Our December Santa Monica Pulse was released after City Council requested greater transparency regarding the city’s homelessness services. The new slate of Councilmembers requested that the city make public key information regarding homelessness assistance, including contacts for outreach teams and information on funding sources for outreach. When asked if they believed making this information public would help the city better solve its homelessness crisis, the vast majority of residents (67 percent) said “yes.” Only 21 percent said “no,” while another 11 percent were unsure.

As homelessness and crime continue to be a top concern in the city, we also asked if any residents had been a victim of an unreported crime or knew someone that had been a victim. Only 14 percent said they were not nor did they know of someone who had been the victim of an unreported crime. The overwhelming majority either were the victim of a crime, knew someone that was or, in 25 percent of responses, they were both a victim and knew someone who was but did not report it.

On the topic of crime, we asked residents if they believed regulating illegal vendors on the Pier should be a top priority for the City Council. More than half (58 percent) said “yes,” while another 29 percent said “no.” 12 percent were unsure.

We also asked residents if they supported new amenities at the locally owned Shore Hotel that were recently approved by City Council. Only 19 percent disapproved of the new amenities, while another 24 percent approved. The majority of respondents (56 percent) were unsure where they came down regarding the new hotel amenities.