Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell led a “Welcome Home” celebration for 27 formerly homeless individuals who successfully transitioned from encampments to apartments, thanks to LA County’s Pathway Home program.
After years living in tents or RVs in unincorporated Lennox, Walnut Park and Firestone Park, and the City of Hawthorne, all 27 people recently moved into a new apartment complex called The Dalton, thanks in part to a newly expanded effort to increase the affordable housing stock countywide through master leasing.
Former foster youth Miles Templeman in front of his apartment. He’s now studying sociology at a local college.
“We are using every tool in our toolbox to support the transition of people experiencing homeless into permanent housing,” Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell said. “We get the best outcomes when we collaborate and coordinate with County departments, cities, and our nonprofit and healthcare partners. Master leasing, combined with our successful Pathway Home effort, are game changers when it comes to getting people to come into homes more quickly.”
Pathway Home is a full-circle solution designed to improve flow within the homeless services system by bringing people off the streets, directly into immediately available interim housing accompanied by a suite of supportive services and, ultimately, into safe, permanent homes. It is a critical component of LA County’s comprehensive response to the local emergency on homelessness adopted by the Board of Supervisors in early 2023.
“Pathway Home is an all-hands-on-deck effort to connect with our unsheltered neighbors on their journey to long-term housing stability,” LA County Homeless Initiative executive director Cheri Todoroff said. “Thanks to the master leasing program, we’ve ended homelessness for 27 people at The Dalton. Now, we are working on bringing even more units online that will end homelessness for hundreds more individuals this year.”
L.A. Care Health Plan and Health Net, LA County’s largest local Medi-Cal managed care health plans, provided funding through the Housing and Homelessness Incentive Program that enabled the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) to master lease The Dalton. By master leasing entire buildings, LAHSA can secure apartments on the private rental market and lease them directly to people experiencing homelessness, including those with tenant-based rental subsidies who struggle to lease up with traditional landlords.
Dawnette Morgan-Montez gives her new apartment the thumbs up.
“L.A. Care recognizes that health care is more than a plastic ID card in your wallet, which is why we are proud to invest in housing that permanently ends someone’s homeless experience,” said John Baackes, L.A. Care CEO. “This collaborative effort with the County is an important step to ensuring that unhoused people have a place to make a home, and that will mean an opportunity for a healthier life.”
“Our joint collaboration at the state, county and local level is demonstrating tangible results that are altering the lives of California’s most vulnerable residents,” said Martha Santana-Chin, Medi-Cal and Medicare president, Health Net. ” We strive to transform the health of the communities we serve, one person at a time, and this is what we’re doing together with the Los Angeles County Homeless Initiative and L.A. Care Health Plan.
“LAHSA could not be prouder of its master leasing partnership with the County and the managed health care plans,” said Dr. Va Lecia Adams Kellum, CEO of LAHSA. “This partnership paves the way to increase our rehousing system’s efficiency by creating more options for our unhoused neighbors. Master leasing is a critical program for ending homelessness in LA County, and we look forward to working together to scale the program to meet our community’s housing needs.”
LA County partnered with the nonprofit service providers PATH and St. Joseph Center to assist Pathway Home clients during their stays in interim and permanent housing, respectively. Both organizations will provide case management and connections to crucial supportive services, such as health care, benefits enrollment, life skills training, and more.
“St. Joseph Center is excited to continue our partnership with Supervisor Holly Mitchell’s office as we welcome our unhoused neighbors home by way of the Pathway Home initiative,” said St. Joseph Center interim CEO LaTonya Smith. “This is a significant milestone for our community, and we are proud to provide the services needed to keep people safe, healthy, and housed.”
During the Welcome Home celebration, Supervisor Mitchell provided housewarming presents and L.A. Care Health Plan and Health Net hosted a luncheon for the Pathway Home participants who are new tenants at The Dalton.
Supervisor Holly Mitchell with representatives from the LA County Homeless Initiative, St. Joseph Center, L.A. Care Health Plan and Health Net at the “Welcome Home” event for 27 people settling into their new apartments after years of unsheltered homelessness.