7 Ways to Help L.A.’s Homeless Residents

The most recent Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count estimates that 36,300 people are experiencing homelessness on any given night in the city of Los Angeles. Those numbers are up 16 percent from the year before—a daunting statistic for a city that is home to the largest unsheltered population in the country.

Thanks to the passage of Measures H and HHH, the city has more tools than ever to tackle the crisis, and there are finally some signs that efforts to house LA’s most vulnerable residents might be working. In May 2018, Mayor Eric Garcetti announced A Bridge Home, an effort to build emergency shelters in each council district.

To help monitor the city’s progress, the United Way launched the Everyone In campaign, where Angelenos can advocate for new housing solutions in their neighborhoods, and urge elected officials to address the problem. Councilmembers each made a pledge to create 222 new supportive housing units in their districts, and loosened restrictions to speed up their delivery. A total of 8,625 new units are currently in the pipeline.

The bigger challenge in LA is that although the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority is housing more people than ever, more Angelenos are falling into homelessness because LA’s booming economy is leaving behind some of the region’s lowest paid workers. “Minimum wage has moved much more slowly than rents,” said former Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority director Peter Lynn in June 2019. “Those folks are under tremendous pressure.”

As the weather turns colder, it puts the health and safety of LA’s unhoused residents at risk. We asked experts and local homelessness advocates what Angelenos can do to help. Their answers and solutions are below.

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1. Sign up for the Homeless Count

“The annual Homeless Count doesn’t just give us an accurate picture of how many people we can help, it gives us the information we need to find and fund real, supportive solutions,” says Elise Buik, CEO of United Way of Greater Los Angeles. “We need everyone in to get everyone into homes and the Homeless Count volunteers are key to achieving that goal.”

With reporting centers all over the county, you can sign up for a location near you on January 21, 22, and 23. Beyond helping the city learn where to target its efforts, it’s a good way to get to know your neighbors and serve your community.

2. Build an ADU to house someone

After the state relaxed local ordinances that make it easier for homeowners to build an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) or granny shack on their properties, applications skyrocketed. LA’s planning department estimates that ADUs make up one-fifth of all new housing permits.

In 2019, another batch of ADU bills passed the state legislature, clearing even more hurdles for property owners to add additional residential units. “The power should go to the homeowner, not the government, if they want to help with the housing crisis,” State Sen. Bob Wieckowski told Curbed. “We should let them chip in.”

Now LA County has launched a pilot program where qualifying homeowners can receive up to $75,000 in funding—as well as a streamlined permitting process—to construct ADUs if they rent the units to formerly homeless individuals. The Backyard Homes Project is a similar ADU program for the city of Los Angeles that offers project management and financing. The prefab company Cover built a new tool so homeowners can see what size ADU is allowed on their property.

Don’t have the resources to build an ADU? If you have access to a parking lot at your work or church, you can have it converted to safe parking, providing a secure place for people who reside in their vehicles to sleep at night.

Elijah Chiland

3. Donate in-kind goods

Many local homeless organizations accept donations, both monetary and in-kind. “Unrestricted general funds go directly to the women we serve, and donating is a quick, simple way to make a big impact,” says Ana Velouise of the Downtown Women’s Center. But the center needs in-kind goods, too.

“We’re always in need of clean socks and underwear, sleeping bags, and travel-sized toiletries,” says Velouise.

Check out the center’s Amazon wish list for an quick way to purchase additional items that can be shipped directly to the center. Most missions and shelters have similar lists to make donating easy.

Neighborhood outreach groups also accept donations. Ktown for All collects blankets, sleeping bags, tents, and tarps. More people die of hypothermia on LA’s streets than in New York City.

4. Advocate for affordable housing and renters’ rights

Voters have approved several ballot measures to give money to more homelessness solutions, but there are still roadblocks in the way. Your participation in public meetings could help sway lawmakers to change city policies.

“It is crucial for residents who support [building] more homes to turn out to hearings and to contact decision makers about proposed housing developments,” says Mark Vallianatos of Abundant Housing, which publishes a weekly action alert newsletter. “Otherwise only NIMBY voices will be heard.”

Currently there are groups working to block the opening of shelters and other homelessness facilities. Find out where shelters are being proposed in your council district, and contact your councilmember to find out how to show your support for these projects.

The League of Women Voters holds training sessions to facilitate potentially difficult discussions about housing and homelessness, including how to grow community support for bridge housing and supportive housing projects.

The best way to prevent homelessness is by helping renters stay in their homes. Know your rights, including the city’s new right to counsel program, get immediate help from the Housing Rights Center, and join the many efforts to stop evictions and demand stronger tenant protections.

Photo by David McNew/Getty Images

5. Volunteer

Many Angelenos have made serving food at a shelter or kitchen part of their holiday season traditions. Mayor Garcetti’s office has put together a guide for how to find volunteer opportunities near you.

But homeless organizations also need year-round support, including a wide range of ongoing, lesser-known skills like tutoring, resume-editing, and child care.

Many Skid Row shelters, including the Downtown Women’s Center and Los Angeles Mission have new volunteer orientations every month. You can even sign up for “group serve” events where you’ll volunteer as a team with friends or coworkers. Or check out opportunities on Volunteer Match, which are located all over the city.

There are also new neighborhood coalitions that have formed to address the crisis locally, like SELAH, which serves Silver Lake, Echo Park and Atwater Village, Ktown for All in Koreatown, Midtown Los Angeles Homeless Coalition in Mid-City, and SPA6, which serves South LA. The Services not Sweeps coalition is working to provide basic public health needs like showers and toilets on streets. Your neighborhood council may also have a committee focused on homelessness.

6. Take a walking tour of Skid Row

With almost 60,000 residents, LA’s homeless community could be its own city. Thinking about it that way can help Angelenos cope with the crisis, says Adam Murray, executive director of Inner City Law Center.

In a Los Angeles Times op-ed, Murray vividly describes the demographics of “Homeless City,” which includes about 5,000 local children. Inner City Law Center offers a real-life way to understand the scope of homelessness in LA with walking tours through Skid Row, led by local residents.

“If we stop for a moment and consider what is around us, we see what will make Homeless City a smaller and healthier place: more affordable housing, higher incomes, more healthcare and social services and earlier interventions,” Murray writes.

The monthly walking tours take place at 10 a.m. on Fridays. Sign up for details.

Photo credit should read FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP/Getty Images

7. Just say “hello”

“It sounds simple and that you may not be making a difference, but when you make eye contact with someone who is often ignored, someone who has been struggling to maintain their dignity, you are telling them that in that moment you see them,” says Jackie Vorhauer of Skid Row Housing Trust, which provides permanent supportive housing for 2,000 people in 26 buildings throughout LA County.

“They are not invisible. So say hello. It may help them hang on to tomorrow when an opportunity for housing presents itself,” says Vorhauer.

Want to hear more? Everyone In is hosting local storytelling nights featuring Angelenos who have experienced homelessness. Sign up to get information about the next event.