As a part of the State of California’s Department of Housing and Community Development’s (HCD’s) Homekey Round 3 program, the County of Los Angeles is jointly applying with affordable housing developers and homeless services providers (co-applicants) for funding to acquire properties that will be used as permanent and temporary housing for people experiencing homelessness. The County will provide ARPA funding to support the local match required in some instances for the acquisition, rehabilitation, and operation of these properties. The properties will provide housing to the most vulnerable residents of the County of Los Angeles, all of whom have been impacted by COVID-19. After the onset of the pandemic, the number of deaths among people experiencing homelessness (PEH) in LA County increased, going from 1271 deaths pre-pandemic (March 31, 2019-April 1, 2020) to 1988 deaths (April 1, 2020-March 31, 2021). While COVID-19 became the third leading cause of death among PEH in the post-pandemic onset year, the overall increase was driven to an equal or more considerable degree by increases in overdoses, homicide, congenital heart disease, and traffic injury deaths. Evidence shows the COVID-19 pandemic may have exacerbated stressors already present in the lives of PEH, leading to increases in other causes of death, even as we redoubled our COVID-19 prevention efforts in this population. The Homekey Round 3 program will help reduce these stressors and create more stability for PEH, increasing their ability to secure safe housing and comprehensive supportive services to stabilize and maintain their housing. Properties designated for interim housing will serve families, single adults, or transition-aged youth (TAY) experiencing homelessness. They will provide health and mental health services, employment services, access to benefits, and support in identifying and securing permanent housing. Properties designated for permanent supportive housing will be used to provide homeless, disabled adults with long-term rental subsidies and intensive case management services (ICMS), a model that has been proven to the highly effective in enabling chronically homeless households to retain their housing.
