I live on the Peninsula which is only accessed by traveling east along Ocean Boulevard which dead ends at the jetty. The alley isn't easy to access so whoever stole my bikes and BBQ wasn't just strolling past; they were looking for something to steal.

My neighborhood is now inundated by numerous trash pickers strolling our streets and alleys and walking away with anything they can stuff in a bag or their shopping cart. Conditions are worsening as trash pickers are becoming mechanized by utilizing pickup trucks accompanied with loaders that drive up and down our streets and alleys grabbing anything they can get their hands on.

So, what are Mayor Garcia and the City Council doing to prevent this degradation of the quality of life in our neighborhoods? They have gutted the Police budget and reduced the staffing level to a level that virtually eliminates any proactive policing for the public. And realistically, the police have their hands full dealing with all of the murders and shootings in the 1st, 6th, 8th and 9th Council Districts.

The thefts of my Weber BBQ and bicycles are quality of life crimes. We weren't physically threatened as the thieves just snuck in and quietly took our stuff.

I remind Mayor Garcia and the City Council: the number one priority of Municipal Government is supposed to be providing a safe environment for its residents. In this taxpayer's opinion, you are failing.

In addition to violent crimes that frequently make news, your misguided priorities have made it more likely that more Long Beach residents will become victims of quality of life crimes. Our City won't prosper if you continue to ignore the basics. If you cannot keep residents safe, stop the shootings and gang activity, maintain our infrastructure in good condition and keep people and property safe in our neighborhoods, our city's reputation will continue to erode and good families will move to a safer city.

While you seek attention for dog parks, pumpkin parties, crime fighting Dog Walkers and "meatless Mondays," taxpayers watch as you squander millions on a Taj Mahal Civic Center, dispense pay raises and spend our scarce tax dollars on pet projects and favored interests while eliminating police, slashing public safety budgets and letting our infrastructure decay to third world status.

Don't even think about asking taxpayers -- the victims of poor decision making -- for a tax increase. The last thing the public should do is feed current dysfunctional spending without changing underlying behavior and, if necessary, those responsible for it.

I am fed up with unkept campaign promises by those who use Long Beach as a stepping stone to higher office. I say: Prove you can do a good job of administering Long Beach and taxpayers -- not special interests -- will decide if you'll advance to higher office.

Long Beach residents have the power to change the status quo if we simply wake up and take control. We should stop being played for suckers by people we elect to work for us who think they can advance themselves without doing the jobs they were elected to do.

Opinions expressed by LBREPORT.com, our contributors and/or our readers are not necessary those of our advertisers. We welcome our readers' comments/opinions 24/7 via Disqus, Facebook and moderate length letters and longer-form op-ed pieces submitted to us at mail@LBReport.com.









Scroll down for further



















