Closure of longtime shelter Samoshel sparks fears in Pico as Santa Monica repurposes motels for transitional housing.
By Zach Armstrong
An overhaul of Santa Monica’s approach to homelessness is generating anxiety among residents. Plans to close Samoshel, the city’s 32-year-old homeless shelter, by the end of the year have some fearing its replacement is coming to their neighborhood.
The beachside town is revitalizing its homeless strategy. Currently, Samoshel is the only facility directly controlled by the city, while organizations are contracted to provide interim housing and other services–a system which City Manager Oliver Chi describes as “challenging” and “disjointed.” Now, Santa Monica looks to gain full control of the housing transition process, providing emergency shelter along with interim and permanent housing with services.
This new direction does not include development of new facilities. Rather, the city looks to repurpose existing structures for its housing pipeline, while supporting services in the region. A search is underway for motels and apartments to replace Samoshel. The city also plans to lease Palm Motel to use as a transitional housing facility, as Los Angeles County is set to end funding for the 14th Street site’s services next month. Plans also call to fund shelters outside of Santa Monica, such as at Salvation Army’s Bell Shelter, to expand capacity when Santa Monica shelters are full.
The question looms: Which neighborhood will bear the brunt of a new shelter?
“We don’t currently have an alternative location identified.” Chi told Mirror Media Group in a text message. “We’re hoping to identify viable options in and around Santa Monica for consideration, and are planning to coordinate the transition from the congregate style tent we currently use to a different non congregate facility.”
Residents of the Pico neighborhood feel particularly vulnerable. In addition to harboring the largest concentration of liquor stores and fast food restaurants across Santa Monica, Pico also feels the heaviest strain of the charter city’s mental health and homeless services, according to the Pico Neighborhood Association. Locals point to the Palm Motel and The Laurel, a permanent supportive housing facility on Michigan Avenue, as proof of failure to maintain safety and sanitation.
“There’s a historic pattern where Santa Monica has used Pico as a dumping ground.” said Maria Loya, Co-Chair of the Pico Neighborhood Association. “At the beginning of the month, when affordable housing tenants get their checks and the county delivers needles through its harm reduction program, we see a lot of drug activity. It feels like a social experiment that is being conducted in Pico.”
Zina Josephs, Secretary of Friends of Sunset Park, points to the “Good Neighbor Agreement” held by the Step Up on 26th housing development as a model for accountability. Such an agreement, according to Josephs, would include screening procedures and regular meetings between residents and the facility’s staff. But residents say the city’s proposal falls short.
“What the city proposed was ‘Good Neighbor policies’ and the ability of residents to complain about problems at City Council meetings. This is not the same, and it’s not acceptable.” Josephs stated in an email to Mirror Media Group.
In a town hall at Santa Monica College on Thursday, Chi and other city officials fielded direct questions from Pico residents who worry that, without sobriety requirements and oversight, the city’s takeover of Palm and a potential new shelter will increase drug use and crime.
Under the city’s management, clinical staff at Palm would assess patients’ behavioral, mental health and substance use needs to determine their case plans, according to Allyson Crosby, a manager in Santa Monica’s Homelessness Prevention and Intervention Division. Services outlined in those plans, such as mental health counseling or outpatient drug treatment, will be provided on-site. Case managers will monitor patients’ progress.
“Clinicians and psychiatrists are going to be a part of this care team who are going to be on-site every day overseeing the needs of folks, observing their behavior, making sure they are getting connected to care and assessing how they’re progressing or if it’s the right place for people to be,” said Crosby during the town hall’s Q&A session.
Santa Monica city council will vote on its policy changes and plans during its July 28 meeting.
“Housing First” or “Housing Focused”?
The term “Housing First” has also become a source of confusion and anxiety.
In Santa Monica’s recently updated realignment plan, “Housing First” is repeatedly used to describe the city’s shift in homeless policy. A city report attached to the adoption states that its new system would be “fundamentally different approach, one where the City has access to and control over infrastructure at each step of a housing-first continuum.”
“Housing First” generally refers to policy that doesn’t require sobriety or job training for an individual to receive housing, stemming from the belief that a reliable shelter is the first step necessary to achieve stability.
One speaker at the town hall’s Q&A, a Pico resident who described having a friend experiencing homelessness, said “Housing First just means sleeping in some place for free and getting high … When you continue with harm reduction and Housing First policies, you’re keeping my loved one who’s an addict out there on the street using it.”
Chi denied that Santa Monica is using a “Housing First” model, instead describing it as “Housing Focused.”
“We’re not talking about ‘If you’re on the street, we’re going to put you in a unit.’ We’re talking about a system where we have access to and control of different types of housing infrastructure.” said Chi during the town hall’s Q&A session, assuring that the city will maintain performance contracts, outcome measures and on-site security.
“Nobody gets into the facility unless we direct them there.” Chi continued. “There’s going to be a screening, there’s going to be an assessment. If someone isn’t ready to locate into a facility, we’re not going to put them there.”
