CHULA VISTA, Calif. – Leaders in the South Bay voted to use funding from the American Rescue Plan to help with a variety of issues in Chula Vista: domestic violence, hunger, and housing, all becoming major concerns for people following the pandemic.
A green light along the dais Tuesday night could help boost resources for Chula Vista nonprofits and homeless shelters, all thanks to the American Rescue Plan. It’s a move one resident tells FOX 5 is a necessity. The city noting while although the height of the pandemic has subsided, issues of housing, domestic violence and food insecurity continue to impact families at rates of pre pandemic levels.
Chula Vista City Council approved Tuesday to allocate a total of $700,000 of its nearly $29 million funding given back in August of 2021 from the feds.
“I’m happy to see that some of this money is going to the domestic violence program having been a victim of domestic violence in my first marriage…” one resident Delia Dominguez Cervantes said.
$200,000 will go to the South Bay Community Services Corp Domestic Violence program, $400,000 will go to the Casa Nueva Vida Shelter Operations and $100,00 will go to the Jacobs and Cushman San Diego Food Bank.
However, Cervantes is still raising some concern regarding how the money will be spent.
“When we do assign these monies out, how do we ensure that the money is going to the right place?” Cervantes questioned.
Meanwhile, the city also approved the 2022 Housing Report, citing progress, but vying for more change in the midst of a countywide scarcity.
“We not only want our kids to grow up here, our kids to work here, but our kids to live here, and stay here in the city of Chula Vista,” said Mayor John McCann.