May 17, 2025 The Best Source of News, Culture, Lifestyle for Culver City, Mar Vista, Del Rey, Palms and West Los Angeles

LA City Council Exploring Funding Rental Subsidies for 10,000 Homeless Individuals

Creation of “Housing Now” Program approved by lawmakers last month

By Sam Catanzaro

Los Angeles City Council recently approved the creation of a program that would provide rental subsidies coupled with supportive services for 10,000 homeless individuals. 

The “Housing Now” Program, proposed by Councilmember Mark Ridley-Thomas, who chairs the City’s Homelessness and Poverty Committee, was unanimously approved by LA City Council on September 21. 

Proposed as a collaboration between the City and County of Los Angeles, the Housing Now Fund would provide rental subsidies coupled with supportive services for an additional 10,000 homeless individuals, according to Ridley-Thomas. Specifically, the program would target those with complex medical and behavioral health needs who reside on City streets.  

“Successful street engagement depends on having a supply of affordable and supportive housing that is readily available to place unhoused clients without delay. We need to accelerate our investment in these long-term permanent housing solutions, if we want to make a difference in the lives of our unsheltered residents,” Ridley-Thomas said. “We need to work at the scale that this crisis requires.”

The State of California’s 2021-22 Budget includes $4.8 billion in new programs that predominantly focus on building permanent housing, but according to Ridley-Thomas “to fully take advantage of these capital investment opportunities, localities will need to supply rental or operating subsidies. The Housing Now Fund would complement the State’s proposed investment in order to bring thousands more Angelenos indoors.”

The Fund proposes a potential collaboration with the County, where the City provides the funding for the rental costs, and the County provides the supportive services to the housed clients through the Housing for Health model. 

“We have largely used it to leverage the existing housing market – to lease up in the private sector and to do it quickly with the housing stock that already exists,” said Interim Executive Director of the Los Angeles County Homeless Initiative, Cheri Todoroff. “It has also been used to spur the development of new housing for the developers who are doing it outside of the traditional process. As long as there is a commitment with the rental subsidy, there are some developers out there that will get their own financing and not rely on additional funding from the public sector to create permanent supportive housing.” 

A report back from the City’s Administrative Officer and Chief Legislative Analyst on the development of the Fund is anticipated to come before the Homeless and Poverty Committee within 60 days on the motion’s passage.

Related Posts

Student-Led Book Drive to Support Children Displaced by Palisades Fires

May 17, 2025

May 17, 2025

Books for Kids to Collect Donations May 17 at Palms-Rancho Park Library In response to the recent Palisades fires that...

Yeastie Boys and Netflix Launch Nobody Wants This Bagel Pop-Up for Emmy Season

May 16, 2025

May 16, 2025

Two-Day Event Rolls Through Brentwood on May 17 With Themed Menu In a pitch-perfect blend of street food and streaming...

One Arrested After Attempted Westwood Burglary; Security Guard Fires at Fleeing Suspect

May 16, 2025

May 16, 2025

LAPD Searching for Three Additional Suspects After Early-Morning Break-in Near UCLA One person is in custody and three others remain...

Boundary Pushing Opera Schoenberg in Hollywood Makes West Coast Premiere at UCLA’s Nimoy Theater

May 16, 2025

May 16, 2025

Multimedia Opera Reimagining the Life of Arnold Schoenberg Debuts May 18–22 Tod Machover’s boundary-pushing chamber opera, Schoenberg in Hollywood, will...

L.A. County Has Canceled $183 Million in Medical Debt for Over 134,000 Residents

May 16, 2025

May 16, 2025

First Wave of Relief Part to Relieve Medical Debt for Low-Income Angelenos In a major step toward easing the financial...

Santa Monica College Addresses ICE Detention of Student in West L.A.

May 16, 2025

May 16, 2025

Student Detained by ICE Near Home, Not on Campus Santa Monica College (SMC) has confirmed that one of its students...

Woman Injured in Vicious Culver City Assault; Suspect Arrested Minutes Later

May 16, 2025

May 16, 2025

Victim Hospitalized After Random Attack Near Madison Avenue A woman was hospitalized with head injuries Tuesday evening after being violently...

Film Review: Mission: Impossible The Final Reckoning

May 15, 2025

May 15, 2025

By Dolores Quintana Mission: Impossible The Final Reckoning is a ridiculously entertaining action film with a core of what humanity...

Pico-Robertson’s Cardinal du Vin Pairs Sake with Charcuterie This Saturday

May 15, 2025

May 15, 2025

LA.’s Moon Bloom Sake to Pour Premium Small-Batch Varieties Wine bar and bistro Cardinal du Vin will present a special...

(Video) Where great minds grow at The Willows Community School

May 15, 2025

May 15, 2025

The Willows, a DK-8 co-educational school, enrolls 474 students from 57+ zip codes annually. As a balanced, progressive educational leader, experiential learning,...

Experience You Can Trust, Beards You Can Admire: Economy Roofing’s 75-Year Legacy in Santa Monica CA

May 15, 2025

May 15, 2025

Driving along Santa Monica Blvd., you may have seen a playful billboard featuring two rugged men with impressively big beards,...

Planta Closes Brentwood Restaurant After 18 Months Amid Strategic Restructuring

May 15, 2025

May 15, 2025

Marina Del Rey Location Remains Open as Company Enters Chapter 11 Reorganization Planta, the upscale plant-based restaurant known for its...

Michelin Guide Adds 13 California Restaurants to 2024 Selection, Including Two in L.A.

May 14, 2025

May 14, 2025

Two Join the Prestigious List as “Recommended” Ahead of the June 25 Awards Ceremony The Michelin Guide unveiled 13 new...

“Yes, Chef!” Pits Tempers Against Talent in José Andrés and Martha Stewart’s New Culinary Series

May 14, 2025

May 14, 2025

Twelve Rebellious Chefs Compete for $250,000 in a Transformative Cooking Competition Celebrity chefs José Andrés and Martha Stewart are teaming...

Santa Monica City Council Approves Outdoor Drinking Zone on Third Street Promenade

May 14, 2025

May 14, 2025

New “Entertainment Zone” Will Allow Alcohol Consumption in Public Spaces If you have ever wished to have a cocktail or...