Los Angeles will receive $85 million in state Homeless Emergency Assistance Program funding, including $1.67 million for a temporary bridge housing shelter for homeless individuals currently under construction on Schrader Boulevard in Hollywood.

Work is underway at a temporary bridge housing shelter scheduled to open in January on Schrader Boulevard in Hollywood. (photo by Edwin Folven)

Mayor Eric Garcetti announced on Oct. 24 that Los Angeles is the first city in California to receive its full disbursement of funds from the Homeless Emergency Assistance Program. An additional $81 million was also awarded to the Los Angeles Homelessness Services Authority.

“We pushed for these dollars because the homelessness crisis demands urgent action and we’re putting them to work immediately because our neighbors and neighborhoods can’t wait,” Garcetti said. “These funds will help us start getting people under a roof more quickly and giving our communities the additional relief they deserve.”

Portions of the funding will be used at a bridge housing shelter on Schrader Boulevard in Hollywood and at the Veteran’s Administration campus in West Los Angeles. The funding can be used for capital, operational support, homelessness prevention services, criminal justice diversion efforts, services for homeless youth or those at risk of homelessness, and emergency shelters and facilities.

The funds will be used to augment the mayor’s A Bridge Home program, which allocated $20 million in funding for temporary shelters in each of the 15 city council districts. The shelter on Schrader Boulevard is intended to be a temporary place where homeless individuals can get off the streets and be linked with services and permanent housing.

“With work on our Bridge Home program well underway across the city, these funds could not have come at a better time,” said Councilman Mitch O’Farrell, 13th District. “We’ll be able to get more people indoors more quickly coupled with the supportive services they need.”

Earlier this year, Garcetti led a coalition of mayors in California’s largest cities calling on Gov. Jerry Brown to allocate funds from a budget surplus to cities grappling with homelessness. The state budget approved last June included $359 million for cities to address homelessness.

Work is underway on the temporary shelter in Hollywood, which is expected to open in January at 1533 Schrader Blvd. in a city-owned parking lot just north of Sunset Boulevard. The shelter will offer 70 beds in a 60-by-120-foot tension membrane structure constructed with outer membranes made from coated polyester or fiberglass over rigid frames. It will have 24-hour security and will be run by People Assisting the Homeless and the Center at Blessed Sacrament. Plans call for the shelter to be in place for three years while permanent housing is built throughout the city.

Kerry Morrison, executive director of the Hollywood Property Owners Alliance, said the state funding is “very good news.”

“We anticipate that once this bridge housing opens in mid-January, we will start to see an immediate change in Hollywood right off the bat. Seventy people will be able to come off the street. There will be a system in place to provide case management to help move people into permanent solutions, thus freeing up beds for others,” Morrison said. “I support the mayor’s vision to have at least one bridge housing facility in each of the 15 council districts, as this challenge should be confronted in each community where people are experiencing homelessness. I hope the opening of the Hollywood shelter will prove inspirational to those neighborhoods who have rallied against bridge housing.”

The state funding will also be used for a project at the VA’s West Los Angeles campus that will offer 100 beds to homeless veterans. The project has received approval from the Los Angeles City Council and construction is anticipated to begin soon. Veterans at the shelter will be supported with mental health and addiction counseling, as well as job and housing placement. The project will receive $1.43 million in state funds and is expected to open early next year.

Specific uses for the balance of the state funds have not yet been announced, but it is anticipated they will be used for temporary bridge housing shelters throughout the city. Morrison, who has been addressing homelessness in the local area for years through the Hollywood 4WRD coalition, hopes the funds can help homeless individuals with additional services.

“I look forward to working with our Hollywood 4WRD coalition to weigh in on other needs that exist in Hollywood including access to safe parking, storage and sanitation facilities,” Morrison added.