In our March Santa Monica Pulse poll, we asked residents to weigh in on some safety concerns in the city. For starters, City Council recently passed a resolution denouncing LA County’s needle exchange program that takes place in public parks. The resolution sparked a debate over the program’s impact on residents. When asked if they had reduced their usage of city parks, public transportation, or both out of a concern for crime, including drug use, the vast majority (90 percent) of respondents said yes. 10 percent said no.

We also noted that after 33 years in Santa Monica, the American Film Market recently announced that it will move to Las Vegas. The market brings more than $20 million into Santa Monica’s economy during its annual week-long stay. We asked respondents to choose which factors they believed contributed to the market’s relocation. They were able to choose more than one answer. 86 percent said public safety issues including crime and homelessness contributed. 37 percent said noisy protests outside hotels were a factor, and 16 percent cited increased travel costs. 32 percent chose “other” — of those who wrote in a response, many cited overdevelopment, loss of local retail, and high taxes as possible reasons.

We also asked about a possible amendment to the current noise ordinance that the City Council was supposed to consider. The issue has become a point of contention for many residents who are disturbed by loud protests conducted by hotel worker union Unite Here Local 11. However, the item was pulled for discussion at the last meeting. When asked if they thought City Council needs to address excess noise in residential neighborhoods, 73 percent said yes. 14 percent said no, and another 12 percent were unsure.