News
May 15
L.A. County homeless services workers can’t afford housing themselves, study finds
Front line workers essential to solving Los Angeles County’s homelessness crisis do not make enough money to afford housing themselves, leading to burnout and high turnover, a new report has found.
Researchers with Rand Corp., the nonpartisan think tank that published the report on Wednesday, estimate that the workers need to make $64,000 annually to afford a one-bedroom apartment, or $82,000 ...
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Apr 17
Mayor Bass seeks $250-million expansion of homelessness program in first State of the City speech
In her first State of the City speech, Mayor Karen Bass announced a dramatic expansion of her signature program to move homeless people indoors, while also pledging to create “a new L.A.”
Bass said she intends to propose $250 million for Inside Safe, which has been moving unhoused residents off sidewalks and into hotel and motel rooms, as part of a ...
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Apr 6
LA County plans to repurpose former Motel 6 in Whittier to create new housing for homeless
WHITTIER, Calif. (KABC) -- The shell of a former Motel 6 in Whittier will soon be transformed into permanent housing for people experiencing homelessness.
"Because we're repurposing a motel rather than building from scratch, construction will be completed in half the cost of a typical affordable housing development and in about a third of the time," said Cheri Todoroff, the executive ...
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Mar 19
L.A. strongly approves of Mayor Bass but skeptical about fixing homelessness, poll shows
On the eve of her 100th day in office, Mayor Karen Bass enjoys strong approval ratings among Angelenos — a reservoir of goodwill that will be crucial for the new mayor during uphill battles ahead.
Half of Angelenos approve of the job Bass is doing so far, while just 14% say they disapprove, according to a Suffolk University/Los Angeles Times poll ...
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Mar 8
How to turn those old RVs into a solution for homelessness
“The poor you will always have with you.” I’m not particularly keen on using Bible verses to prove a point, but it would appear that what Jesus says in Matthew Chapter 26, at least so far, has been true. (“The real and complicated reasons why Los Angeles still has so many RV encampments,” column, March 5)
So, I propose the following ...
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Mar 2
One way to address California’s housing crisis: turn dying malls into housing
Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter.
It’s Thursday, March 2.
Remember the mall?
Of course you do — the pinnacle of consumerism and youth culture for generations of Americans.
My teenage memories of the mall are soaked in neon light, with essential stops at the Vans store, Hot Topic and Game Stop. I’d gawk at the risque shelves at Spencer’s, ...
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Feb 28
Black and Latino homeless people rank lower on L.A.’s housing priority list
For most of the last four years, Chantel Jones lived in a homeless shelter on Los Angeles’ skid row, hating the danger, noise and confinement: “You feel like you’re in jail, but you’re not in jail,” she recalled.
Like tens of thousands of other people dealing with homelessness in Los Angeles, Jones, who is Black, entered the housing system through an ...
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Feb 11
Mayor Bass orders list of vacant city properties where homeless housing could be built
Opponents of the hotel, which is planned on land once occupied by a city library, said such publicly owned property should have been reserved for affordable housing. They are still hoping Bass will intervene.
“We think the mayor should do everything she can to uphold the spirit of her directive and make sure that affordable housing is built at this location,” ...
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Feb 6
HUD Announces $315 Million to Help People Experiencing Unsheltered Homelessness including in Rural Areas
HUD has announced, $315 million in Special Notice Of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) Competition Awards in approximately 30 states for 173 local homelessness programs across the U.S. These Special NOFO grants encourage coordinated planning among a variety of partners that include healthcare, Public Housing Agencies, other HUD-assisted housing providers, and people with lived experience. In the coming weeks, HUD will be ...
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Jan 27
‘Gimme Shelter’: Will Newsom’s new mental health plan reduce homelessness?
Later this year, Los Angeles and seven other counties will inaugurate Gov. Gavin Newsom’s new plan to address severe mental illness by compelling treatment for people who are in serious crisis — one of his signature efforts to fight homelessness.
On this episode of “Gimme Shelter: The California Housing Crisis Podcast,” we discuss how the program, known as CARE Court, is ...
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