Public Services Element

The purpose of the Public Services Element is to provide Santa Ana’s diverse population with quality services and infrastructure, including accessible public facilities and enhanced public safety. Anticipated growth will require the City to fulfill community needs and to ensure proper management of those needs. It is important that public facilities and services are equitably distributed and maintained at sustainable levels throughout the community.

The basic needs of Santa Ana residents for health, education, welfare, safety, and recreation are met by a city’s public facilities and services. The City’s business and institutional communities also rely on resilient and cost-effective utility, safety, and education systems to operate and to attract and retain their workforce.

The quality and types of facilities and services are influenced by the community’s needs and desires, the short- and long-term costs of providing public services, and the availability of public and private resources.

A wide range of City entities and external agencies work together closely to provide the full spectrum of services and facilities.

The City maintains its own police department and contracts with the Orange County Fire Authority to provide public safety services. The City’s Parks and Library agencies manage and deliver recreational and educational resources and programming. The Public Works Agency is responsible for building and maintaining all public streets, local storm drainage, sewers, and water facilities.

The City maintains an overall Capital Improvements Program (CIP) to identify, plan for, and fund public service and facility improvement projects for each fiscal year. The CIP is informed by the General Plan policies and implementation plan as well as master plans and strategic plans associated with each area of public service and responsible agency.

Through the community engagement process for this General Plan, participants identified numerous public service considerations and values that they believe should form the basis of and be addressed by this element. Specifically, participants highlighted the following topics, areas of concern, and community strengths:

• Improve public safety through crime reduction and community-oriented policing
• Enhance ongoing maintenance of public facilities
• Ensure clean drinking water
• Augment public services and programs
• Improve education opportunities
• Provide public services in an efficient and cost-effective manner

Provide quality and efficient facilities that are adequately funded, accessible, safe, and strategically located.

• Policy PS-1.1
  Maintenance and Design
  Provide and maintain public facilities that reinforce community identity through high quality design.
  
• Policy PS-1.2
  Equitable Distribution
  Ensure public services and facilities reflect changing population needs and are equitably distributed and accessible, with priority assigned to improving areas that are underserved and/or within environmental justice area boundaries.
  
• Policy PS-1.3
  Cultural and Community Centers
  Support the expansion, creation, and continued operation of cultural and community institutions and organizations that serve Santa Ana residents.
  
• Policy PS-1.4
  Civic Center Enhancements
  Explore opportunities to activate the Civic Center by incorporating social, cultural, and entertainment venue programming, and improving infrastructure and connectivity to Downtown and surrounding neighborhoods.
  
• Policy PS-1.5
  Community Benefit
  Collaborate with community stakeholders to expand recreational, educational, and cultural opportunities; promote active lifestyles; and maximize community benefit.
  
• Policy PS-1.6
  Facility Locations
  Support land use decisions related to community facilities that preserve quality of life for the city’s residents and surrounding community.
  
• Policy PS-1.7
  Sustainable and Resilient Practices
  Require the development or rehabilitation of any public facility or capital improvement to incorporate site design and building practices that promote sustainability, energy efficiency, and resiliency.
  
• Policy PS-1.8
  Access for All
  Improve connectivity and ADA special needs accessibility at all public facilities.
  
• Policy PS-1.9
  Supportive Housing
  Collaborate with community stakeholders to identify and encourage the development of suitable sites for housing with support services.
  
• Policy PS-1.10
  Fair Share
  Require that new development pays its fair share of providing improvements to existing or creating new public facilities and their associated costs and services.
  
• Policy PS-1.11
  Safety
  Remove actual and perceived safety concerns that create barriers to physical activity by requiring adequate lighting, street visibility, and areas of clear connectivity, especially for new projects or improvements within environmental justice area boundaries.
  

Preserve a safe and secure environment for all people and property.

• Policy PS-2.1
  Public Safety Agencies
  Collaborate with the Police Department and the Fire Authority to promote greater public safety through implementing Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPETD) principles for all development projects.
  
• Policy PS-2.2
  Code Compliance
  Require all development to comply with the provisions of the most recently adopted fire and building codes and maintain an ongoing fire inspection program to reduce fire hazards.
  
• Policy PS-2.3
  Crime Prevention
  Coordinate, partner, and build relationships with community members and stakeholders to develop and implement crime prevention strategies through restorative practices that focus on rehabilitation, community service, and public safety.
  
• Policy PS-2.4
  Community Partnerships
  Provide alternative methods to improve police services that support community partnerships, build public trust, and proactively address public safety issues.
  
• Policy PS-2.5
  Safety Programs
  Promote early childhood education and prevention programs that improve public safety and maintain ongoing community education opportunities.
  
• Policy PS-2.6
  School Safety
  Collaborate with local schools to establish and implement comprehensive and coordinated services that enhance the security and safety of students, educators, and administrators on and off campus.
  
• Policy PS-2.7
  Staffing Levels
  Increase staffing levels for sworn peace officers, fire fighters, emergency medical responders, code enforcement, and civilian support staff to provide quality services and maintain an optimal response time citywide, as resources become available.
  
• Policy PS-2.8
  Efficiency Standards
  Ensure that equipment, facilities, technology, and training for emergency responders are updated and maintained to meet modern standards of safety, dependability, and efficiency.
  
• Policy PS-2.9
  Quality Employees
  Enhance public safety efforts by actively seeking a diverse and talented pool of public safety candidates who possess the values and skills consistent with those of the community.
  
• Policy PS-2.10
  Emergency Management Plans
  Maintain, update, and adopt an emergency operations plan and hazard mitigation plan to prepare for and respond to natural or human generated hazards.
  
• Policy PS-2.11
  Resilient facilities and infrastructure
  Coordinate with utilities and public agencies to develop, maintain, relocate, and/or upgrade critical local and regional public facilities and infrastructure systems to ensure their resiliency during times of extreme weather or natural disasters, or toxic emission release.
  
• Policy PS-2.12
  Automatic Mutual Aid
  Participate in agreements for automatic and mutual aid with other local, state, federal, and nongovernmental emergency service providers to improve protection services and emergency response throughout the region.
  
• Policy PS-2.13
  Extreme Heat
  Maintain an adequate amount and distribution of cooling centers throughout the city, with consideration given to areas with concentrations of those most vulnerable to the dangers of extreme heat.
  
• Policy PS-2.14
  Vulnerable Populations
  Coordinate with and encourage the use of community-based networks to aid vulnerable populations in preparing for emergencies and provide assistance with evacuation and recovery.
  
• Policy PS-2.15
  Recovery
  Coordinate with the County and other local agencies to reestablish and expedite services to assist affected residents and businesses in the short- and long-term recovery from emergencies and natural disasters.
  

Supply, maintain, and expand City services and infrastructure improvements through innovative funding options and sustainable practices.

• Policy PS-3.1
  Service Partnerships
  Partner with service providers to ensure access to a wide range of state-of-the-art telecommunication systems and services for households, businesses, institutions, public spaces, and public agencies.
  
• Policy PS-3.2
  Wastewater Service
  Provide and maintain wastewater collection facilities which adequately serve existing land uses and future development projects while maximizing cost efficiency.
  
• Policy PS-3.3
  Wastewater Technology
  Explore new technologies that treat and process wastewater that reduce overall capacity needs of centralized wastewater systems.
  
• Policy PS-3.4
  Drainage Facilities
  Expand and maintain storm drain facilities to accommodate the needs of existing and planned development.
  
• Policy PS-3.5
  Green Infrastructure
  Incorporate sustainable design and Low Impact Development (LID) techniques for stormwater facilities and new development to achieve multiple benefits, including enhancing, preserving, and creating open space and habitat; reducing flooding; and improving runoff water quality.
  
• Policy PS-3.6
  Water Service
  Provide water quality and service that meets or exceeds State and Federal drinking water standards.
  
• Policy PS-3.7
  Emergency Connections
  Maintain emergency connections with local and regional water suppliers in the event of delivery disruption.
  
• Policy PS-3.8
  Conservation Strategies
  Promote cost-effective conservation strategies and programs that increase water use efficiency.
  
• Policy PS-3.9
  Household Recycling
  Expand household recycling services and educational awareness programs.
  
• Policy PS-3.10
  Development Projects
  Encourage new development and reuse projects to incorporate recycling and organics collection activities aligned with state waste reduction goals.
  
• Policy PS-3.11
  Waste Collection
  Support infill development projects that provide adequate and creative solutions for waste and recycling collection activities.
  
• Policy PS-3.12
  Sewer and Water
  Maintain and upgrade sewer and water infrastructure through impact fees from new development and explore other funding sources.
  

An implementation plan is a coordinated series of actions the City desires to take in the future that are intended to advance, over the long term, the City’s Shared Vision, Core Values, and the General Plan goals and policies. An implementation plan is thus a follow-up measure for this element. Taken as a whole, these programs represent the City’s best thinking today on what actions should be taken to address the considerations and concerns of the community and make sure that the plan’s aspirations are achieved.

Implementation is in large part contingent upon adequate funding. Many of these actions can be pursued through initiatives already underway. Other programs will require additional resources. Therefore, the exact mix and timing of programs the City may pursue will in part be opportunity driven, dependent on the availability of funding, staffing, and other necessary resources. The Time Frame in the Implementation Table below is the target for completion of the Action.

This element may be implemented by amendments to existing plans, ordinances, development standards and design guidelines; capital investments/projects; and interagency/interjurisdictional coordination. The following table identifies the implementation action, the responsible City agency, and targeted timeline for accomplishment.