by USHSAdmin | Apr 8, 2019 | Union Station in the News
Currently, the only year-round homeless shelters in the region are Union Station Homeless Services in Pasadena and the Pomona Hope for Home Services Center.
A Los Angeles County proposal could ask all San Gabriel Valley cities to identify any site that could potentially be used as homeless shelters.
Supervisors Hilda Solis and Kathryn Barger, whose districts cover most of the San Gabriel Valley, are set to bring forth a motion to the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday that, if approved, would direct county CEO Sachi Hamai to ask the cities in the San Gabriel Valley to identify both city-owned and other sites that could be used as homeless shelters.
In addition, the motion would direct county staff to identify county-owned and other locations in unincorporated areas in the San Gabriel Valley for the same purpose.
Currently, the only year-round homeless shelters in the region are Union Station Homeless Services in Pasadena and the Pomona Hope for Home Services Center.
“However, in the vast expanse between these two SGV cities, there are limited options for shelter,” the motion reads.
For months, Solis and Barger have worked to get more money from Measure H — the quarter-percent county sales tax to fund homeless services approved by voters in 2017 — into the hands of cities. The Board of Supervisors last week approved a motion authored by the two to direct the county to make it easier for cities and service providers to apply for Measure H funding.
In addition to funding city initiatives, offering temporary housing coupled with social services is an effective way to help end homelessness, Solis said in a statement Friday.
“Offering our neighbors who are experiencing homelessness a safe and warm bed can provide them with a sense of stability that can get them get back on their feet and can help put them on a path towards stable employment and permanent housing,” Solis said in the statement.
The 2018 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count found that while homelessness was down across the county, the homeless population living in the San Gabriel Valley increased close to 3 percent from the prior year.
In 2017, a nonprofit organization failed in its bid to turn a motel in an unincorporated area near Temple City into permanent, supportive housing for veterans and other homeless people after residents heavily protested the development.
At a meeting on homelessness in West Covinaorganized by Solis last week, resident Stephanie Serrano said it was unfair for only a handful of cities to bear the brunt of providing shelter beds for the San Gabriel Valley’s homeless.
“Every city should have to carry its weight — the burden shouldn’t just be on cities like Pomona and El Monte that are stepping up and building shelters and affordable housing,” Serrano said.
Author: Christopher Yee
Source: San Gabriel Valley Tribune
by USHSAdmin | Apr 6, 2019 | Union Station in the News
The fundraising event, which’ll host a number of local eateries and bev companies, benefits Union Station Homeless Services.
The month of April and the art of mastery?
It’s a well-known, time-honored pairing.
In Georgia, of course, there is the Masters Tournament, which rolls out, grandly, on the golf course, while Southern California’s take on the “masters” theme gets cooking at the Rose Bowl.
Nope, the West Coast event isn’t sports-related, but it does have to do with celebrating pros who are excellent at their craft and calling. Those pros wear toques, and aprons, and they are the inventive wizards behind some of the region’s most flavorful dishes.
It’s the Masters of Taste LA we’re talking about, an afternoon-awesome affair that is, first and foremost, about raising money for the Union Station Homeless Services.
All proceeds from the event go to the organization, in fact.
As far as prepping for the 2019 snack-around scene, which is rolls out, from 4 to 7 p.m., on Sunday, April 7?
Tickets are still available — general admission is $105 — and the plethora of tempting choices to chow down upon is, well, downright plethora-y.
Faith & Flower, Gus’s Barbecue, and Ayara Thai are just three of the restaurants that will be represented, while, in the beverage category, Dulce Vida Organic Tequila and Indie Brewing Company will make a sip-worthy showing.
Desserts, too, will be in the spotlight, so save room for sweets from Fantasy Frostings, Lady M Cake Boutique, and Lark Cake Shop.
It’s year number four for this foodie mood-raiser, and the fact that it unfolds at the iconic Rose Bowl is just another feather, er, fork in its toque.
More info? Tie your napkin on and peek here, plate-seeking Pasadena fans of foodie-fresh horizons.
Author: Alysia Gray Painter
Source: NBC4 Los Angeles
by USHSAdmin | Mar 28, 2019 | Union Station in the News
With what they say is a lack of visible results, West Covina residents voiced their frustrations about local efforts to curb homelessness at a community meeting.
Representatives from a number of agencies and the city spoke to some 50 residents at the Cortez Park Senior and Community Center on Wednesday night about outreach efforts, the need for local shelter beds, encampment cleanups and the challenges police face when asked by the public to move homeless individuals along.
Chief among the topics discussed was Measure H, the quarter-percent county sales tax to fund homeless services approved by voters in 2017.
Azusa, Covina, Duarte, Glendora and West Covina were approved to receive $343,250 in Measure H funding to hire case managers to help local homeless people connect with services.
In addition, West Covina is set to receive an additional $100,000 to offer incentives for landlords to rent to those looking to get off the street, for motel and hotel vouchers and to create shelter beds or transitional housing, acting City Manager Nikole Bresciani said at the meeting.
“We know your frustration, we feel it,” Bresciani told residents. “We’re trying to get out there and be proactive.”
Also in attendance were officials with the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, the L.A. County Homeless Initiative, Union Station Homeless Services, United Way of Los Angeles’ Everyone In campaign and Supervisor Hilda Solis’ office.
But when given a chance to ask questions and raise concerns, several of the residents said the efforts by the groups were not doing enough.
“We hear the same rhetoric each time you have you come,” resident Jerri Potras said. “When are we going to see results? When are we going to stop seeing needles in the park?”
Sue Augino, one of the organizers of a group of residents seeking their own solutions to homelessness in the city, called the meeting a waste of time and said there’s little incentive for people whose jobs depend on homelessness to exist to want to eliminate it.
“It’s not human nature to work yourself out of a job,” Augino said in a statement.
Other residents, like Stephanie Serrano, expressed frustration with West Covina’s inaction to create a shelter or offer shelter beds in the city so that the city’s homeless would have someplace nearby instead of having to go to shelters in Pomona or Bell.
“Every city should have to carry its weight — the burden shouldn’t just be on cities like Pomona and El Monte that are stepping up and building shelters and affordable housing,” Serrano said.
Author: Christopher Yee
Source: San Gabriel Valley Tribune
by USHSAdmin | Feb 22, 2019 | Union Station in the News
A measure proposed by state Senator Robert Hertzberg is looking to expand shelter to homeless people and their pets.
The bill, SB 258, would allocate $5 million to provide basic care, veterinary services and food to pets belonging to residents experiencing homelessness. With around a quarter of all homeless people across the nation living in California, and with up to 10% of those individuals being pet-owners, many people who are homeless seek pet-friendly housing. According to Hertzberg, this bill is an effort to reduce the number of homeless people sleeping on the streets. We discuss the pros and cons of pet-friendly facilities with local shelter-operators.
If you are homeless or have experienced homelessness, what do you think of having more pet-friendly shelters? Have you run into issues with animals in shelters? Or has owning a pet been a barrier to getting transitional housing?
Call us at 866-893-5722.
GUESTS:
Anne Miskey, CEO of Union Station Homeless Services in Pasadena
Stephanie Klasky-Gamer, president and CEO of LA Family Housing, a homeless housing service based in the San Fernando Valley; she tweets @SKGLAFH
Andy Bales, CEO at Union Rescue Mission, a private Christian homeless shelter in downtown Los Angeles’ Skid Row
Source: KPCC (SCPR)
by USHSAdmin | Feb 15, 2019 | Union Station in the News
The money is to be spent on emergency shelters, medical care and permanent supportive housing, according to the city’s housing director.
PASADENA, CA — The city has received $5.71 million in state and federal grant funding that it intends to use to address the issue of homelessness, according to Housing Director William Huang.
In addition to a $3.56 million federal grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the city has also received $1.43 million from the Homeless Coordinating and Financing Council Huang and $720,243 from the state Department of Housing & Community Development, for the purpose of reducing the number of people living on the streets, Huang told the Pasadena Star-News.
The HUD grant was awarded to the Pasadena Continuum of Care, a multi-agency system that address homelessness. The funding will help pay for projects that assists those experiencing homelessness, including housing.
The largest chunk of the grant funding, $1.21 million, is earmarked for rental assistance, the Star-News reported. A Union Station Homeless Services permanent supportive housing program will get $940,997.
The Homeless Coordinating and Financing Council grant will go toward meeting emergency needs, such as motel vouchers, medical care and housing location services.
There are an estimated 650-700 homeless people in Pasadena, according to a 2018 count.
Author: Mark Nero and Patch Staff
Source: Patch.com
by USHSAdmin | Feb 14, 2019 | Union Station in the News
Some of the money will go toward a plan to educate Pasadenans about solutions to homelessness.
Pasadena plans to spend $5.71 million in recently awarded grants to address homelessness on a new city staff person, emergency shelters, medical care and permanent supportive housing.
The city, according to city Housing Director William Huang, was recently notified that it has been awarded two state grants and one federal grant to help combat homelessness:
There were 677 homeless people living in Pasadena during the 2018 point-in-time count. More than half were living on the streets.
The largest grant, from HUD, was awarded to the Pasadena Continuum of Care — the local, multi-agency system that aims to address homelessness. It will pay for 13 projects that revolve around coordinated entry — a way to triage and assist those experiencing homelessness — and permanent supportive housing, which are developments that house homeless people long-term alongside case management and other social services.
The largest chunk, $1.21 million, will go toward rental assistance. A Union Station Homeless Services permanent supportive housing program will get $940,997.
The Homeless Coordinating and Financing Council grant will go toward meeting emergency needs, such as motel vouchers, medical care and housing location services.
The city will award the money in a competitive selection process to local service providers. It then will use the remainder of the funds to pay for a consultant who will help develop a community engagement strategy to educate Pasadenans about homelessness and solutions.
The five-year state housing grant will help pay for a new city staffer who will assist in planning activities. The remainder will be allocated through competitive selection to local nonprofits that specialize in homelessness prevention, eviction defense and landlord incentives, according to the city manager’s newsletter.
Author: Chris Lindahl
Source: Pasadena Star-News
