LAHSA has made 217 beds available at shelters to house people during frigid winter temperatures. (photo courtesy of LAHSA)

The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority’s Winter Shelter Program for 2024-25 opened on Nov. 1. The life-saving program offering 217 beds at five sites in Los Angeles County runs through March 31.

The county and city of Los Angeles provide funding to LAHSA to administer the Winter Shelter Program. LAHSA contracts with nonprofit service providers to operate the temporary emergency shelters. The Winter Shelter Program offers two components to help people experiencing unsheltered homelessness escape winter weather: the Winter Shelter Program and the Emergency Response Program, which was formerly known as the Augmented Winter Shelter Program.

“Last year, Los Angeles experienced another wet winter, and the Winter Shelter Program gave people a safe place to stay during the storms,” LAHSA CEO Dr. Va Lecia Adams Kellum said. “That’s really what this program is all about, saving lives. Every year, hundreds of lives are saved because our partners come together to offer these vital beds.”

The shelters are open 12-24 hours per day, seven days a week. Each Winter Shelter Program site provides three meals a day, welcomes pets and provides emotional support animals.

The winter shelters closest to the located area are at New Reflections (women), 8311 S. Western Ave., and New Reflections (men), 8501 ½ S. Vermont Ave.

During severe cold or rain, the city or county of Los Angeles may activate the Emergency Response Program to expand capacity and bring people indoors. Anyone needing a winter shelter bed can go directly to the site, ask a homeless service provider to connect them, engage an outreach worker or call 211 to receive a referral to the site closest to them. For information, call 211, or visit lahsa.org/winter-shelter.