(UPDATE at end of article)
How would you end homelessness in downtown San Diego, in five years? According to the Centre City Development Corporation, you pay the agency of former CCDC board member Jennifer LeSar $464,750 for 15 month’s work on a plan. San Diego CityBeat has the story, and a followup.
According to CityBeat, LeSar’s hourly rate is $225, so she must really be good. Matthew Doherty, whose resume includes the San Diego Housing Commission and Corporation for Supportive Housing, is slightly less pricey, charging just $175 an hour for his expertise. But for the real bargain, go to Rachel Ralston, billing a measly $90 an hour. Such a deal!
Cynics might scoff at the value of the report, considering it just another payoff from the CCDC clique. They would say professionals who work with the homeless could prepare such a report (if its really needed) for far less — leaving more money to be actually spent on helping the homeless.
As CityBeat wrote:
“Talk to any homeless-services provider and they’ll tell you that their work is all about making the most of not much. We don’t see that happening here. LeSar says her job is to create the ‘infrastructure’ to continue a plan to end homelessness Downtown, but, arguably, that infrastructure already exists.”
Nonsense! Bureaucrats and friends of bureaucrats need work too, or they may also end up homeless. While the rest of us have been hit by the recession and are struggling with the alleged recovery, it warms the heart to know that some people have income security — thanks to a generous public.
UPDATE: It’s even better than I first thought. LeSar is married to Assemblywoman (D-76 district) Toni Atkins, a former San Diego city councilwoman and mayor, who started her career learning how to be a community organizer. Yet another deprived person saved by our beneficent government and its infinite supply of wealth!
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(Disclaimer: This is my opinion, and not necessarily that of my employer, the North County Times.)