Los Angeles has been battling the problem of homelessness for years, and although Mayor Eric Garcetti devoted $100 million to address the public issue, the amount is not enough. A new report claims that the city pledged at least $1.85 billion over the next decade to take out 26,000 men, women and children out of the streets.
This week, a report was revealed detailing Los Angeles' financial strategies to solve its "epidemic" homelessness. It was said that $1.85 billion is needed to fully eradicate the issue over the next 10 years. This amount will be spent for buildings or to lease new housing units, L.A. Curbed reports. City Administrative Officer Miguel Santana and Chief Legislative Analyst Sharon Tso were tasked to come up with a comprehensive report to curb homelessness.
Reports reveal that homelessness is "the result of underfunding and under-building affordable housing over an extended period of time, while failing to build adequate capacity to serve and house existing homeless Angelenos."
One of the resolutions offered to solve the problem is by improving the city's short-term shelter options and offering a centralized case management system for the people on the streets. According to L.A. Times, the report also includes ways to raise money to end the problems. These include the use of fees on real estate transactions and development and the state and general grants.
City voters may also be asked to grant a tax increase. The report goes on to say that the cost of $1.85 billion doesn't include the support services for the homeless people.
"I am grateful, encouraged and tremendously impatient," Councilman Mike Bonin said in a statement. He also claims that the city needs "... immediate action that will reduce the number of encampments in our neighborhoods and get people living on our streets the support and services they need and deserve."
L.A. still needs a sustainable plan for it to totally solve the issue of homelessness. As the mayor promised to allocate $100 million this year, he thinks that L.A. still needs $2 billion to $3 billion from local sources. "Instead of fixating on the amount of money that people put in, I am focused as mayor on the people we actually get off the street," Garcetti said.
