City Of Long Beach:City Of Long Beach To Open 102-Room Interim Housing Site For People Transitioning To Permanent Housing Solutions

Press release from the City of Long Beach:

3/12/2021

On Tuesday, Feb. 16, the Long Beach City Council unanimously awarded a contract to The Illumination Foundation, of Orange, CA, to provide site operations and interim housing services at the site, which will serve adults experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness, with at least one of the following criteria:

“This program will provide shelter and other critical resources for those most vulnerable and at-risk,” said Long Beach City Councilmember Mary Zendejas. “It is a privilege to bring this initiative to the First District while we will continue to look for even more innovative and sustainable ways to combat homelessness here in Long Beach.”Services available to clients either onsite or through referral will include:

Each room will have furniture and linens provided and a private bathroom. Staff and security will be on-site 24/7.

“The goal of the City's interim housing program is to move people into permanent housing as quickly as it becomes available,” said Health and Human Services Director, Kelly Colopy. “This project will fill a crucial gap by offering more pathways to permanent housing.”

Project Homekey is one of a series of new services for people experiencing homelessness. Prior to the opening of this Project Homekey site, the City worked to contain the spread of COVID-19 among people experiencing homelessness by providing non-congregate sheltering among persons at high risk for severe health consequences from COVID-19 through the availability of 133 rooms serving singles or couples experiencing homelessness in its Project Roomkey site. The Atlantic Farms Bridge Housing Community, a village-style development that can house up to 125 people experiencing homelessness, also recently opened its doors, and the Safe Parking pilot, which has the capacity for 15 cars and provides security, restrooms and supportive services for people living in their vehicles, is offered at the Multiservice Center.

Additionally, the Health Department has launched the Bridge Initiative, which increases outreach and engagement near newly-opened housing opportunities serving people experiencing homelessness. The initiative brings together City departments including Health and Human Services outreach workers, Police Department Quality of Life officers, the Fire Department HEART Team and Public Works Clean Team, as well as outreach workers from nonprofit organizations, to coordinate outreach and clean-up activities within the area. 

In July 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced $600 million in grants for the Homekey Program to further expand housing for persons experiencing homelessness and impacted by COVID-19.

For more information on the City’s homeless services, visit longbeach.gov/health. longbeach.gov/health

This press release was produced by the City of Long Beach. The views expressed here are the author’s own.