TITLE
Recommendation to request City Manager to work with L.A. SHARES staff to develop a business and residential reusable goods and materials donation program for the benefit of Long Beach schools, community non-profits and City departments; and
Request City Manager to return to City Council within 60 days with the proposed program, potential partners and cost to implement.
DISCUSSION
According to L.A. SHARES, the program was created in 1991 as a pilot for the City of Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department known as Materials For The Arts. Since 1991, L.A.
SHARES has worked with 1,000+ local companies to give away more than $80,000,000.00 worth of goods and materials to over 2,500 organizations throughout Los Angeles County.
These goods and materials can be almost anything - technology, office furniture/supplies, artwork, personal care products and sports-related equipment. Due to federal, state and local regulations, and the demographic served, L.A. SHARES does not accept equipment or furniture that is not in good working order in addition to food, used clothing, used mattresses or bedding, used refrigerators, used washers, used dryers, used stoves, paint, construction and demolition debris, and toxic or hazardous materials.
Interested schools and non-profits create an online profile of their organization, including a "Wish List" and "Top 20 List" of needed items. This profile is then entered into a unique, relational database, which proactively identifies each organization's needs and continuously seeks to match those needs with the donated items on record. When a need is matched, the recipient is notified, via e-mail, to come to one of two area warehouses to retrieve their items or instructed to go directly to the donor for pick-up. However, it is recommended that a Long Beach SHARES program initially focus on linking recipients directly with donors rather than utilizing a warehouse.
Key city partners in Los Angeles include the Department of Public Work...
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