The Impact of Proposed Budget Cuts on San Diego’s Youth Programs
Mayor Todd Gloria’s proposed budget cuts to various arts and cultural grants have sparked concern among community members, particularly those involved in programs that support at-risk youth. One such program is the Giving Hands Drop Center in Mountain View, which serves as a critical resource for young people in San Diego. This center, along with another in Stockton Memorial, provides a safe space for youth to stay off the streets and avoid trouble.
Lanell Brown, the Director of the Giving Hands Mountain View Drop Center in Southeast San Diego, emphasizes the importance of the center’s mission. “This place right here is open so that I can be a father for the fatherless,” Brown said. Since its opening a few months ago, the center has become a vital hub for youth like Kayla Hale’s 18-year-old son, who can access resources or simply hang out after school.
“It’s extremely important because you know, the area that we live in he’s gone through a lot of trauma at a very young age of his life and it’s really been helping him to stay on track, and just with responsibility, and working,” Hale shared. The center not only offers a sense of stability but also connects youth with mentors like Torrion Dedmon, who works with the Juvenile Diversion Incentive Program.
Dedmon teaches four-week trade courses designed to help young people clear their records. “I teach them the basics of construction. How to work with hand tools and you know, just do certain things and once they get finished with that course, they get their record expunged,” Dedmon explained. These programs provide essential skills and opportunities for redemption, yet their future remains uncertain due to the mayor’s budget draft.
The proposed budget includes $12 million cuts to arts and cultural grants and $8 million cuts to parks, recreation, and libraries. For Brown, this raises serious concerns about the impact on the community. “If this building can stay open at least this is something they can have as an alternative to all the other stuff that the mayor is closing down,” Brown said. He stressed that the Giving Hands drop centers are lifelines for youth, offering them a path toward a better future.
Brown also highlighted the importance of libraries as free resources for those without internet access. “There are some people who don’t have internet or anything like that, so they go to the library to get that free service. So if you’re closing all of those down when school is over, how do you expect us to thrive in this community?” he questioned.
Given the potential consequences of these cuts, Brown is urging the mayor to reconsider and protect the programs that support at-risk youth. “That’s why he’s pleading to the mayor to remove them from the chopping block and consider the lives of youth who will be impacted if he moves forward with the cuts.”
NBC 7 reached out to the city for comment and is awaiting a response. As the debate over the budget continues, the community remains hopeful that the needs of its youth will be prioritized.
