The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) announced the results of its January 2017 countywide homeless count May 31. Since January 2016 there were now 13,940 more homeless people in LA County and 5,725 in the city, increases of 23% and 20%. There are now 57,794 homeless in the county, of which 42,966 are unsheltered, living on the streets. For the city it is 34,189, with 25,237 unsheltered.
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Median rents in Los Angeles increased 32% between 2000 and 2017, according to a May 2017 report by the Public Policy Institute of California. Over the same period, household income decreased by 3% when adjusted for inflation. The real estate website Trulia reports that in Spring 2017 the median rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Los Angeles was $2,600. A UC Berkeley study by the Urban Analytics Lab found a slightly lower figure, at $2,499. In large parts of Los Angeles this is more than the total annual median household income. In the Adams-Normandie section of South Los Angeles, median household income is $29,000 a year, or $2,417 a month; in Watts it is $25,000, or $2,083 a month.
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Free healthcare for the homeless and their children is widely available in SPA 6 ranging from just north of the 10 Freeway down to Compton and Lynwood. We list below one full hospital, 12 free clinics for families and adults, 7 school clinics, plus a mobile clinic that hits one location twice a week and 15 more once a month. All provide free medical care for those unable to pay, and have a sliding scale for those a little better off. Some, but not all, offer dental care as well. Most will help eligible patients sign up for the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) or Medi-Cal.
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President Trump’s proposed $54 billion cutback in discretionary spending in order to fund a matching increase in the military budget hits hardest at programs for the poor and homeless. The most obvious is the $6.2 billion from the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
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[The following message on President Trump’s budget request was issued March 16 by Diane Yentel, President and CEO of the National Low Income Housing Coalition, based in Washington, D.C. It is reprinted with permission.]
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The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA), the City of Los Angeles, and the County of Los Angeles are having community input sessions on the how the State's Homeless Housing, Assistance, and Prevention (HHAP) Grant Program funds can be utilized.
This program, now in its third round of funding, is designed to provide resources to: (1) each Continuum of Care; (2) each of the 55 counties; and (3) the State's 13 largest cities. Locally, the $1 billion allocation includes:
LA CoC: $84.2 million
LA County: $82.3 million
LA City: $143.6 million
Uses of the funding are quite broad. Please see pages 15-16 of the NOFA for more details.
View the HHAP Round 3 Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA)
RSVP for the Tuesday, March 15th Feedback Session from 9:00-10:30 am
RSVP for the Wednesday, March 23rd Feedback Session from 5:30-7:00 pm
There is still time to give input on the future of Measure H strategies. At the direction of the Board of Supervisors, the County Homeless Initiative is reassessing its strategies for addressing and preventing homelessness. It is also inviting public input on the updated strategies.
Updates on the strategy reassessment process may be found at https://homeless.lacounty.gov/community-strategies/ .
Both the city and county of Los Angeles in January 2016 produced extensive plans for long-term dealing with homelessness. This is the county's final plan, issued in February 2016. Click on the link below to view the document, a 130-page PDF.
The link below is to the Comprehensive Homeless Strategy plan completed in January 2016, on Mayor Eric Garcetti's website. The link goes to the Mayor's brief summary page. The link on that page goes to the full 237 page document. The download for that can be slow and not practical for a smartphone.
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Homelessness in South Los Angeles
The primary purpose of this paper is to provide a thorough understanding of homelessness in Los Angeles as it pertains to the Eighth City Council District and South Los Angeles more broadly. On January 13, 2016, the City of Los Angeles released a Comprehensive Homeless Strategy detailing over 60 strategies to combat homelessness. The citywide view is sweeping, expansive, and comprehensive, but falls short when detailing the geographic and demographic particularities of South Los Angeles. While I support implementation of all strategies within the Comprehensive Homeless
