Apparently the Housing Subcommittee of the ‘Homeless Task Force’ has drafted recommendations for the Venice NC board to consider (see below). These recommendations seem to completely ignore a significant concern by many Venice residents about the profound impact of concentrating homeless services in Venice rather than working for a regional and/or more resident friendly solution to the problem.

These recommendations are essentially a blank check to the professional homeless advocates in Venice with no consideration for the residents who routinely have to clean up after and are made to feel unsafe by the legions of homeless that this proposal hopes to encourage expanded services for. The effect will be for Venice to become a new skid row by the beach. This is just what the downtown lobby hoping to cash in on cleaning up skid row would love to see.

Please don’t let this happen to Venice! Let’s be good neighbors and contribute to a solution, but let’s not take on the entire burden in Venice just for the sake of militant advocacy and at the cost of our safety and quality of life. ..Paul T. (Rose Ave)

PS> please write to the VNC Board and let them know how you feel: board@venicenc.org — or comment below.

Recommendations of the Homeless Taskforce Housing Subcommittee

• Recommendation 1: that the VNC identify two sites in Venice where shelters with up to 30 beds can be located to serve homeless youth, families and/or the mentally ill for up to 6 months.

[Note: the Housing Subcommittee also recommends that these shelters be designed to be safe and secure and permit sustained occupancy with supportive services on site or nearby.]

• Recommendation 2: that the VNC identify at least two sites in Venice where transitional housing facilities to serve youth, families and/or the mentally ill for up to two years can be located.

• Recommendation 3: that the VNC identify at least one site in Venice where permanent supportive housing can be located.

• Recommendation 4: that the VNC advocate that every parcel of City property in Venice that can feasibly be developed for low income housing and/or supportive services be reserved for those uses. This shall include City owned parking lots where housing may be feasibly built above parking.

• Recommendation 4. that the VNC conduct outreach efforts to inform and educate Venice stakeholders about the Housing Element of the General Plan for the City now being prepared by the Planning Department and to make recommendations as appropriate including where shelters, transitional housing facilities, permanent housing with supportive services and other affordable housing should be located in Venice per Recommendations 1, 2, 3, and 4 above.

• Recommendation 5: that the VNC Identify and publicize all of the shelter and transitional housing resources in and around Venice.

• Recommendation 6: that the VNC advocate for more homeless Section 8 vouchers for St Joseph Center and other Westside homeless services providers.

• Recommendation 7: that the VNC conduct outreach and education efforts to identify landlords (including owner-occupants of single family dwellings) in Venice who will consider accepting tenants with homeless Section 8 vouchers.

• Recommendation 8: that the VNC identify a location in Venice where homeless people can be encouraged to sleep and where restroom facilities are provided, and further that homeless people be employed to provide security and unrestricted access to those facilities.

Note: Pursuant to the settlement agreement in Jones vs. the City of Los Angeles, homeless people may lawfully sleep on any public sidewalk in the City between the hours of 9:00pm and 6:00 am (“except within 10 feet of any operational and utilizable entrance, exit, driveway or loading dock”) until an additional 1250 units of permanent supportive housing are constructed in LA.

• Recommendation 9: that the VNC purchase lockers for use by homeless individuals and work with local nonprofits and the City to identify places in Venice where they can be located.

• Recommendation 10: that the VNC identify a location or locations in Venice where homeless people may lawfully park and sleep in their vehicles.

• Recommendation 11: that the VNC identify (or advocate for in the event that none can be found) facilities in Venice where vehicle holding tanks can be flushed.

• Recommendation 12: that the VNC support the repeal of all laws that operate to criminalize homelessness.

[Note: the Housing Subcommittee suggests that the Homeless Taskforce create a Fundraising Committee to identify funding to assist in the implementation of these and other recommendations of the Homeless Taskforce.]