SANTA ANA : Immigrant Program Earns National Honor

A city program designed to help recent immigrants adapt to local neighborhood living has won national recognition.

The National Assn. of Housing and Redevelopment praised Santa Ana’s Tenant Awareness Program, which uses videos, coloring books and photographic novellas in several languages to reach new immigrants, said city housing manager Pat Whitaker.

Santa Ana’s was one of four city programs in the country to be honored.

In videos produced in English, Spanish and Cambodian, actors portray immigrants who are coached by relatives and friends on local customs.

The videos cover, among other things, dealing with landlords and rules governing the playing of loud music.

“Residents and staff wanted a more positive way of interacting with new residents, instead of saying ‘You can’t do this. You can’t do that.’ We thought it would be better to put (the information) in a soap opera fashion so they can see in real life what would happen,” Whitaker said.