County-Funded Project to Expand Treatment Options, but Neighbors Worry About Safety
Plans to open a 49-bed mental health housing facility this month on Ocean Avenue have stirred strong opposition from residents who say the project was approved without their knowledge and placed in one of the city’s most expensive residential enclaves, as reported by Fox 11 News.
The site, a former senior living center near Georgina Avenue, will provide transitional housing for individuals with severe mental illness, part of a countywide effort to expand treatment and reduce homelessness. Operated by St. Joseph’s Center and financed through Los Angeles County funds under California’s Proposition 1, the facility will include round-the-clock staffing and an open-door policy allowing residents to come and go freely.
Some neighbors have expressed alarm over the project’s proximity to multimillion-dollar oceanfront homes and what they describe as a lack of public notice. One resident, who recently moved to Santa Monica, recounted a violent confrontation with a man armed with a knife near his home and said the experience intensified his concerns about neighborhood safety.
Several residents also pointed to another St. Joseph’s operated mental health housing site near Santa Monica College, where they claim disturbances and frequent emergency responses have become common. They argue the city should have required more community consultation before allowing another facility in the area.
Santa Monica Mayor Lana Negrete acknowledged the controversy but said the project was not under direct city jurisdiction, citing county and state oversight of the funding and approval process. “I’m not in favor of where it is,” and added, “We don’t have local control. And, if we want to change that, we need to write to our governor, and address this with our county.”
Supervisor Lindsey P. Horvath’s office also said that she was unaware of the issue, “Santa Monica leaders have made clear the community’s desire for more mental health beds to serve a population in need. However, the Department of Mental Health did not inform my office about this project until after funding had already been secured — and that’s unacceptable.
The Ocean Avenue development is part of a broader state initiative aimed at shifting mental health and homelessness care from institutions to community-based housing. Supporters of the project say the facility will help stabilize lives and reduce reliance on emergency rooms, jails, and shelters.
A town hall meeting is scheduled in the coming days to address residents’ concerns, though officials indicated the facility’s opening later this month is unlikely to be delayed.
