As Project Roomkey ramps down, LAHSA leads the process to transition as many participants as possible to housing

LAHSA is responsible for coordinating and leading the effort to ramp down each Project Roomkey (PRK) site alongside its partnered PRK non-profit service providers. LAHSA’s primary goal in the ramp-down process is to ensure every unhoused Angelo successfully exits homelessness. If that goal cannot be met, we will make every attempt to ensure each participant exiting the final sites has a safe place to continue to sleep.

The ramp-down of PRK sites can be broken down into the following five steps to ensure a coordinated, successful, and seamless transition:

1) Development of Ramp Down Schedule

The schedule will be used to identify the date when notices are sent to stakeholders such as the Mayor, Council District, and Non-profit providers involved. This will inform these groups of when site operations are to stop, participant intake must end, and the number of people to be exited per day based on the ‘Last Day for Clients’.

2) Pre-planning for Ramp-down

Ramp-down preplanning starts 7–10 days prior to the last day a site will accept clients, or the ‘Stop New Intakes Date’. During this phase, LAHSA staff notifies the Los Angeles Mayor’s Office that the ramp-down will begin. Staff also hold meetings with PRK non-profit service providers and Recovery Rehousing/Housing Navigation/Time-Limited Subsidy providers to communicate the plan for ramp-down and to clarify roles and responsibilities.

3) Notice of Site Closure

Once the Stop New Intakes Date arrives, a Notice of Site Closure is posted at the hotel to notify participants that a site is closing. Individual participants are also given notice of the date when their residency at the PRK site will end or ‘Last Date for Clients’. The PRK non-profit service provider is responsible for distributing these notices to participants.

4) Active Ramp-down Phase

Active ramp-down of a PRK site begins on the Stop New Intake Date and continues until the final Last Date for Clients arrives.

During this time, calls are held between PRK non-profit service providers, LAHSA staff, and Recovery Rehousing/Housing Navigation/Time-Limited Subsidy providers at the site. The morning call identifies and establishes who is scheduled to leave the site, what interim and permanent housing resources are available that day, what housing options are made available to participants, and the coordination of transportation to new sites.

After the morning call, the PRK non-profit service provider meets with every participant scheduled to exit that day to review the housing options available. The PRK Service Provider then communicates the acceptance or rejection of the housing options offered to the LAHSA Site Coordinator and it is documented in the Ramp-Down Tracking Tool. The evening call is intended to identify and document who left the site, their destination, ensuring Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) information is updated, and planning for the following day.

5) Final Ramp-down Phase

The Final Ramp-Down Phase of a PRK site begins 7–14 days prior to the final date for Clients. The PRK non-profit service providers has staff making sure HMIS information is current and accurate, ensuring rooms are emptied of all belongings, FEMA documentation is completed, and supplies are centrally stored for pick-up by LAHSA staff.

When a housing option is accepted, the PRK non-profit service provider orders transportation services to move the participant to their future housing destination. If there is a need for additional time to transition a participant to other housing options, the participant’s scheduled departure date is adjusted accordingly. If housing options are declined, the Recovery Rehousing/Housing Navigation/Time-Limited Subsidy providers see what other options there are such as hotel/motel vouchers, securing housing with family/friends or out-of-pocket.

LAHSA is passionately dedicated to supporting PRK participants in ending their experience of homelessness and moving them into a home of their own. We look forward to quickly implementing strategies to help unhoused Angelenos find housing stability.