Los Angeles stands at a crossroads. Every day, residents are confronted with issues that feel both immediate and overwhelming: the rising cost of living, homelessness that continues to test our capacity and at times our compassion, infrastructure in need of repair, and public safety concerns that demand thoughtful leadership instead of political theatrics. Despite these challenges, I continue to believe that Los Angeles can move forward with clarity and purpose if we focus on real results.

Across the city, we see progress where leaders stay focused on the fundamentals. In District 12, we expanded CARE Plus cleanups to five days a week after securing additional funding, giving our neighborhoods the consistent sanitation services they deserve. Through our Street S.M.A.R.T. pilot program, we are thinking ahead and solving small problems before they become big ones. We are installing new solar streetlights in areas hit hardest by copper wire theft and exploring innovative solutions to prevent repeat thefts. These are practical improvements that make daily life better for families and small businesses.

Public safety improves when first responders and civilian staff have the tools and support they need to do their jobs. The City Council recently restored hundreds of civilian positions that keep LAPD operations moving, including 911 dispatchers, evidence technicians, and administrative staff. As Chair of the Public Safety Committee, I have made it a priority to strengthen emergency response and accountability while ensuring that trained personnel can stay in the field rather than behind a desk. It is the kind of basic investment that residents expect and that the city should never have allowed to fall behind.

On homelessness and housing, we must be honest with residents about what works and what does not. I believe that more is possible when we work with our community stakeholders instead of being forced to implement top-down decisions from Sacramento and Washington, D.C.

To this end, our district has helped advance housing solutions that are built sensibly and open on schedule. In housing persons moving out of homelessness, we have demanded the provision of mental health, substance use, and other supportive services that are a non-negotiable component of providing holistic care to people working toward stability.

At the same time, we must reject policies that allow homelessness to worsen on our streets or threaten the future housing supply we have worked so hard to encourage. Los Angeles cannot solve its housing crisis by pushing policies that drive away the housing we need.

Overall, the state of Los Angeles is not measured by which statistic looks most favorable but rather by what people experience every day when they walk outside their front door. Are their streets safe? Are their neighborhoods clean? Do they trust that their elected leaders are listening? My job is to make sure the answer to each of those questions becomes clearer, stronger, and more affirmative with each passing year.

There is no quick fix for every challenge, but we can fix the problems in front of us. We can invest in public safety, repair the infrastructure that families rely on, build the housing people actually need, and enforce laws that protect both our quality of life and our most vulnerable residents. We must do this while respecting taxpayers, demanding transparency, and keeping government accountable.

If we stay focused on results, invest in what works, and put neighborhoods first, our city will not simply get by. It will get better.

John Lee represents the Twelfth Council District in the Northwest San Fernando Valley  on the Los Angeles City Council. The district includes the communities of Northridge, Chatsworth, Granada Hills, North Hills West, West Hills, Porter Ranch, and Sherwood Forest