Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Massive Effort to Get Los Angeles Homeless Into Hotels
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 5 years ago on
April 8, 2020

Share

LOS ANGELES — To curb the coronavirus spread, Los Angeles has embarked on a massive effort to bring thousands of homeless people off the streets and into hotels to protect them and others from infection.

“We’re going big in LA. We based our goal on what the need is here.” Heidi Marston, interim director of the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority

California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced last week that money from the federal government would help pay for at least 15,000 hotel rooms during the pandemic. But Los Angeles County, with the state’s largest concentration of homeless people at some 60,000, has set its own goal of 15,000 rooms.

“We’re going big in LA,” said Heidi Marston, interim director of the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority. “We based our goal on what the need is here.”

Marston planned to outline the effort on Wednesday during the daily coronavirus briefing by county health officials.

Coronavirus is spread by coughs and sneezes. Most infected people have mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough, that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and other respiratory problems that can be fatal.

The homeless population is particularly at risk. Many transients already have health problems such as heart disease or diabetes, and live in conditions that do not permit frequent hand washing and social distancing.

Garcetti Said Tuesday That the Number of Rooms Needs to Increase Rapidly

The hotel rooms set aside under the state’s Project Roomkey are reserved for the most vulnerable of the county’s homeless population, Marston said. These include people over 65 and those with underlying health conditions who don’t have symptoms but are at high risk for hospitalization if they contract the virus.

The first hotel opened Friday in Los Angeles. A total of 1,340 beds at 15 sites across the county are expected to be ready by the end of this week. Thousands more have been identified as potential locations.

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said Tuesday that the number of rooms needs to increase rapidly and encouraged hotel operators to allow the government to lease their rooms.

He also warned “if it requires a more aggressive stance” he has emergency powers to commandeer rooms. “We need to get people into those thousands of rooms today,” Garcetti said.

They’ll be filled first by people from existing shelters that are eager to ease crowding. Meanwhile, teams are going into encampments to find people who meet the criteria.

“People are really scared and they’re trying to do whatever they can to protect themselves,” Marston said. “We see people who are excited to have a safe place to go.”

Outreach workers assist with every step of the process: checking for symptoms, gathering belongings, transporting people and checking them into hotel rooms.

Temporary Shelters Have Been Set up at City and County Parks and Recreation Centers

Nurses are onsite to provide regular health checks. The temporary residents will have round-the-clock security, three meals daily and access to laundry facilities, officials said.

The estimated cost to secure 15,000 hotel rooms and staff the facilities for three months is about $195 million, said Phil Ansell, director of the county’s Homeless Initiative. Of that, $118.5 million will pay for the leases and the balance will cover operations, he said Tuesday.

County officials are not disclosing names of hotels being opened to discourage uninvited people. They’ll be spread out across Los Angeles and in the Antelope Valley, northeast of downtown.

Project Roomkey is aiding a three-pronged Los Angeles County effort to get people indoors and safely distanced from one another. The county is also setting up medical sheltering sites with quarantine and isolation rooms for people who have tested positive for COVID-19, show symptoms while awaiting test results, or who have been exposed to the virus.

In addition, temporary shelters have been set up at city and county parks and recreation centers, with beds placed at the recommended distance of at least 6 feet apart.

The estimated cost to secure 15,000 hotel rooms and staff the facilities for three months is about $195 million, said Phil Ansell, director of the county’s Homeless Initiative. Of that, $118.5 million will pay for the leases and the balance will cover operations, he said Tuesday.

Under the agreement announced by Newsom, the Federal Emergency Management Agency will pay for 75% of the leasing cost. The state is providing $800 million in emergency funds to counties.

California on Tuesday Had More Than 17,000 Coronavirus Cases and at Least 452 Deaths

Newsom said as of Tuesday, more than 7,640 rooms had been secured across the state and local officials were working to bring people in “on a daily basis, on an hourly basis.”

The governor called the effort unprecedented.

“There’s not a state in America that’s even put a plan together to get 15,000 rooms. There’s not a state that’s gotten the support of FEMA to reimburse 75% of that. And I’m very proud of those efforts,” Newsom said.

San Diego County, with about 8,000 homeless, has secured 2,000 rooms and is prepared to get more if needed, officials said.

San Francisco, with a similar number of homeless people, has leased 945 rooms in eight hotels to house the homeless and those unable to safely self-quarantine at home.

California on Tuesday had more than 17,000 coronavirus cases and at least 452 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

So far the confirmed cases among the homeless population is low — Los Angeles County has only about a dozen — but there has been little testing of that population.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Chargers in Need of Help at Wide Receiver and Tight End in the NFL Draft

DON'T MISS

Magic Happens When Kids and Adults Learn to Swim. Tragedy Can Strike if They Don’t.

DON'T MISS

Big Fresno Fair Board Will Be Led by an American Sikh for 1st Time

DON'T MISS

AI ‘Friend’ for Public School Students Falls Flat

DON'T MISS

Is a ‘Friend-Apist’ What We Really Want From Therapy?

DON'T MISS

Yemen’s Houthi Rebels Report US Strikes in the Capital and a Coastal City

DON'T MISS

Progressive Icon and Ex-US Rep. Barbara Lee Wins Race for Mayor of Oakland

DON'T MISS

Humanoid Robots Run a Chinese Half-Marathon Alongside Human Competitors

DON'T MISS

Bakersfield Push to Restore Kern River Seeks to Revitalize City

DON'T MISS

Anti-Trump Protesters Turn Out to Rallies Across Country

UP NEXT

Magic Happens When Kids and Adults Learn to Swim. Tragedy Can Strike if They Don’t.

UP NEXT

AI ‘Friend’ for Public School Students Falls Flat

UP NEXT

Progressive Icon and Ex-US Rep. Barbara Lee Wins Race for Mayor of Oakland

UP NEXT

Humanoid Robots Run a Chinese Half-Marathon Alongside Human Competitors

UP NEXT

Bakersfield Push to Restore Kern River Seeks to Revitalize City

UP NEXT

Anti-Trump Protesters Turn Out to Rallies Across Country

UP NEXT

250 Years After America Went to War for Independence, a Divided Nation Battles Over Its Legacy

UP NEXT

Greg Cronin Fired as Coach of Anaheim Ducks After 2 Seasons

UP NEXT

Israeli Strikes on Gaza Kill More Than 90 People in 48 Hours, Palestinians Say

UP NEXT

US and Iran Advance Nuclear Talks to Expert Level After Rome Meeting

AI ‘Friend’ for Public School Students Falls Flat

9 hours ago

Is a ‘Friend-Apist’ What We Really Want From Therapy?

9 hours ago

Yemen’s Houthi Rebels Report US Strikes in the Capital and a Coastal City

1 day ago

Progressive Icon and Ex-US Rep. Barbara Lee Wins Race for Mayor of Oakland

1 day ago

Humanoid Robots Run a Chinese Half-Marathon Alongside Human Competitors

1 day ago

Bakersfield Push to Restore Kern River Seeks to Revitalize City

1 day ago

Anti-Trump Protesters Turn Out to Rallies Across Country

1 day ago

Universal Studios Fan Fest 2025 to Feature Immersive D&D Attraction and More

1 day ago

Thousands Gather in London for Trans Rights Following UK Ruling Over Definition of Woman

1 day ago

250 Years After America Went to War for Independence, a Divided Nation Battles Over Its Legacy

1 day ago

Chargers in Need of Help at Wide Receiver and Tight End in the NFL Draft

EL SEGUNDO — In their first season together, Los Angeles Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz and coach Jim Harbaugh rebuilt the team enough ...

8 hours ago

8 hours ago

Chargers in Need of Help at Wide Receiver and Tight End in the NFL Draft

8 hours ago

Magic Happens When Kids and Adults Learn to Swim. Tragedy Can Strike if They Don’t.

8 hours ago

Big Fresno Fair Board Will Be Led by an American Sikh for 1st Time

9 hours ago

AI ‘Friend’ for Public School Students Falls Flat

9 hours ago

Is a ‘Friend-Apist’ What We Really Want From Therapy?

1 day ago

Yemen’s Houthi Rebels Report US Strikes in the Capital and a Coastal City

1 day ago

Progressive Icon and Ex-US Rep. Barbara Lee Wins Race for Mayor of Oakland

1 day ago

Humanoid Robots Run a Chinese Half-Marathon Alongside Human Competitors

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend