Story By Russell Ingold | Fontana Herald News
Fontana has been hit hard by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, but Mayor Acquanetta Warren is certain that the city will be able to move forward and bolster the physical and financial health of its residents.
“COVID-19 has clearly been a game-changer, but we’re working all around it,” Warren said in an interview with the Herald News prior to the taping of her State of the City Address on Jan. 28. “We’re not letting COVID-19 take us down.”
Part of the city’s ability to thrive will depend on how much assistance Fontana will get from the federal government, she said. She acknowledged that the city is facing monetary difficulties right now; last year, millions of dollars had to be cut from Fontana’s budget due to the crisis.
“Our budget is in trouble, but we’re doing everything in our power to keep our resources intact, and that includes not doing layoffs at the city, as well as assisting our business community in any fashion we can,” Warren said.
Warren, a member of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, said she is spending lots of time making phone calls seeking help for all cities so that they can backfill their budgets.
In fact, Warren was one of more than 400 mayors from across the country who signed a bipartisan letter which was sent to leaders in Congress, asking them to approve President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief proposal. Biden’s plan would include $350 billion for state and local governments, while a counter-proposal by 10 Senate Republicans leaves out that provision.
The letter sent by the U.S. Conference of Mayors stated that providing direct financial assistance to all cities is “long overdue.”
“President Biden’s American Rescue Plan contains such assistance as part of an aggressive strategy to contain the virus, increase access to life-saving vaccines, and create a foundation for sustainable and inclusive recovery,” the letter said.
“American cities and our essential workers have been serving at the frontlines of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic for nearly a year. We have been charged with executing herculean public health efforts and an unprecedented emergency response. Despite immense fiscal pressure, your local government partners oversaw those efforts, while trying to maintain essential services and increase our internal capacity to provide support for residents and businesses who have been crippled by a tanking economy.”
Fontana has already been increasing that aid for hurting people, Warren said.
“We did give out more than 320 rental assistance and mortgage assistance checks totaling more than $500,000,” she said.
Warren mentioned that the city received a “wonderful” donation of 25,000 N95 masks from Christian Okoye, a former pro football player who has been involved in many philanthropic efforts. “This is going to assist officers and fire personnel as well as our senior community,” Warren said.
City office buildings remain closed to the public due to the health restrictions, but the employees remain hard at work, Warren said.
“Our Community Services Department calls more than 200 seniors daily to check on how they are doing,” she said.
She has heard from many residents wanting to receive COVID-19 vaccinations, and she reminds them that San Bernardino County is in charge of distributing the vaccines. But whenever the vaccines become available, “this city is ready to open up its doors, and you will be able to get them.”
A huge vaccination event took place on Feb. 2 at Auto Club Speedway, located in the unincorporated county area of Fontana, and officials said similar events could be held at that location in the near future.
Fontana has had more than 36,000 cases of the coronavirus since the pandemic began early in 2020, and more than 200 Fontana residents have died from COVID-19. However, the number of new cases has been declining in recent weeks.
Also, despite the economic turmoil, many new businesses continue to be established in Fontana, Warren said.
