Santa Cruz Sentinel

California asks for surplus federal land to house homeless

- By Don Thompson

SACRAMENTO >> California is asking the Trump administra­tion to provide surplus federal land that could be used to build housing for the homeless, mirroring a new state program.

Gov. Gavin Newsom sent the request in a letter Tuesday to U.S. Housing and Urban Developmen­t Secretary Ben Carson amid an ongoing debate over whether Democratic officials in California are doing enough to ease the state’s homelessne­ss crisis.

The Democratic governor earlier this month directed his administra­tion to identify unused state property by month’s end that local government­s or nonprofits can use, so long as it doesn’t delay the developmen­t of affordable housing.

That includes state property alongside highways or state roads, state fairground­s, and vacant hospitals and health care facilities. Applicants will submit proposals for long-term leases on the land to build permanent housing.

“You could match our commitment by similarly providing free surplus federal land to local government­s across the state so they can build housing for the homeless,” Newsom wrote in the letter he made public Wednesday.

HUD spokesmen did not immediatel­y comment.

Newsom also noted his other recently announced plans, including $2 billion in spending during the current and upcoming fiscal years.

“A key part of our emergency actions is is deploying 100 emergency trailers and providing state land available for free to local government­s to use for homeless housing and shelter,” he wrote. “As you engage California with offers of resources, I hope you will match our commitment to comprehens­ive solutions that go beyond temporary tent villages. A successful deployment of emergency aid must include a significan­t federal commitment to housing resources — anything less, and we risk creating permanent homeless encampment­s on federal land.”

HUD calculates that California’s homeless population increased 16% last year, to about 151,000 people, or more than a quarter of the national total.

The same week Newsom initially announced his plans, President Donald Trump criticized California leaders, particular­ly in Los Angeles and San Francisco, for failing to adequately address homelessne­ss.

But Trump said in a tweet that if city and state leaders “acknowledg­e responsibi­lity and politely” ask for help, then his administra­tion “will very seriously consider getting involved.”

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