Los Angeles City Councilmembers Curren Price, Kevin de León and Gilbert Cedillo introduced a motion Nov. 10, requesting to have the Los Angeles Convention Center evaluated for possible use as a temporary emergency homeless shelter. With cold winter temperatures and rain in the foreseeable future and with Los Angeles continuing to see an upward trend in homelessness, the need for a substantial solution to bring individuals inside is crucial.
Currently, there are 41,290 individuals experiencing homelessness in the city, including 28,852 who are unsheltered. The idea to use the Convention Center for emergency purposes is not unprecedented. Last April, with the onset of COVID-19, a portion of the Los Angeles Convention Center was transformed into a temporary medical facility to handle the overflow of recovering COVID-19 patients from local hospitals. The Center had the capacity of 250 beds at the time and the ability to expand operations if necessary.
“In the midst of the pandemic, we must take bold, dramatic action and do everything possible to ensure the safety of our communities,” said Price, who represents District 9 where the Convention Center is located. “At this moment in time, we are being hard pressed to think outside-the-box, come up with a variety of solutions and look for ways to use existing resources that are underutilized at a fraction of the cost. The Convention Center offers just that — an incredible opportunity to assist the unhoused.”
“Unhoused Angelenos are now facing the long winter months with virtually no access to a warm place to sleep at night,” said de León. “Responding to this humanitarian crisis of biblical proportions requires us to be nimble and creative, doing everything in our power to move people off the street and indoors. We opened up our Convention Center to house those suffering from COVID-19, and we can surely do the same for those suffering from chronic homelessness and the rapidly-approaching tsunami of evictions.”
Added Cedillo: “Until we address the bureaucratic and systemic drivers of increasing housing supply and access, we will continue to find and take advantage of any opportunities to provide immediate solutions for our unsheltered Angelenos. As cold weather is upon us, it is crucial that we act on activating our winter shelter programs and emergency shelters to ensure that we are keeping one of our most vulnerable populations safe.”
The motion instructs various departments, including the City Administrative Officer and the Chief Legislative Analyst, along with the Convention and Tourism Department, General Services Department, Bureau of Engineering, City Attorney, the Fire Department LAHSA and others, to study the proposal and come up with recommendations within the next 30 days.
