Welcome to the next edition of the Homeless Services Newsletter! This is a monthly publication for the Homeless Services Bureau of the Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services (Health Department) to share information, resources, highlights, and news related to our community-wide efforts in addressing homelessness in Long Beach!

FEATURED NEWS

Homelessness Proclaimed an Emergency

in Long Beach

On Dec. 21, 2022, Mayor Richardson, in partnership with First District Councilwoman Mary Zendejas, requested that the City Manager bring an item before the City Council for consideration requesting to proclaim the existence or threatened existence of a local emergency related to homelessness. 

The Long Beach City Council adopted, in an 8-0 vote, the City Manager’s proclamation of a local homelessness emergency on Dec. 10, 2023. The local emergency will strengthen the City’s preparedness and ability to respond to homelessness.

“Homelessness is one of the biggest challenges currently facing our city,” said Mayor Rex Richardson. “This emergency proclamation demonstrates the commitment of every department in our city to be all in.”

Given the current homelessness crisis, it is critical to be able to move quickly and efficiently to expand housing and services. The emergency proclamation will allow for increased ability to hire or contract critical roles and recruit qualified candidates; more quickly engage needed services, material and labor; speed up large-scale construction projects such as motel conversions and tiny homes; and work through zoning requirements that currently exclude certain uses of existing properties.

Following the proclamation of a local homelessness emergency in Long Beach on Jan. 10, City leadership has established an Incident Command Center and identified nine work groups consisting of 100 people to take on the various aspects of homelessness emergency response.

The emergency will use an Incident Command System (ICS) model of operation, which allows personnel from various departments to work collaboratively to respond to the incident. It also provides a framework to manage Federal, State and regional assets assigned to the incident over a widespread geographic area over a prolonged period and provides logistical and administrative support to ensure that operational staff can meet their objectives.

The City’s stated mission is to reduce the number of people experiencing homelessness in the City and the region by increasing housing opportunities and enhancing current initiatives that provide field-based outreach, engagement, and supportive services while maintaining the safety and security of the people experiencing homelessness, the general public and staff, and address and improve overall public safety for the entire community. Nine work groups have been convened to support this mission, each assigned to a different focus area. Listed below are the nine, to learn more about their objectives read the full press release.

1. Intergovernmental Work
2. Community Engagement
3. Public Health and Safety
4. Communications
5. Data and Technology
6. Housing and Land Access
7. Procurement and Finance
8. Human Resources and Staffing
9. Logistics

To more strategically conduct outreach to people experiencing homelessness in Long Beach, the City of Long Beach has begun centralizing emergency response efforts in the Downtown area, expanding street outreach, and deploying a new Mobile Access Center vehicle.

“This focused activation in our Downtown area is critical to our overall emergency response. It allows us to reach more people experiencing homelessness and get them into a shelter and connected to services,” said Mayor Rex Richardson. “We must be strategic during our emergency response, lower barriers to services, and meet people where they are.”

The City of Long Beach is launching a donation campaign to raise money for the Mayor's Fund for Homeless Action (Mayor's Fund). Donations from residents, businesses, and community organizations will support grants to organizations in Long Beach that address the significant needs of people and families in the community experiencing homelessness.

The vision of the Mayor's Fund, formerly known as the Mayor's Fund to End Homelessness, is to activate innovative localized efforts to support people experiencing homelessness through outreach, connections to housing, supplies, and opportunities for all community members and organizations to help in these solutions.

The Long Beach Housing Authority, a bureau within the Department of Health and Human Services, offers several incentives to encourage new housing providers to lease up with people who are getting assistance through its Emergency Housing Vouchers (EHV) and Housing Choice Voucher programs.

"Emergency Housing Vouchers are a critical resource in meeting the City's housing needs," said Mayor Rex Richardson. "We need property owners to be 'all in' when it comes to solving the homelessness crisis, and the City is willing to help landlords make the leap and open their rentals to voucher holders."



The Housing Authority provides monetary incentives – including direct payments to landlords – to cover leasing bonuses, security deposits, utility deposits, application fees, and damage mitigation or repairs. Additional resources are available to help EHV families with costs associated with moving, renter's insurance, and furnishing their units. 

The City of Long Beach, through its nonprofit affiliate, The Long Beach Community Investment Company (LBCIC), on Jan. 18, 2023, awarded a total of $6.1 million in loans to two area firms for the purchase and development of affordable rental housing that will serve those who are experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness.  

"This funding and key action reflects our sense of urgency to enhance the city's housing stock and support working families who are most in need," said Mayor Rex Richardson. "We thank The LBCIC and these development partners who, together, are helping ensure Long Beach has safe, quality affordable housing that meets the needs of our community." 

Facilitated by the Long Beach Development Services Department, a total of $4 million in federal funding provided through the HOME Investment Partnerships Program, known as HOME, was awarded as a loan to Holos Communities, a North Hollywood-based nonprofit organization, for the construction of affordable rental housing at 521 and 527 E. 4th St. 

A second loan of $2.1 million in federal grant funding was awarded to Jamboree Housing Corp. of Irvine, a nonprofit builder of affordable homes, to acquire the vacant property at 101 E. Pacific Coast Hwy. 

"The City is fortunate to have critically needed financial resources and the means available to share them with developers of affordable housing," said Director of Development Services Christopher Koontz. "Our Department is honored and stands ready to assist in the entitling and permitting of the safe and sustainable construction of these prospective projects."

The City of Long Beach, through its nonprofit affiliate The Long Beach Community Investment Company (LBCIC), on Jan. 18, 2023, awarded exclusive negotiating rights to a local developer for the purchase and construction of townhomes at the site of the former North Neighborhood Library.

"I'm so proud that this property will continue to serve the community, now as much-needed affordable housing," said Mayor Rex Richardson. "This move is another step in uplifting our residents by providing more opportunities of home ownership and getting them on the path to generational stability."

Facilitated by the Long Beach Development Services Department, Habitat for Humanity of Greater Los Angeles (Habitat LA) was awarded exclusive negotiating rights for purchasing and developing the former library site at 5571 Orange Ave.

"We are grateful for the chance to work with a partner like Habitat LA that has an outstanding record of housing accomplishments," said Eighth District Councilmember Al Austin. Habitat LA plans to build eight two-story townhomes on site that will be sold to low-income, first-time homebuyers. The project is expected to break ground in fall 2023. 

The City of Long Beach established a Field Command Center to provide immediate and critical support and resources in the City’s homelessness emergency response. The Field Command Center will serve as a location for the City’s Interdepartmental Team to further coordinate planning and services for the downtown area. Over the next three weeks, the Field Command Center will be staffed with various City departments, including the Department of Health and Human Services (Health Department), the Public Works Department, the Police Department, and the Fire Department. 

“The Field Command Center will be a tremendous asset in our City’s emergency response,” said Mayor Rex Richardson. “We are working together to make real-time decisions in the field and offer our staff and partners the resources and support they need to address this crisis.”

Early morning on Thursday, Jan. 26, the Homeless Services Bureau conducted the Annual Point-In-Time Homeless Count. This year Count registration page and waitlist closed in mid-December, and nearly 300 people participated across all roles.

The specialized Count started earlier that week with the help of staff and inter-jurisdictional departments and was completed by Wednesday. The Transitional Aged Youth Count was conducted by the area's two largest higher education institutions. Long Beach Community College staff and volunteers helped survey and count at their two campuses, and Cal State Long Beach held a resource fair devoted to the Count and matching their students to available resources. 

We want to extend a special thanks to all our nearly 250+ volunteers and City staff that participated around our City to count and survey people experiencing homelessness in our community. These efforts are crucial for assessing homelessness and resource availability and detecting shortcomings for future strategic planning. 

On Jan. 10, 2023, the City of Long Beach proclaimed a local homelessness emergency. The local emergency will strengthen the City’s preparedness and ability to respond to homelessness. As part of this citywide effort, we are actively seeking interested local and regional community partners who are interested in partnering with the City on this imperative nationwide issue. Our goal is to strengthen the collaboration and partnership with local organizations who can serve Long Beach residents experiencing homelessness. 

If your organization and/or company is interested in collaborating with the City as part of the Emergency Homelessness Response, we kindly ask that you complete the Community Partnerships Interest Form.

PERFORMANCE SNAPSHOT

Jeffrey Proctor

Administration and Operations Officer

We welcome Jeffrey Proctor to the Homeless Service Bureau as the new Administration and Operations Officer. He is a San Diego native and a San Diego State University graduate with a Bachelor's in Social Science. He has an extensive career in social services spanning nearly 20 years. He started in San Diego, working in First 5 and CalWORKs programs. Later moved to Los Angeles in 2008, where he began working specifically in homeless services, overseeing the Veterans programs for SRO Housing Corporation. After four years of direct service and program coordination with SRO Housing Corporation, he moved into an administrative role, serving as the agency's Associate Administrator of Contracts and Grants from 2013 to 2016.

In June 2016, he transitioned to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, where he served several roles during his six and half years of employment—starting as a Homeless Systems Analyst and then Crisis Housing Coordinator within the Single Adults System Integration Unit.

He was later promoted to Supervisor and Manager of the Systems Components unit before being promoted again to Associate Director of Performance Management. In his most recent role, he served as the Director of Funding & Allocations, overseeing LAHSA's processes to request, receive, and allocate funding for programs and services designed to end homelessness within Los Angeles, overseeing strategies, systems, and processes to identify and secure approximately $800 million in annual funding to support, enhance, and sustain LAHSA's portfolio of programming.

Aside from work, he is married to an amazing woman named Karla. They have been together for five years and married for two, and they are proud pet parents to a little old chihuahua mix named Buddy that they love. They recently moved to Long Beach and are excited to live and work in the same community.

TRAININGS AND RESOURCES

City of Long Beach Online Resource Directory

The online resource and referral platform, powered by Unite Us, helps residents connect to City and community programs.

ALL IN: The Federal Strategic Plan to End Homelessness Page

All In is a multi-year, interagency roadmap for a future when no one experiences the tragedy and indignity of homelessness—and everyone has a safe, stable, accessible, and affordable home. The plan was developed by United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH) with the collective thinking of 19 federal agencies that make up the USICH Council, and it will be updated annually to reflect the latest evidence, progress, and input.

All In sets an ambitious goal to reduce homelessness 25% by 2025 and encourages state and local governments to use the plan as a blueprint for developing their own strategic plans and for setting their own ambitious goals for 2025.

The plan is built around six pillars: three foundations—equity, data and evidence, and collaboration—and three solutions—housing and supports, crisis response, and prevention. Within each pillar are strategies and actions that lay the groundwork for a future when no one experiences homelessness—not even for one night.

GET INVOLVED

Current Job Opportunities

The City of Long Beach has several employment opportunities to be a part of the Homeless Services Bureau. Check out the job posting below:

HOMELESS SERVICES FINANCIAL ANALYST (COMMUNITY PROGRAM SPECIALIST IV)

Closes on 2/14/2023 4:30 PM Pacific

PUBLIC HEALTH NURSE I-III (Homeless Services)

Closes on 2/10/2023 4:30 PM Pacific

Mayor's Fund for Homeless Action

The Mayor’s Fund For Homeless Action (Mayor’s Fund) provides small grants to organizations in Long Beach that address significant service delivery needs that are not covered by existing funding and are not considered emergency needs. Donations to this fund could support a variety of critical needs, including: 

• Relocation Assistance
• Shelter Services 
• Transportation Assistance
• Critical infrastructure improvements and repairs 
• Replacement of mission critical equipment 
• Move-in Assistance 
• Immediate shelter needs  

CITY OF LONG BEACH DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

For general questions or if you'd like to include something in the next newsletter,

please email: HomelessServicesAdmin@longbeach.gov