County Increases Aid to the Homeless

Following a recent count that found more than 90,000 people living on the streets, Los Angeles County political leaders have decided to step up efforts to put an end to homelessness.

Last week, the Board of Supervisors set aside $24.6 million to attack the stubborn problem, the largest single investment of local funds ever by the county or the city.

The allocation is a small piece of the county’s $19.6-billion budget, but it represents a shift in thinking about an issue that has long failed to engage the attention of most elected officials.

Struck by the numbers, officials want to move services away from managing the problem and toward ending it.

Proposals include remaking the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, the 11-year-old city-county agency that administers homeless funds, to be more directly involved in policymaking and more accountable to county and city governments.

The agency has an annual budget of about $48 million. Most of that comes from the federal government, with the city and county of Los Angeles contributing about $8.4 million.

The county has also commissioned Shelter Partnership, a nonprofit research and resource group, to study the emergency shelter system and how it might be improved, using programs that have worked in other cities. One of the thorniest issues being studied is neighborhood resistance, which has hampered efforts to add facilities for the homeless.

Despite obstacles, officials who deal with the homeless say they believe that, with this allocation, the county may have turned a corner.

And the city of Los Angeles may soon follow suit. Mayor-elect Antonio Villaraigosa was appalled by the large street count, especially the 7,500 families found to be homeless, and is ready to create a partnership with the county that will be “unprecedented,” said spokesman Joe Ramallo.

The census also found that more than 35,000 people have lived on the streets for more than a year. This population, considered chronically homeless, usually requires more resources.

“I viewed the county’s allocation as a historic turning point,” said Mitchell Netburn, executive director of the homeless services authority, who in the past has criticized local leaders for apathy and lack of commitment.

“When the city committed $4 million a few years ago to year-round shelter, that was a big step up, but this really took it to the next quantum level,” Netburn said. “It’s heartening to see the county really finally beginning to put together resources to address this huge tragedy we have.”

County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky acknowledged that $24.6 million will not solve the problem but said it is a big step in reaffirming that the county -- which has agencies providing health, mental health and welfare services -- is often the first line of defense in preventing homelessness.

The allocation, sponsored by Yaroslavsky and Supervisor Gloria Molina, includes:

* $20 million to build new year-round shelters and renovate the two existing shelters, which provide about 70 overnight beds.

* $2 million to build a new transitional shelter for homeless families, modeled on the Women’s Care Cottage, a four-bedroom North Hollywood home for women and children.

* $600,000 for the Salvation Army’s Booth Memorial Center, which shelters about 20 families who once lived in downtown’s skid row district.

* $2 million for the administration of services.

Officials are especially optimistic that programs like those at the Women’s Care Cottage, which focus on intensive case management, can lead to permanent solutions.

“We’re trying to create a comprehensive program that transitions people out of homelessness and keeps them out,” Molina said. “It requires a strategic plan. Sometimes it might be mental health and medication. Other times it might just be a little bit of counseling and guidance, or help in finding housing.”

That is the strategy that Kelley Shaffer, a resident at the Cottage for two months, is hoping will land her back on her feet.

The mother of two is a former Vons employee who lost her job after the supermarket strike, beginning a steep downward spiral. With little savings and legal bills from a divorce, she was unable to keep up with rent on her La Canada Flintridge apartment.

She and her daughters -- Heather, 15 and Mackenzie, 9 -- slept in the family car and then at $45-a-night motels in Tujunga before finding emergency shelter with People Assisting the Homeless, or PATH, and then at the Women’s Care Cottage.

The Cottage, which shelters families for up to three months, is an inviting place with comfortable sofas, books, stuffed toys, computers and tables and chairs scaled down for children. Bedrooms are neatly decorated, and the kitchen sports state-of-the-art stainless steel appliances.

The Cottage provides Shaffer and other residents with financial planning, job referrals and family counseling.

“When we lost our home, the kids were great. When we were living in motels, they were great. But by the time we got to PATH, things were getting a little shaky,” Shaffer said. “My oldest had anxiety real bad, to the point she would shake and cry and we’d have to take her to the shower to calm her down. They are really cut off from everything they have known.”

The lowest point, she said, was when they sent their three beloved dogs to the Glendale Humane Society. The dogs have since found new homes.

While Shaffer has gotten support, she can also testify to the frustrations and setbacks faced by homeless people. She recently lost her receptionist job after she took a few days off when her younger daughter contracted food poisoning.

“I was panicked this morning and crying, but the Cottage resident manager said, ‘That’s OK. What you’re going to do is find another job,’ ” Shaffer said. “I’ve really become a family with people I never in my life would have met, mothers of different races and situations. The boundaries and stigmas fly out the window and you find you’re not so different after all.”