The annual three-night Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count began Tuesday evening with volunteers fanning out in the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys.
Volunteers tally the number of unsheltered individuals, tents, vehicles and makeshift shelters they see in their assigned Census tract.
“I cannot underscore how critical this count is,” Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger said at a news conference at Tiara Street Park in North Hollywood before the start of the count. “Each year this census helps us better understand where people are experiencing homelessness and where they are living across our entire county.
“The data we collect will allow us to strategically direct resources to communities to help people access shelter and more importantly also the services that oftentimes are lacking.”
Barger is also a member of the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority Commission. The authority conducts the annual count. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development requires a biennial point-in-time count of people experiencing homelessness.
Volunteers will conduct counts in West Los Angeles, the southeast portion of Los Angeles County and the South Bay area Wednesday. Counting will be conducted in the Antelope Valley, Metro Los Angeles and South Los Angeles Thursday.
The 2023 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count revealed a 9% year-over-year increase in homelessness in Los Angeles County and a 10% rise in Los Angeles. The data showed 75,518 people experienced homelessness in Los Angeles Count, and 46,260 in Los Angeles, an increase from 69,144 in the county and 41,980 the city from 2022.