Collaboration is the key if we hope to minimize area blight
I would like to thank Rodney L. Muhammad for his Oct. 31 Community Voices article, "Turns out blight is my own problem." I commend and respect anyone who takes an active role in improving his neighborhood.
However, I would challenge Muhammad on his belief that removing blight from his community is only his issue and not that of the entire community -- including my office. We work better and accomplish much more when we bring people together to tackle a problem. I believe blight is our collective issue and, as such, requires united action.
Here are just a few examples.
A couple of weekends ago, we had students from middle school through college, as well as members of faith-based organizations, service clubs and nonprofit organizations together cleaning bulky waste items from neighborhoods throughout east Bakersfield. With this army of people, we cleaned up almost eight tons of trash in a four-hour period. Over the last five years, this type of effort has not been the exception -- we participate several times during the year. With that same diligent work ethic, we have also been able to collect 10,279 illegally dumped tires in the 5th District since I came into office in 2005. But our work continues.
Also important to fighting blight is addressing code enforcement issues that continue to plague east Bakersfield. I am proud to report that Kern County government -- in working in response to community concerns -- currently has over 300 active code compliance cases in the 5th District. These on-the-ground efforts are possible due to the significant investments made in code enforcement by the Board of Supervisors. Over the years, in working with leaders in east Bakersfield such as Brandi De La Garza, we have successfully rid the community of many dilapidated, unsafe buildings and tightened oversight of run-down, empty lots.
Additionally, after a concerned mother whose children walked down a dangerous street without curbs, gutters and sidewalks came to us recently with her problem, we worked with other concerned parents, school administrators and the county's roads department to find a way to build the infrastructure needed to provide a safer corridor to Williams School. This, again, was no exception. We have now paved the remainder of Niles Street, Monterey Street and Flower Street, requiring ongoing cooperation between the city and county in order to best serve our constituents. Here again, we have better final results when we work together.
The largest of projects brought families from throughout the community to build over 20 miles of curb, gutter and sidewalk in the 5th District, of which 10 miles were solely within east Bakersfield. This was accomplished by changing longstanding Community Development Block Grant policies at the county. Needless to say, these infrastructure projects are crucial to ensuring that children and other residents are safe as they walk to schools and discourage blight.
But of course, we cannot do it alone. It is only by concerned citizens joining forces with local government offices, community groups and other interested residents that we can truly make a difference. We look forward to continuing to partner with Kern Leadership Alliance, Faith in Action, Boys & Girls Clubs of Kern County, Rotary Club of East Bakersfield, East Bakersfield Community Collaborative and countless others to ensure that our communities are safe and to facilitate a higher quality of life for all residents.
Particularly during these difficult economic times, we must continue to come together as a community. People are losing their health care, access to education is as difficult as ever and blight plagues many neighborhoods. Improving our communities will require a collective effort.
Kern County Supervisor Michael J. Rubio represents the 5th District.
