Salinas needs a “Complete Win” What do I mean by that? Recently, I had the opportunity to hear a fascinating presentation from the Naval Postgraduate group that is working the Salinas Police Department to quell gang violence. One of the concepts they discussed was particularly intriguing.
The professors and their researcher – experts in military strategies and nation building – spoke about desired outcomes and used examples that pertained to international situations such as Iraq or Afghanistan. They talked about “weak wins”, “strong wins” or “complete wins”.
The data about Salinas’s violence showed that over the course of several decades we have managed some to achieve some “weak wins”. They noted that current efforts by Salinas to implement the Operation Ceasefire are necessary and encouraging but they predicted the efforts would ultimately lead only to a “weak win”.
Communities like Boston and Stockton are often cited as model communities of the program’s success but eventually gang violence returned when the pressure eased. And the facts and history show Salinas has enjoyed similar results. Think back to the early 1990’s and the successes of the 10- Block program, but by the end of the decade the violence again returned, according to the NPS team. In other words, the “weak win” was short lived.
A “strong win” within the context of controlling gangs might be described as the ability to continue to apply pressure and sustain suppression, prevention and intervention efforts but the fiscal realties for most level of governments have made this a difficult challenge.
I would summarize the difference between a “strong win” versus a ”complete win” as the difference between reacting to violence and actively transforming our community. I believe the Salinas community wants a Complete Win. What was interesting about the presentation through the eyes of the military team was that only a strategy that included economic development and providing services leads to that Complete Win or, as I like to imagine, that Great City.
In order to shift from imagining a Great City to Building that City, we must focus on three things. We have to attract significant investment into Salinas. It has to be significant enough to replace the jobs currently leaving the City. We need an expanding and diversified economy that creates opportunity for Salinas residents.
The outlines for success are already taking shape as we strive to revive our commercial areas. The Alisal Marketplace, Downtown, Chinatown, and Carr Lake collectively represent hint at a transformed Salinas interior that raise property values, create jobs and expand our tax base. Job creation appears poised around the Medical profession, Application Research and Ag Tech possibilities, along with an emerging Regional recreation strategy.
I am convinced the path to prosperity wends directly through a peaceful community. To attract business and expand our tax base we need to be a more peaceful city. We also need to align Salinas’s municipal services with the communities desire to be peaceful and prosperous.
Measure K is the direction we, as a city, must take to ensure a peaceful and prosperous future. If we take the low road, the threat to the community will continue as we will not have the financial resources to provide basic police services. I cannot stress that enough.
But, through Measure K, there is real hope that Salinas will go beyond the weak and strong levels and achieve a Complete Win. That’s something worth fighting and paying for…. becoming a Great City.
