Taking It To the Streets

Housing and Homelessness

Expand existing project, program, or initiative

Thousands of Angelenos are struggling to make ends meet due to the high cost of living, many of which are single parents and older adults. Households in low-income neighborhoods face barriers to increasing their income due to lack of transportation or are simply unable to access the supportive services needed to achieve their goals of stability due to limited awareness. Home Again LA provides social services for those experiencing homelessness through educational workshops, a strong emergency shelter & rapid rehousing programs offering security deposits or assistance with rental arrears. In 2017 we provided shelter and supportive services to 86 families. By 2022, the number served increased nearly eight times to 699 households and includes grandparents raising grandchildren with disabilities, refugee families from the Ukraine, parents who lost spouses due to covid, and young adults. LA County needs more accessible pathways to building wealth and housing security.

Home Again LA is expanding our current Resource Center to include a mobile outreach component. With support from LA2050 we will purchase a vehicle, tablets, and WiFi hotspots for our dedicated Case Managers to bring resources to residents in low-income neighborhoods throughout the Los Angeles County and the San Fernando Valley. The Mobile Resource Center (MRC) will include technology equipment and Wi-Fi to provide equitable opportunities for households to access and eliminate the digital divide. We will bring Home Again Los Angeles to community members who are homebound and families with limited or no transportation, including older adults, providing printed materials, applications, referrals, and more to assist households with applying for government programs and educational workshops. The opportunity to make a personal connection within the neighborhoods we serve will allow Home Again LA to increase capacity, casting a wider net, bringing strategy and solutions to those who need it most: households with limited income or access to programs, technology, and Wi-Fi. The Home Again LA Mobile Resource Center is a much-needed opportunity to bridge the income and technology gap for Angelenos seeking stability.

The award from LA2050 will allow HALA to extend our reach to those families experiencing or on the verge of homelessness with direct client services and financial gap assistance. The ability to meet our community where they feel most comfortable addresses expanded programmatic improvements such as eviction prevention prioritized & linked to formerly homeless residents, targeted prevention for one-income households participating in our weekly financial literacy workshops, plus outreach and navigation accompanying in-house rehousing services for our unique population. HALA will continue to provide culturally responsive, trauma-informed services to households that will attain employment, increase income, and achieve housing stability.

We will evaluate the success of the project by tracking: the total number of households served. the total number of households who were connected to services leading to financial stability.