Dear Friend:
Homelessness is such an enormous crisis impacting the lives of Angelenos from South Los Angeles to the San Fernando Valley. As we work on a holistic strategy to address the issue by providing people with housing and services, we also need to provide a pathway to employment.
That's why on Tuesday, Councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawson and I introduced a motion calling for a new, innovative pilot initiative that will pair rapid rehousing with job training in order to get people off the streets and prevent them from falling back into homelessness.
The city's current practice is to give money to nonprofit service providers and wait for results. With the our new pilot proposal, the city will play a proactive leadership role by overseeing the pairing of two distinct city services -- housing and jobs -- together in one program. These are services the city is already providing, services that we've already budgeted for this year, so taxpayers won't have to pay an additional penny. If successful, the year-long pilot in the San Fernando Valley and South Los Angeles could provide a template for reducing homelessness throughout Los Angeles.
What the Program Does
The pilot program will help a total of 50 homeless people in the San Fernando Valley and South Los Angeles get housing and a job -- two things all people need to survive in our society today.
It will bring together the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) and the Los Angeles Regional Initiative for Social Enterprise (LA:RISE) to provide rapid rehousing subsidies and job training through employment with nonprofit organizations.
The program will work by providing rapid rehousing through a subsidy for qualified homeless families and individuals. With the support of LAHSA, nonprofits and the City of Los Angeles, rapid rehousing will also come with wrap-around supportive services to help people overcome personal barriers that play a crucial role in housing retention. These housing services will be paired with a jobs program overseen by LA:RISE, a new service that subsidizes employment and supportive services to train and prepare unemployed people for continued mainstream employment. Employment for pilot participants will initially be provided by a nonprofit. Participants will gain paid work experience in a supportive work environment.
Even in the best of circumstances, when a homeless person does not suffer from debilitating mental health or substance abuse challenges, changing that person's life often requires a significant investment in services.
A rapid re-housing voucher by itself only offers a six-month respite of housing and opens the possibility for recidivism back onto the street without a sustainable source of income when the voucher expires. Similarly, enrolling a homeless person into a job training program without offering a place for that person to live and adapt to a housed way of life will prevent them from re-entering the mainstream job market. In a vacuum, each of these programs is hugely important, but each only provides half the solution to bringing an individual permanently out of homelessness.
For many homeless people, true housing success comes from both a roof over their head and an income to pay for it.
This pilot, which brings these services together, will explore how housing and employment together can create a viable path to lifelong independence.
It's my hope that this pilot program will succeed and give us a new template for our citywide work to reduce homelessness.
If you have comments about the pilot program, don't hesitate to contact me:
[email protected]
or (213) 473-7002.
Very truly yours,
Councilmember Paul Krekorian, District 2
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Calling All Creatives: Utility Box Art Project
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A newly transformed utility box at the corner of Magnolia Blvd. and Bakman Ave. in North Hollywood.
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EAST VALLEY - Councilmember Krekorian, in collaboration with the Dept. of Cultural Affairs, is seeking talented visual artists, artist teams and arts organizations to create unique temporary artwork on utility boxes throughout the Second District.
The Utility Box Art Project is an opportunity for local artists to beautify their communities. Artists, artist teams or arts organizations have the opportunity to convey a sense of pride by transforming utility or electrical boxes into distinctive works of art. This program encourages the creative interaction of artists, city officials and community members to enliven the public space in these corridors.
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LA2050: Shaping LA's Future
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LOS ANGELES - My LA2050 is giving $1,000,000 in grant money to fund projects dedicated to improving Los Angeles, and you can vote right now to h
elp support your favorite community projects and organizations.
LA2050 is an organization dedicated to civic engagement and making financial investments via the My LA2050 Grants Challenge to support individuals and organizations working to make LA the nation's best place to learn, create, play, connect and live.
All votes must be in by Oct. 25. You can vote only once in each of five categories of the My LA2050 Grant Challenge. Vote today and encourage your friends, family and neighbors to vote too.
Here are three projects to support that will help the residents of Council District 2:
Green Our LA River
Help clean up the bank of the LA River in
StudioCity and address the homeless challenge.
New Directions for Youth Health and Recreation Center
Help provide a fitness and creative space for high-risk youth and struggling parents who do not have access to expensive, traditional fitness centers.
Vote here:
http://bit.ly/2euBkwY.
Ocean Heroes - Saving Lives Daily as a Water Rescuer
Help the Dept. of Recreation and Parks educate a new generation of youth to appreciate and respect the marine environment and introduce youth to a potential career choice in water safety. Vote here: http://bit.ly/2e4iFZy.
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Making Your Neighborhood Cooler, Block by Block
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LOS ANGELES -
Do you want to help your neighborhood
become greener, safer and more resilient to disasters? Join the Dept. of Neighborhood Empowerment and the Neighborhood Council Sustainability Alliance to become a Cool Blocks LA leader.
Los Angeles is looking for volunteers in each Council District who can to help their neighborhoods become more prepared for emergencies and sustainable.
Cool Blocks LA Leaders will help their communities build a better LA -- block by block -- while also honing their leadership, coaching, and team-building skills and improving neighborhood knowledge of and access to citywide resources.
Attend the Cool Blocks Café training session to learn more, hear from current leaders and meet other prospective leaders:
Cool Blocks Café
Hollywood City Hall
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Tips for Keeping Halloween Fun and Safe
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LOS ANGELES - Halloween is a night to enjoy with your family, friends and neighbors as little ghouls and goblins roam freely through the streets. It's also
one of the busiest nights for the community. To keep trick-or-treaters safe, the LA Dept. of Transportation has important tips on what to do:
- Drivers should look for children walking on the street, running, and darting in between parked vehicles,
- Especially when in or near neighborhoods, avoid using cell phones while driving,
- Keep houses and driveways lit so children know it's all right to approach your homes,
- When inspecting candy, if in doubt, throw it out,
- Be sure to follow all traffic signals and laws and walk only on sidewalks, not the street, and
- Adults should always accompany children, trick-or-treat in groups or have children be accompanied by a trust adult.
Please don't forget about the four-legged members of the family!
Pets can be confused and spooked by strange sounds and sights and unfamiliar people in costumes, so k
eep pets indoors and away from front door and a
lways make sure your pets have up-to-date identification
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Here are a few Halloween events happening in the East Valley:
North Hollywood Recreation Center
11430 Chandler Blvd.
10/29, 3 pm - 7 pm
All Ages, FREE
Halloween festival includes games with prizes, free candy, haunted maze, arts and crafts, acitivties, costume contest, moon bounce, face
painting, snack bar and more! |
North Weddington Recreation Center
10844 Acama St.
10/29, 12pm - 4pm Ages 5-12, FREE
Halloween festival includes thriller flash mob, carnival games, moon bounce, arts and crafts, costume parade and contest and a photo booth. |
Studio City Recreation Center
12621 Rye St.
10/29, 4 pm - 8 pm
All Ages, FREE
Games, arts and crafts, costume contest, treats, food, face painting, moon bounce, prizes and movie screening
Food: $2-6,
Face Paining: $3,
Moon bounce: $1-3 |
Valley Plaza Recreation Center
12240 Archwood St.
10/29 2 pm - 6 pm
All Ages, FREE
Carnival games, bingo, costume contest, raffle and more. |
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Gonzalez Fine Arts is an expert custom framing shop tucked away in a little Van Nuys plaza on the corner of Victory Boulevard and Woodman Avenue. Since the early 1990s,
Gonzalez Fine Arts has served the residents of our community for all their framing needs, providing high quality customer service and expert skills, all at a reasonable price. Next time you have a photograph, artwork or memorabilia to frame, look no further than Gonzalez Fine Arts.
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LA City Council celebrated the 50th anniversary of the LA Kings and their continued commitment to the city and LA's youth. | Photo: CD2
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Lung Force Walk Studio City
Saturday, Oct. 22, 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Road Runner Sports Studio City
12115 Ventura Blvd.
Studio City
Join the American Lung Association's LUNG FORCE Walk to raise critical funds for the fight against lung cancer and for lung health
awareness
.
This free, family-friendly event will be a great way to get involved and make a difference. For more information and how to register
visit http://bit.ly/2dlowKU.
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Adopt a Future
Saturday, Oct. 22, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Fellowship Hall, Faith Presbyterian Church
5000 Colfax Ave
Valley Village
Join the UN Association, San Fernando Valley Chapter for a potluck dinner to raise awareness about the plight of refugee children and to raise funds to help them get an education. Please bring your favorite side dish, appetizer or dessert--the entree will be provided. Suggested donation: $10 for adults; $3 for children. RSVP by Oct. 19 to [email protected]. Call (818) 970-4577 with questions.
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AIDS Walk Los Angeles
Sunday, Oct. 23, 8:30 a.m.
Grand Park
Downtown Los Angeles
Since 1985, AIDS Walk Los Angeles has drawn 500,000+ participants to raise funds for AIDS Project Los Angeles and dozens more LA County AIDS service organizations. AIDS Walk Los Angeles serves as a model of grassroots fundraising and community activism. For more information, click here.
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LA84 Foundation Summit
Thursday, Oct. 27, 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
JW Marriott Los Angeles LA Live
900 W. Olympic Blvd.
Los Angeles 90015
Join LA84 Foundation for a summit on "The Present and Future of Youth Sports in Los Angeles." The event will bring together a diverse and powerful group of civic leaders, sports executives, athletes and non-profit leaders, all with the core mission of sharing collective thinking to elevate youth sports in our communities. For more information and tickets, visit LA84summit.org.
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Community Ballot Proposition Discussion
Friday, Oct. 28, 10 a.m.
St. Andrew and St. Charles Episcopal Church
16651 Rinaldi Street
Granada Hills, 91344
The SAGE Society, a senior-learning-in-retirement organization, is sponsoring a special election forum. Admission is free, and refreshments will be served. Fran Lapides of the League of Women Voters will present the League's quick and easy
Pros and Cons to guide voters on how to make sense of the issues. The League's policy is not to recommend any candidate or proposition, but to provide information. For more information, contact Myra Cohen (818) 363-0122.
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YMCA Fun, Safe Fall Festival
Friday, Oct. 28, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
East Valley Family YMCA
5142 Tujunga Ave.
North Hollywood
Join the East Valley Family YMCA to celebrate the Halloween season! There will be arts and crafts for children, the famous Trunk-or-Treat and the Hall of Scares. The event is free and open to all ages. For more information, call (818) 763-5126 or visit
ymcala.org/ev.
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LACMA Day of the Dead Event: 'Calaveras as Words & Image'
Wednesday, Nov. 2, 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Valley Plaza Branch Library
12311 Vanowen Street
North Hollywood
Join LACMA to celebrate the lives of loved ones and iconic figures who have passed away by contributing to a grand community altar in observance of the Day of the Dead. Write a short story or anecdote, called calaveras, about the person you are honoring or create a clay skull. The event is free and for all ages.
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