Meet Albert Vera, Candidate For City Council Of Culver City

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Today, I operate both businesses, and I am proud to have undertaken a variety of environmental initiatives at both, including the elimination of plastics and one-time-use bags at the market and the USDA certification of Vera Ranches as an organic operation since 2018.

Occupation: small business owner

Family: My girlfriend, Kim, and my 30-year-old daughter

Age: 59

Have you ever held public office, whether appointive or elective?

Yes. I have served the city of Culver City as a member of the City Council since 2020.

Prior to that I was appointed to serve on both the city’s Civil Service Commission and the city’s Landlord-Tenant Mediation Board.

What do you think are the top three issues for Culver City voters in this election, and how do you plan to address them?

Continue and enhance our efforts to end homelessness and get people off the streets — We have made a lot of progress in this area, but we need to continue to do more. I plan to work over the next four years to implement even more programs to get the unhoused off our streets and connect them with the resources they need to stay off the streets. Culver City’s approach to homelessness leads with housing, support, and care. And I will continue to support programs like our new Safe Sleep Site that provides temporary shelter and respite to people experiencing homelessness, providing access to basic human necessities with bathrooms, showers, and on-site supportive services.

The current City Council has spent more on the unhoused than every other council in city history combined. Our spending has jumped from about $400,000 per year to more than $16.5 million in the last year and a half.

We have used our own General Fund monies to supplement the limited Measure H funds our city receives to implement a wide range of new programs, including the new Safe Sleep site, which has helped people get off the street and give them access to basic human needs and resources they need to stay off the streets; our Project Homekey effort in which the city purchased two motels and created 73 units of interim and permanent housing; and a new four-person Mobile Crisis Team, designed to proactively engage the unhoused and connect them with mental health and other support.

I believe we need to continue to push the county for a greater portion of Measure H funds to be used at a local level. We have been very successful in creating programs that truly make a difference, but our level of spending is not sustainable without more partnerships and greater funding from the county – something I am focused on advocating for. I support a more robust outreach effort to engage those who we can help and a concerted effort to fight at the county, state and federal level to create the partnerships and find the funding we need to address what has become a true crisis.

Increase the city’s housing stock and specifically increase the number of affordable housing units in Culver City — We are currently in the midst of our long-term planning and the passage of our new General Plan, which contemplates the addition of thousands of new units, not only to meet our state-required RHNA numbers, but to provide affordable and market-rate homes for those who work in Culver City.

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I am committed to working with the private sector to add more housing options, including affordable units in mixed-use buildings along Washington, Robertson, and Jefferson Boulevard and new housing developments in the Fox Hills area that will add a significant number of affordable units.

It will be critical that we encourage the developers involved in these projects to include more affordable units and provide community amenities that encourage walkable streets and enable people to live close to where they work and shop. I will push for affordable units that enable our children and grandchildren to remain here in Culver City instead of having to leave the city they grew up in simply to afford a place to live.

Redesign the MOVE project — I joined the council majority in voting for changes to the MOVE Culver City pilot project that has snarled traffic and had a severe negative impact on our Downtown businesses, while not truly accomplishing its goal of making the area more bike and pedestrian-friendly.

After the project’s initial implementation, the city conducted a scientifically accurate survey of residents and discovered that more than 70 percent of respondents wanted changes to the original configuration. I voted for revisions to the program that would result in the restoration of one vehicular lane, the creation of a combination bus/bike lane and an extension of the project all the way to Fairfax instead of stopping at La Cienega.

These changes will not only promote mobility and encourage the use of public transit and cycling; but will also address the concerns from residents and business owners regarding traffic congestion and access to local businesses and neighborhoods.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you’d succeed on the council?

There is perhaps nothing of which I am more proud during my time on the City Council than our efforts to address homelessness. Many have called our efforts a model for how municipalities should deal with this issue that impacts every city in the country. In addition to making it a core focus of our city – as evidenced by the fact that we have spent more than $16.5 million in the last year and a half on the homelessness issue –we have done it in a compassionate, caring and effective manner.

I have always believed that the critical element of helping people get off the streets is to connect them with the resources they need – not just leave them alone on the streets to fend for themselves. Other cities have tried to simply put a roof over their heads (which is important), but they have failed because they did not also provide the wrap-around services that actually help break the cycle of homelessness.

During my time as a board member at Upward Bound House, I became aware that navigating government red tape and having a support network to help you navigate thing things you have to do to get off the street is the most important aspect of this issue. Despite all of our success, we still have a long way to go. I believe we need to continue to push the county for a greater portion of Measure H funds to be used at a local level because our level of spending is not sustainable without more partnerships and greater funding from the county – something I am focused on advocating for.

As a member of the Council’s Economic Development Subcommittee, I have helped spearhead a wide range of efforts designed to streamline the permitting process, make numerous applications available virtually, and work with the county to help small businesses succeed. I also believe it is incumbent upon us to listen to the business community, understand their businesses and make adjustments to what we do in an effort to help them succeed.

The MOVE Culver project is a perfect example of that. We heard from local restauranteurs that their business declined by as much as 50 percent after the installation of MOVE Culver, so it was important for us to listen to them and make changes that will enable their businesses to be successful – after all, small businesses are the backbone of our community. They generate tax revenue that helps us pay for vital city services, and without a successful business community, our
residents simply would not have the services we all count on. In terms of business improvement districts, I fully support efforts to support the Downtown Business Association and encourage the creation of new business improvement districts in other parts of Culver City.

I also support the efforts of the Culver City Chamber of Commerce in fostering economic development in our community and working to ensure the success of small businesses.

Finally, I am pleased that during the past four years I have been in office Culver City has worked hard to ensure that women have better representation on city commissions, boards, and committees. Today, women outnumber men 36 to 34 on our city’s commissions, boards and committees. That is the result of a conscious effort to promote equity and diversity – something I continue to support. Culver City currently has a female city attorney a female city clerk, a female enforcement services manager, a female CFO, a female Housing and Human Services director, a female human resources director, a female cultural affairs manager, a female chief information officer and a female transportation director.

I am proud of what our city has done in this regard, and while, we must remain vigilant and continue to focus on equity and diversity, Culver City has proven to be a model for cities in this regard.

What’s the best advice anyone gave you?

The best advice I ever got was from my dad, who said, “Always believe in yourself and follow your heart.” I think about him and my mom every day, especially when I face the tough decisions every elected person has to face, and I remember those words “follow your heart.”

I am proud to say that my decisions are not political ones. They are the ones I believe are truly in the best interest of Culver City.

Who is someone that inspires you and why?

My father. A former city council member and mayor himself, he brought me up to recognize that we need to give back to the community and help those less fortunate than ourselves.

Thanks to him, I have learned to be empathetic, understanding and listen to the community we serve. Every day, I saw him listen to people’s concerns about our city over the counter at Sorrento. When they would leave, I would watch as he swung into action immediately, making phone calls and taking tangible steps to address whatever their concerns might be. This ability to listen to our residents and take action to help them solve their problems is something that I have always tried to emulate. In some way, my dad is always with me, looking over my shoulder and making sure I do things the right way, even when it’s hard.

Is there anything else you’d like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I take giving back to my community very seriously, so I have been involved in scores of community groups and organizations over the years. I am especially proud of my involvement with Habitat for Humanity, which works locally and across the globe to create affordable housing and develop strong and stable communities.

I am also proud of the work I have done on the board of Upward Bound House, a non-profit whose mission it is to eliminate homelessness among families with children throughout Los Angeles by providing housing, supportive services, and advocacy. I have also served on the board of the Culver-Palms Family YMCA, been a member of the Culver City Exchange Club and worked with Meals on Wheels. I have also worked with many other local organizations that help our community every day.

Giving back to the community is in my DNA, something that was passed on to me by my mother and father, and something I take seriously as my responsibility to the city I love.

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