Asm. Santiago, Asm. Muratsuchi, Councilmember de Leon and Community Leaders Join Forces to Oppose Displacing Seniors During the Pandemic

(Los Angeles)  –  On Friday morning, Asm. Miguel Santiago (D-Los Angeles), Asm. Al Muratsuchi (D-Torrance), Los Angeles City Councilmember Kevin de Leon, and community leaders held a press conference urging Pacifica to renegotiate their plan to displace residents of Pacifica-owned senior housing called Sakura Gardens in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The residents of Sakura Gardens are primarily Japanese American and community members are extremely concerned that the residents who have culturally sensitive services at Sakura Gardens will be moved to more costly facilities with culturally insensitive services. The community leaders in attendance included John Kanai, the President of Koreisha, Taiji Miyagawa representing the Save Our Seniors Organization and Dr. Kenneth Hayashida, the President of the Community Advisory Board.  The press conference was held outside Sakura Gardens at 325 S Boyle Avenue in Boyle Heights.

“What will happen to the 68 seniors who are living here now? Pacifica says they will be moved to another facility of the same quality. I wish we could believe them, but numbers don’t lie,” Asm. Santiago (whose district includes Sakura Gardens) said. “Pacifica’s other senior facilities have some of the highest COVID infection and death rates in California. Displacing seniors at Sakura Gardens while the pandemic is raging is dangerous, unethical, and must be stopped.”

Additionally, Asm. Muratsuchi and Asm. Santiago have introduced AB 279 to protect all California seniors during this pandemic by refusing to allow any nursing home or intermediate care facility to evict or transfer residents to another facility during the COVID state of emergency.

Assemblymember Miguel Santiago is the Chair of the Assembly Committee on Communications and Conveyance and Chair of the Assembly Select Committee on Los Angeles County Homelessness. He also sits on the Assembly Committees on Public Safety, Health, Higher Education and Utilities and Energy. He represents the 53rd District composed of the cities of Los Angeles, Huntington Park, and Vernon.