LA Mayor Karen Bass tackles homeless crisis with "Inside Safe" program
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on Wednesday signed an executive directive on homelessness specific to her "Inside Safe" program, dedicated to getting the people living in tents in LA into motel and hotel rooms.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom first launched the idea of placing homeless people in motel and hotel rooms at the start of the pandemic in 2020. He has since encouraged cities and counties to convert motels and other buildings into housing for homeless people.
The move is what Bass's office has called a "fundamental change" to L.A.'s approach to addressing encampments on city streets.
In essence, the program will work to identify encampments that are classified as "highest need," with overwhelming demand for services. Crews will work with people at these locations and work to find permanent housing resources for each one of them.
"People should not be left to live and die on the streets because the city isn't giving them someplace to go," Bass aid on Wednesday during a press conference held at the People Concern. "Today we are giving people safe places to move inside with ongoing support so that they can stay inside and safe for good."
This is the second executive directive Bass has signed since taking office last Monday. She spent her first day in office declaring a state of emergency on the homeless crisis. The declaration was ratified by Los Angeles City Council the next day.
An action plan is due by the end of March. That plan will include information on funding, which could come from Measure ULA, a tax that would go towards fighting homelessness, which was passed in November.
Advocates for the homeless have welcomed the use of motel rooms, where people can have their own bathroom far away from the clutter of congregated shelters. But they have criticized what they call "sweeps" of encampments that force people to move and separate them from their belongings in the absence of a firm motel room offer.
Tuesday Bass made an appearance at the LA County Board of Supervisors meeting in support of Board of Supervisors Chair Janice Hahn's motion to align County resources with the City's emergency declaration.
"Getting people housed is the number one priority," she said at the meeting.
She has denied that the program will simply clean up encampments, claiming that the cleanup will "happen in the context of it."
"The role of the police is if they are need," she said. "To be clear, this is a housing-based strategy. This is not a punitive strategy."
Thus far, the city has been working to identify motels that are able to provide temporary housing to people living on the streets. They're also working to lease buildings and utilize shared housing.
"`For too long we just said, 'It's one option. It's one way. It's permanent supportive housing only — we know that can be expensive," said Va Lecia Adams Kellum, president and CEO of St. Joseph Center, who helped develop Inside Safe. "We know, given the crisis and emergency, we need to move much more swiftly than that."
According to the latest data, an estimated 40,000 people are homeless in LA, a city of nearly 4 million.
The Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to support the mayor's emergency declaration.
