FOR FORMERLY UNHOUSED ANGELENOS, SUPPORTIVE HOUSING GIVES INDEPENDENCE DAY SPECIAL MEANING
LA supportive housing residents opened homes, gathered at Fourth of July community event to celebrate the independence that comes with supportive housing
LOS ANGELES, CA – As Angelenos flocked to beaches, parties, and fireworks displays this Independence Day holiday weekend, formerly homeless Angelenos who now live in supportive housing threw open the doors of their homes and gathered at a community cookout to help the public understand what independence means to them.
Los Angeles has approved more new affordable and supportive housing in the past five years than the previous 30. In the words of supportive housing providers, it’s “our best move” as a city to reverse a legacy of decades of exclusion and short-sightedness that led to the homelessness and housing crisis. Supportive housing creates places where working families, fixed-income seniors and those who have experienced homelessness can come home. Measure HHH, approved by voters in the City of Los Angeles, is a major reason for this accelerated pace, and Measure H, approved by County of Los Angeles voters, provides the funding needed for ongoing supportive services and operating costs.
On Friday, July 1, scattered-site supportive housing resident Tanjalika Cox opened her home and talked about her experience with homelessness and obtaining housing. Tanjalika became unhoused due to an abusive marriage. When her ex-husband became violent, she packed up her son, Josiah, and left home. For three years, she and Josiah alternated between staying with friends and sleeping in shelters. Eventually, they moved into LA Family Housing’s Tyrone House, which was the start of their new life. She began working with a case manager to find a permanent home where she could focus on rebuilding her life and keeping her children safe. LAFH secured them a two-bedroom apartment down the street from Josiah’s school. Now that Tanjalika’s family has a home, she is focusing on what matters most: being the support system for Josiah and Leah that she never had as a child. Tanjalika continues to take advantage of the resources available to her at LAFH, such as health and wellness classes, substance use counseling, and budgeting support.
“Getting a home of my own was the key to my independence, and this Independence Day, I want to share what my story and my home mean to me,” said Tanjalika Cox, a resident who prior to LAFH supportive services was experiencing homelessness with her small children. “I believe that every person who is unhoused deserves the same thing.”
On Monday, July 4, LA Family Housing (LAFH) hosted a Fourth of July cookout for residents of a supportive housing community for seniors in Tujunga.
“For people who have been unhoused, a home of one’s own means stability, safety, and above all, independence,” said Stephanie Klasky-Gamer, President & CEO, LA Family Housing. “This Independence Day it is important to highlight that LA is in the midst of an affordable housing rebirth. We are taking action to address decades of racist and exclusionary policies that created our current housing crisis. With rents in LA increasing 16% in the last year, it is important to make sure that Angelenos on a fixed income have a place to call home. With every home built, we are committing ourselves to making sure that every Angeleno can enjoy the freedom from fear and want that only a home can provide.”
These Independence Day celebrations are part of the “My Best Move” campaign, a project which aims to help Los Angeles understand that our investment in supportive housing— “our best move” as a city—is succeeding in ending homelessness for tens of thousands and rebalancing the scales after decades of injustice.
LAFH currently has seven HHH developments in their real estate pipeline, which will create hundreds of permanent homes in the coming years. One of those projects, My Angel, will provide 54 supportive homes for Veterans and began construction earlier this year. This is crucial progress that would not be possible without funding from HHH.
Right now, Los Angeles is demonstrating what is possible when we invest in our neighbors and our communities. By unlocking millions of dollars of state and federal funds, Prop HHH will create a planned 10,312 new homes with life-saving supportive services by 2026, including a planned 7,718 new homes financed directly by HHH.
“After I retired, I began collecting my social security, which is $1,283 a month. This fixed income is impossible to live on in Los Angeles where the average cost of rent is $1,800. As a lifelong Angeleno, I thank God for LA Family Housing. I owe them everything for what they did for me.” said Ken Conner, a resident of an LAFH home who, prior to finding supportive housing, lived in his car.
