By Daniel Larios
Staff Writer

November 21, 2014 -- Santa Monica’s efforts to find permanent housing for those living on the street is paying off, but more progress has to be made in order to reach the goals stated in the City’s 2008 “Action Plan to Address Homelessness.”

That is the conclusion of a report that will be presented by staff to the City Council Tuesday that reviews the programs and initiatives taken by a city long known for its highly visible  homeless population.

“The Action Plan identifies the reduction of street homelessness in Santa Monica as a key measure of the success of the City’s efforts,” Karen Ginsberg, the City’s director of Community and Cultural Services, wrote in her staff report.

Santa Monica defines its “priority population” as individuals who “have been homeless in the city for five years or more, are high users of Fire and Police services, whose last permanent address was in Santa Monica, or who are vulnerable members of the city’s local workforce,” according to the report. 

Preliminary numbers show that collaboration between city departments and the community moved 124 Santa Monica individuals from the streets into permanent housing in the past year and a half, including 32 of the most vulnerable individuals from the City’s Service Registry, according to the staff report.

In addition, 147 individuals were housed through Project Homecoming, a city program designed to reunite individuals with family and friends who are willing and able to provide permanent housing and support.

Staff will ask the Council Tuesday to enact policies that will focus on identifying and engaging individuals and households that have historically refused services and provide services to promote economic and housing stability, according to the staff report.

In addition to direct housing placement programs, the city also provides training for City staff on Santa Monica’s homeless policies and the available services provided by the City and social service agencies, officials said.

Community and Cultural Services, the City Attorney’s Office and local homeless service providers partner with the Police Department’s (SMPD) Homeless Liaison Program to train all SMPD patrol officers on tools and strategies to interact with homeless individuals, Ginsberg said.

Training is also provided to Public Works employees “in response to continued concerns from park and beach maintenance staff that an increasingly aggressive homeless presence impedes their work and damages City property,” according to the report.

City staff has shared this training with other Cities and agencies, including Hollywood, Orange County, Beverly Hills, the LA County Sheriff’s Department and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

There are currently 742 homeless individuals living in Santa Monica, 57 of whom live in cars and encampments and 396 of whom take advantage of shelters and other year-round institutions with beds, according the City’s 2014 Homeless Count. This is a five percent decrease from 780 in 2013.

The Downtown area saw a 40 percent drop, from 141 homeless individuals in 2013 to 86 in 2014, in the area between Ocean Avenue and Lincoln, Wilshire and Pico boulevards, including all of Palisades Park and the Pier, staff said.
No families were observed on the street during the Count, according to City staff.

The next annual Homeless Count will take place on January 28, 2015 and will be hosted by St. Monica’s Catholic Community. 

Staff will return to the Council with the Annual Homeless Report during a hearing in spring 2015.

The upcoming updates to the homeless plan will include enhanced services to identify overcrowded or unstable households, prevent homelessness by preventing evictions and increasing protection from tenant harassment. 

In the spirit of regional cooperation, Santa Monica is one of the signatories to the Los Angeles Continuum of Care, a federally recognized homeless planning network for LA County.

“The number of people experiencing homelessness in the City is directly impacted by the policies and practices of regional partners,” said Karen Ginsberg, Director of Community and Cultural Services.

The lead agency for the entity is the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA), which has hired a new Executive Director, Peter Lynn, who is already familiar with Santa Monica homeless policy.

While the Westside has been effective in housing the most vulnerable individuals, the area was dealt a critical blow in August, when Exodus Recovery Inc. lost its lease from Southern California Hospital in Culver City, leading to the closure of the Westside Urgent Care Center.

The Center provided emergency psychiatric medication, fast-track access to county mental health services, short-term psychiatric holds and hospitalization for individuals needing a higher level of care.

Without the center, local agencies, first responders and hospitals are forced to send homeless individuals with urgent mental health needs to Centers in South and East LA, costing hours of emergency services.

Exodus, in partnership with the LA County Department of Mental Health, is currently looking for a new location in the Westside to re-establish the Center with City staff’s help.