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MONDAY, OCTOBER 07- OCTOBER 13, 2024
State revokes Norwalk’s eligibility for housing, homeless funds
VOL. 12,
NO. 192
68 members of alleged white supremacist gang in SFV indicted
By Joe Taglieri
By City News Service
joet@beaconmedianews.com
T
he state has declared Norwalk is out of compliance with housing law and will no longer receive funding for housing projects and efforts to address homelessness, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Thursday. The move is the latest in a back-and-forth between the governor and Norwalk City Council, which last month extended a moratorium on constructing homeless shelters. “After the state has provided cities and counties with unprecedented funding to address the homelessness crisis, it’s beyond cruel that Norwalk would ban the building of shelters while people are living on the city’s streets,” Newsom said in a statement. “This crisis is urgent, and we can’t afford to stand by as communities turn their backs on those in need. No more excuses — every city, including Norwalk, must do its part and follow state housing laws.” The California Department of Housing and Community Development’s revocation of Norwalk’s compliance with the state housing-element law makes Norwalk ineligible for significant funding aimed at helping local-level governments increase affordable housing and reduce homelessness. The HCD action also means the city can no longer deny “builder’s remedy” affordable housing projects. The builder’s remedy is a legal mechanism states use to hasten the construction of affordable housing when a local government does not comply with housing laws. Last month Newsom threatened to sue Norwalk if it persists with upholding the shelter ban, and he reiterated the lawsuit option Thursday. Creating more housing is a central part of state and local
U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada was joined by law enforcement during a press conference Wednesday. | Photo courtesy of U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California
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Norwalk City Hall. | Photo courtesy of the city of Norwalk
officials’ efforts to reduce homelessness in recent years. State law requires all cities to develop a housing strategy “to ensure that they are planning for enough affordable housing for their community,” according to Newsom’s office. State officials said Norwalk has failed to meet its housing goals and the shelter ban violates state law because the city has not added enough housing. The city has issued permits for 175 units during the current housing element cycle, which is 3.5% of Norwalk’s 5,034 assigned “Regional Housing Needs Allocation,” or the number of units required to ensure the city has an adequate supply of housing for the local rental market. “The City of Norwalk’s actions have placed them in violation of state housing law, and therefore their housing element is no longer in compliance,” HCD Director Gustavo Velasquez said in a statement. “Our Housing Accountability Unit provided
the city clear guidance — with full transparency on what our next steps would be if they did not repeal this egregious ordinance. Instead of working to correct their missteps, they dug in their heels and are now ineligible for key funding and subject to the builder’s remedy.” Norwalk Mayor Margarita Rios defended the council’s shelter ban, citing public safety concerns. “The City Council is committed to safeguarding the interests and public safety of Norwalk residents while retaining local control over land use decisions,” Rios said in a statement. “Our ordinance was specifically designed to protect residents by promoting responsible development. However, our experience with housing programs, particularly Project Roomkey, which placed a substantial number of homeless individuals with high acuity needs, near homes, schools, and public spaces, has raised significant concerns.
“This project has negatively impacted public safety and community well-being,” Rios said. “We urgently need improved communication and collaboration from the state to address these issues; we must tackle this in a spirit of cooperation rather than under the threat of penalties.” According to Newsom’s office, Norwalk’s policies have overtly blocked access to homeless support, shelter and housing despite the city’s acceptance of nearly $29 million in state housing and homelessness funds. On Aug. 6, the City Council adopted a 45-day urgency ordinance imposing a moratorium on emergency shelters, singleroom occupancy housing, supportive housing and transitional housing. On Sept. 16 the HCD notified Norwalk of the violation, and the next day the City Council voted to extend the ordinance banning shelters See Norwalk Page 24
orty-two members of what prosecutors call a San Fernando Valleybased white supremacist gang have been arrested in connection with a federal indictment unsealed Wednesday alleging a years-long criminal operation that included drug trafficking, weapons violations and COVID-19 and loan fraud. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, 29 people named in the indictment were arrested Wednesday in a series of raids involving the Los Angeles Police Department and other agencies. Thirteen other defendants were already in custody, prosecutors said. Prosecutors said the gang has been allied with the Aryan Brotherhood and Mexican Mafia, and its members use “Nazi tattoos, graffiti and iconography to indicate their violent white supremacy extremist ideology.” A total of 68 defendants are named in the 76-count indictment, which alleges offenses including conspiracy to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, conspir-
acy to distribute controlled substances, distribution of controlled substances, bank fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon. The gang’s “violent white-supremacist ideology and wide-ranging criminal activity pose a grave menace to our community,” U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said in a statement announcing the indictment. “By allegedly engaging in everything from drug-trafficking to firearms offenses to identity theft to COVID fraud, and through their alliance with a neo-Nazi prison gang, the (gang is) a destructive force. In prosecuting the members of the ... criminal organization, our office is carrying out its mission to protect the public from the most dangerous threats.” During the investigation, law enforcement seized See SFV gang Page 23