Mayor Seeks $250,000 For ‘Anaheim First’ to Assess Neighborhood Needs

Mayor Harry Sidhu’s pledge to Anaheim residents during a State of the City speech last month looked good in headlines. It boldly proposed $250 million in neighborhood investment over ten years with the help of a civically engaged but supposedly “nonpolitical” Anaheim First advisory committee. The mayor even bragged to the president of Trader Joe’s in a letter stating that council announced the Anaheim First initiative when it did no such thing in a failed attempt to woo the grocery chain to the west side.

Surprise, surprise: With just a little scrutiny, it all turned out to be puras papas.

Sidhu is now trying to clean up his mess at council tomorrow night by way of a resolution in support of what’s being re-branded the “2030 Neighborhood Investment Program” in partnership with Anaheim First. Also on the agenda: a proposed $250,000 in funding for a forthcoming “Anaheim Community Assessment” to be carried out by the nonprofit group.

Read more on my latest OC Weekly Navel Gazing Blog post:

https://ocweekly.com/mayor-seeks-250000-for-anaheim-first-to-assess-neighborhood-needs/