Los Angeles Times

Decades, not years, for change

-

Re “Rock bottom on homelessne­ss?” column, Nov. 18

This from Anita Chabria’s column said a lot:

“‘This problem is not 160,000 people who need to be housed,’ [Dr. Margot Kushe] told me. It’s that California has a neverendin­g waterfall of people

tumbling over the cliff into a system that is already flooded. No matter how much we spend, how hard we try or how much we accomplish, it’s not enough — it wasn’t even before the pandemic.”

Therefore, it is important that urgency, including funding and reform, be applied to three strategic interventi­ons.

First, to help the unhoused into permanent housing; second, to stem the rate at which housing insecurity in the rental market drives people to become unhoused; and third, to deliver housing, quickly.

This will take not one year and not one administra­tion. It will need to be in place for the next decade or two.

John Given Santa Monica

Gov. Gavin Newsom is upset with cities over their homelessne­ss action plans.

However, California has been defunding affordable housing for 20 years. In 2011, the state eliminated local redevelopm­ent agencies, which had to spend 20% of their property tax revenue on affordable housing.

Stop telling us we should build when Sacramento defunded projects that provided affordable housing. Stop blaming us.

Fran Offenhause­r Los Angeles

 ?? Genaro Molina Los Angeles Times ?? A RESIDENT of skid row washes himself with water from a hydrant during a heat wave in 2021.
Genaro Molina Los Angeles Times A RESIDENT of skid row washes himself with water from a hydrant during a heat wave in 2021.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United States