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THE WESTSIDE - Jonah Glickman, the Housing & Homelessness liaison for LA County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath was the primary speaker at the November 4th meeting of the Oceanfront Committee of the Venice Neighborhood Council held at the Rose Room, just steps from the beach.
Glickman was the primary speaker and explained various solutions and challenges the County of Los Angeles is currently considering to alleviate homelessness at the beach and the rest of LA County.
The committee is a standing committee of the Venice Neighborhood Council (www.venicenc.org), and is chaired by Community Officer Deborah Keaton. Other committee members consist of Nico Ruderman, Fran Solomon, Mehrnoosh Mojallali, Clark Brown, Mark Rago and yours truly.
The meeting, which lasted 90-minutes was a free-wheeling discussion of the state of homelessness in Venice, as committee members and the public were free to discuss any particular issue on their minds.
Glickman offered his email to those in attendance regarding any topic they may want to discuss and encouraged those to contact him at [email protected] and his number is (323) 401-9575.
One of the questions asked was how many individuals are currently homeless in Venice, and particularly at the beach, and was there a net increase or decrease in that population?
Glickman referred to the annual Homeless Count numbers by “neighborhood,” which is the Homeless Count 2024 Localities Dashboard and indicated he would provide the committee with the 2023 numbers to display the year-over-year, increase or decrease.
Per the actual count that was performed in Venice in January of 2024 (LAHSA), here was the breakdown:
- 239 sheltered individuals
- 106 unsheltered individuals and/or encampment dwellings
- 184 total dwellings (breakdown below)
- 19 in cars
- 70 in vans
- 56 in RV’s
- 10 in makeshift shelters
- 29 in tents
According to the numbers from the January count, 529 was the estimated number here in Venice.
Most believe that many of the unsheltered have migrated from dwellings to cars, campers, vans and recreational vehicles or RV’s and Glickman indicated that the County is working to connect RV dwellers to interim housing and thus have them forfeit these vehicles.
Regarding certain locations like Washington and Venice Blvd.; that would come under the domain and jurisdiction of the City of Los Angeles.
Glickman indicated that the first 24/7 safe parking lot has been opened for such oversized vehicles and that access to services and case managers is now available.
Glickman stressed the need for more of these lots.
Regarding the number of service providers that LA County contracts and does business with, there are approximately 88 that are contracted with LAHSA for fiscal year 2024/25 at a cost of a staggering $750,000,000.
I asked the question of these service providers, how many have been fired or terminated, and the answer was just one!
A homeless male attended the meeting, only to wander back to the beach at it’s conclusion. What can be done to help this particular individual?
Glickman responded that he provided his contact information and would work with him to address his concerns.
The policy of housing first was discussed, and Glickman indicated that Supervisor Horvath endorses this immediate approach, but coupled with treatment and services. A follow-up was asked regarding mandatory sobriety guidelines, and indicated she supports getting people inside and with the proper assistance, and thus applying “scaling substance use” practices.
The issue of “shared space” or services for the unsheltered was brought up and there is a provider called SHARE, which does not have a site in Venice currently, but can be accessed regardless of location.
The question of reuniting homeless individuals with their families is also a service being entertained, but no readily available statistics were offered at this time for the unhoused in Venice. Glickman said he will get back to the committee regarding those numbers as well.
Regarding the annual self-reporting of the homeless, Supervisor Horvath has directed the County Auditor/Controller to conduct an audit of LAHSA – which results will be announced soon. Most observers of LAHSA find these self-reporting practices as unreliable and numerically incorrect as to the exact amount of individuals currently on the streets of LA County.
Supervisor Horvath currently chairs LAHSA.
Glickman was asked in anticipation of the 2028 Summer Olympics, what could be done to offer temporary employment to the unsheltered in lieu of the fact Los Angeles will require some 50,000 volunteers during this 17-day international extravaganza.
Could dollars be set aside by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), to have these individuals trained and participate in a meaningful way?
Glickman indicated that the Supervisor recently introduced an effort entitled, “88 for 28,” which will bring together all 88 LA County municipalities to convene and coordinate planning efforts and procedures for the summer games.
Glickman said he would bring to the Supervisor’s attention such a staffing solution.
As of this writing, there are no scheduled events for Venice during the 2028 Summer Olympics.
(Nick Antonicello is a thirty-one year resident of Venice and member of the Oceanfront Walk Committee of the Venice Neighborhood Council. Have a take or a tip all things Venice? Contact him via e-mail at [email protected])
