SANTA ANA : U.S. Grants $350,000 for City Programs
The City Council accepted an unexpected grant of $350,000 from the federal government this week and approved spending the money on local employment, youth and anti-graffiti programs.
As part of the city’s continuing Weed and Seed anti-crime effort, the council unanimously earmarked the money for six programs, including gang-prevention efforts at Valley High School and Spurgeon Intermediate School.
The Weed and Seed area is bounded by McFadden Avenue and 1st, Sullivan and Raitt streets.
Under the plan approved Monday, the city will spend $98,000 on Valley High’s Road to Success program, aimed at keeping in school about 70 students who might otherwise drop out and join gangs.
Another $44,000 will go to Spurgeon Intermediate’s Adopt-a-Kid program, a year-round effort to keep 14-year-old at-risk children away from gangs.
The city will also spend about $92,000 on its youth education services program, which provides job training, education and self-esteem activities for residents aged 18 to 23.
“Paint It Now Block Challenge,” a city program that aims to paint about 50 homes for low-income families, will receive about $51,000.
Safe Haven, which offers recreation and counseling for families, will receive about $50,000. A program offering youngsters training to become zookeepers at the Santa Ana Zoo will receive almost $14,000.
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