The City Council voted Tuesday to have the Department of General Services negotiate and execute a no-cost lease agreement for the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority to establish an outreach coordination hub at a city-owned property in the Harvard Heights neighborhood.
The unanimous vote directed the Department of General Services, assisted by City Attorney Mike Feuer and City Administrative Officer Richard Llewellyn, to negotiate and execute the lease for 1819 S. Western Ave.
The motion was introduced Jan. 12 by Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas and seconded by Councilmen Marqueece Harris-Dawson and Curren Price.
“Many of the outreach teams have office space in administrative buildings that are far away from the parts of the city where they work. As the city continues in its response to COVID-19 and the homelessness crisis, these essential workers should be housed in facilities in or near parts of the city where the homelessness crisis is most acute,” the motion states.
According to the motion, the Western Avenue property “is ideally suited to serve as an outreach coordination hub and deployment site for the surrounding area and the broader South Los Angeles community.”
The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority outreach staff previously visited the site and proposed using the space for three outreach supervisors and 15 two-member Homeless Engagement Teams.
The motion passed with an amendment from Ridley-Thomas to reserve 15 parking spaces at the location for use by the nearby Debbie Allen Dance Academy at market rate.