Asylum seekers, broader community sees improvements in sight with new funding

CALEXICO – Imperial Valley community members, seasonal residents, and regular visitors rejoice at the news that $5 million dollars of critical funding was secured by California Senator Steve Padilla earlier this week, and will “not raise taxes on hardworking Californians.”

Funds will address outstanding and highly consequential obstacles, with a notable $2,000,000 going towards erecting an indoor facility to address the increasing number of asylum seekers. What that might look like for locals remains largely unknown, Calexico City Manager Esperanza Colio said.

“It depends what kind of strength the money comes with,” she explained, noting the possibility that the large sum may come with specific restrictions regarding uses and preferred subcontractors.

According to Colio, the state will first have to approve all details before local city officials can move forward and formulate a plan. She said the Calexico City Council, however, will have the final say on how the funds are utilized.

In the meantime, Colio said Calexico will continue to provide services to asylum seekers, although will likely need to

“get creative” with its approach as the demographic continues to expand and usable funds remain out of reach.

Currently, the City of Calexico estimates that it sees about 80 new people seeking asylum per day; a figure which Colio says averages out to between 450-480 persons per week. She says the City’s goal is to provide guidance to individuals during transition, and to ultimately assist them in getting to their intended destination.

With the use of apps to aid in communication between asylum seekers and service coordinators, other modes of transportation can be arranged from there.

“It’s kind of like an orientation for them,” Colio said of teaching refugees how to navigate the complex and often foreign American services and transit operations.

The press release delineates another $1.4 billion go towards increasing childcare reimbursements pertaining to families earning below 75% of the state median income, as well as a solid $3 million set to address critical roadways that serve to connect Imperial County.

Colio said that this can include highways, as well as frequented routes and back roads. As nearly 30,000 people use the Calexico Port of Entry into the U.S. every day and many commute to jobs at farms and beef plants across the Valley, Colio said ensuring local roadways are safe and up-to-date is “most important.”

An additional $500,000 is to be used to improve water quality via chlorination in Coachella, and tax credits will be offered to companies who hire locally for the incoming lithium industry, referred to regularly as “Lithium Valley.” Although the City of Calexico isn’t directly impacted by these projects, Colio believes that what impacts workers impacts the whole Valley.

“In my view, this will benefit our entire community,” Colio said.