvador Alatorre.
Daniel Miller Public Relations/ Community Outreach Lynwood Rotary Club