Mayor Eric Garcetti, county Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas and other officials were on hand this week for the grand opening of a service center in South Los Angeles aimed at helping the homeless.
The Broadway Manchester Service Center is located in a renovated former post office and was created as a collaborative project between two nonprofit social service organizations, First to Serve and the St. Joseph Center.
“As long as somebody is left behind, as long as someone is on the street, we cannot say we are a successful city,” Garcetti said.
Garcetti added that “St. Joseph’s is the model” while praising the organization for its work on helping the homeless.
The center will house more than 40 staff working on programs aimed at helping the homeless and people living in poverty.
Its opening follows city voters approval in November of Measure H, a bond measure that will raise $1.2 billion for homeless housing, and county voters last week apparent approval of Measure H, which could raise $355 million annually for 10 years.
Provisional and mail-in ballots are still being counted on Measure H, which needs a two-thirds majority of the vote to pass and had a 67.62 percent approval as of Friday.
“We are excited to be doing this work and so grateful for the support that allows us to bring our mission of hope here,” said Va Lecia Adams Kellum, president & CEO of St. Joseph Center.
