Following a staff recommendation, the Los Angeles City Council has voted to spend more than $90 million to purchase eight properties through the Project Homekey program.

The properties, which would be used for interim housing, are expected to create up to 701 new shelter beds.  Five of the properties are existing hotels and medical office buildings located in the San Fernando Valley, Westchester, Venice, and El Sereno, including:

  • 9120 Woodman Avenue, Arleta - 74 beds;
  • The Good Nite Inn (12835 Encenitas Avenue, Sylmar) - 87 beds;
  • Super 8 LAX (9250 Airport Drive, Westchester) - 44 beds;
  • Ramada Inn (3130 Washington Boulevard, Venice) - 33 beds; and
  • Super 8 Alhambra (5350 Huntington Drive South, El Sereno) - 52 beds.

Local organizations tapped to operate the facilities include LA Family Housing, The People Concern, PATH, National CORE, and Union Station Homeless Services.

The per-unit cost for the five properties is estimated at $231,659.  Daily operations are expected to be $85 per room.

Additionally, the City will provide up to $23.7 million in funding to Volunteers of America Los Angeles, the Coalition for Responsible Community Development, and Los Angeles Neighborhood Housing Services for the purchase of up to properties in South Los Angeles to repurpose as interim housing - and possibly permanent supportive housing.  The three properties could include commercial buildings located at:

  • 5201 S. Vermont Avenue or 2521 Long Beach Avenue;
  • 2300 S. Central Avenue; and
  • 1300-1332 W. Slauson Avenue.

The three buildings could accommodate up to 411 beds.

Combined with properties already identified in a previous report, the purchase of the additional buildings will bring the City of Los Angeles' roster of Project Homekey sites to 18 in total, with space for up to 1,451 beds.  Separately, the County of Los Angeles and other local jurisdictions have also engaged in purchase agreements for hotels and other buildings via Project Homekey.

The properties purchased via Project Homekey will be used primarily to provide shelter for unhoused persons living within 500 feet of a freeway, as well as those aged 65 or older, or otherwise considered especially vulnerable to COVID-19.  The target population of the matches that of a June 2020 settlement agreement between the City and County, approved by Federal Judge David O. Carter, which requires the creation of 6,000 new shelter beds, adding to 700 which were already in development.