Close-Knit Community Moves into Safety Together with Project Roomkey
Under the supervision of LA Family Housing, 43 high-risk people who had been living at a freeway underpass were placed in the safe environment of a local hotel.
To ensure the safety of the unsheltered and to protect public health, Project Roomkey has brought an unprecedented number of people indoors. Years of capacity building by LAHSA and our providers and relationship building by individual caseworkers laid the groundwork for the successes we see today.
Paxton and Bradley
One remarkable example of this effort is the Paxton and Bradley encampment under the 118 freeway in Pacoima. In mid-April, LA Family Housing moved the entire encampment of 43 people into a Project Roomkey hotel. While the move happened over a weekend, the community of Paxton and Bradley has been working with outreach teams for more than two years.
“This group was doing the hard work and therefore was ready when this amazing resource became available,” said LA Family Housing President & CEO, Stephanie Klasky-Gamer. “The demographics of the residents, along with their complex health needs, made Project Roomkey a once in a lifetime resource that could provide justice to this tight-knit and vibrant community.”
Keeping the community together
The Paxton and Bradley community serves as a family and safety net for its residents. The community has strong leaders who support and guide others. Outreach workers knew that they had to keep the group together. “The community was not going to leave people behind,” Stephanie mentioned. Staff followed the community’s lead and worked to move everyone together at once.
Trust is key
Spearheading this effort was LA Family Housing’s Senior Director of Engagement Alynn Gausvik, who worked closely with the community leaders to help residents prepare. The outreach team knew residents would need flexibility, so the staff made it clear that people could go back to get belongings. “Trust is the currency that homeless service uses,” Stephanie said. “The risk of breaking their trust in us was bigger than ever. We had to respect how much faith we were asking them to have in us.”
Already making a difference
The LA Family Housing team continues to help all residents search for permanent housing and set goals. Access to a stable place to live helps the residents and caseworkers move through the administrative processes for housing and services much quicker. “Many have already gone to job interviews and are excited to be moving forward,” Stephanie said. “It’s been inspiring to see many of them get straight to work on what they want next out of life.”
Access to simple resources that the hotel provides — showers, meals, and power outlets — are already making a huge difference for residents. Here are two success stories so far, but many more are expected to come.
A 63-year-old encampment resident with severe upper respiratory issues was the first one on the bus to the hotel. However, he was struggling to breathe the day he moved in. After a shower and a couple nights of sleep, his health visibly improved. He was laughing with the team as he packed up the remainder of his belongings just two days later.
Another resident who has a Section 8 voucher has already found permanent housing and will be moving into her new home soon. When she walked into her hotel room, she was able to charge her phone to connect with her case manager and set up a unit viewing. The chance to rest and get ready helped her shine through the process and secure a new place to call home.
What’s next
Project Roomkey presents service providers with a unique opportunity to work closely with occupants on a post-hotel plan, including providing housing navigation and case management services. The goal is to find everyone a permanent place to live.
