The Long Beach City Council introduced the Homelessness Strategic Plan during their Tuesday meeting which aims to reduce homelessness in the region.
Kelly Colopy, director of the department of health and human services, covered a presentation regarding the city’s Homelessness Strategic Plan. The plan aims to reduce the number of people experiencing homelessness in the region as well as to enhance current initiatives.
The Homelessness Strategic Plan included a Homelessness Emergency Fund, a budget designed to increase access to resources, interim and long-term housing and build capacity to address the homelessness crisis. The total fund amounts to more than $13 million.
The Homelessness Strategic Plan has already seen progress on goals, such as launching text alert programs to connect people experiencing homelessness to resources and services, and continues to meet with LA County and Metro in order to further discuss opportunities to develop homeless services. The plan is also in the process of identifying properties to temporarily use or acquire to support housing services.
One of the items on the agenda surrounded the implementation of partnerships with local institutions, such as Cal State Long Beach, Cal State Dominguez Hills and Long Beach City College in order to prevent housing insecurity amongst students
Associated Students Inc. Executive Vice President Diamond Byrd supported the approval of this item, as housing insecurity is one of the most pressing issues amongst students in Long Beach.
“There are 3,000 students in LBUSD facing housing insecurities, which means that they can’t even worry about dreaming big,” Byrd said. “Students like myself at CSULB, LBCC, and DH persevere through housing and food insecurities while paying thousands of dollars for their education, however still can’t afford housing once they graduate.”
Byrd said that collaborations between the city and local institutions would be crucial for the success of Long Beach Students, urging the council to approve the item.
“Instead, these collaborations can foster housing and job opportunities for fresh college graduates,” Byrd said. “Your support would tremendously change lives of youth, students, and future generations.”
Mayor Rex Richardson replied to public comments, saying that ultimately, housing affordability continues to be the top priority for the city council. The council voted unanimously to approve collaborations between Long Beach and educational institutes.
“Housing and homelessness is our number one priority in our city,” Richardson said. “We are going to send a strong message tonight that we want to partner with agencies around our shared goals and making sure our students and families have access to housing.”