Project refurbishes a former nuisance motel, provides 78 new interim units  The City of Long Beach celebrated the beginning of renovations for its forthcoming new interim shelter, Project Homekey at 5950 Long Beach Blvd. This $6.5 million construction project will add to the City’s suite of temporary housing facilities for people experiencing homelessness.  “Today marks ...

By Dianne Anderson More help for the homeless is underway at a new Wellness Center in Victorville, a program providing a minimum of 170 beds for interim housing and wraparound support services, rehabilitation, and a variety of free health services. Built mainly with a $28 million Homekey Grant from the California Department of Housing and ...

By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Sr Natl Correspondent The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has released its 2023 Annual Homeless Assessment Report, revealing a distressing 12% surge in homelessness since 2022. The report, encompassing the Housing Inventory Count, paints a bleak picture of the current state of homelessness, with a staggering ...

Chaffey College has awarded thousands of dollars in prizes in a state competition that challenges community college students to identify urgent community problems and eventually find solutions. Students formed teams and collaborated to identify urgent problems in their local communities, submitted proposals and created presentations for a panel of judges. The college invited six teams to ...

By Dianne Anderson All the backs of buildings and hidden places of Santa Ana became familiar territory for Pennie Mack, which was just like home for ten years until she got sick and tired of being sick and tired. She slept around the flags of the Civic Center for years, living on the walkway where ...

By Dianne Anderson Those that have it to give will dig deep in their closets and pantries this weekend in support of the city’s fifth big donation drive-through to help the homeless, and the nonprofits who serve them. On Saturday, July 29, the drive-through runs from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Main Facilities ...

By Dianne Anderson Everyone that is anyone doing big things in the community usually has one special internal motivator in common – they can’t stop until they right the wrongs to balance the scales. So it is with Shakoya Green, executive director of Thomas House Shelter in Garden Grove. Born and raised in Compton, both ...

Rep. Pete Aguilar announced a total of $4,000,000 in federal funding he secured to support sustainable affordable housing and supportive services in San Bernardino. Aguilar secured $1,000,000 for the Sustainable Communities Catalyst Project—a program designed to create and preserve affordable housing while revitalizing local neighborhoods. This funding will help transform vacant lots into energy efficient ...

By Dianne Anderson As the city of Long Beach tries to deal with soaring homelessness, new projects are in the works, including safe parking space for those living in cars, an increase in the police department’s Quality of Leadership team, and a call out for new community partnerships, with funding, to serve the unhoused. On ...

By Dianne Anderson Word on the street is that the homeless may not be able to afford an apartment, but they might be able to afford a self-storage unit to live in. It’s not so far-fetched, but unlikely safe and hard to get at the real numbers. The homeless are stealthy. As hot as it’s ...