California homelessness? (Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco: elementary school, living in, costs)

[WTXProject]

Originally Posted by Thekdog

There are more homeless people in city of LA than in the entire state of Texas

True, but I'm starting to see more homeless people in Texas. Even in the upscale suburbs of Houston I see people walking down the street that I highly suspect to be homeless. (i.e. trudging down the street at 6 AM with 6 pieces of luggage in a very residential suburban area)

[Thekdog]

Originally Posted by WTXProject

True, but I'm starting to see more homeless people in Texas. Even in the upscale suburbs of Houston I see people walking down the street that I highly suspect to be homeless. (i.e. trudging down the street at 6 AM with 6 pieces of luggage in a very residential suburban area)

Houston reduced they're homelessness recently. They're down to like 3,000.

Austin has a lot though. Skyrocketed after progressives took over for awhile and instituted some California style housing ordinances

[Thekdog]

Originally Posted by HereOnMars

Well that's just wrong. These people have nothing. They receive nothing from the state. They have no resources which is the entire point of my previous story. Park Rangers are helping these people in as far as giving them water, checking on their well-being and generally just letting them know someone knows they're there. They should be getting a phone at the very least. They receive nothing as it is right now. And the thing is a lot of them aren't drug addicts and aren't mentally ill. They're just displaced and need a hand up. We can't even give them that because these a-hole bureaucrats keep arguing as to how to move 'em, get rid of 'em, basically make them disappear because it's uncomfortable having them around.

They need lower rents

That's not happening in California anytime soon unfortunately

[JGC97]

Originally Posted by Thekdog

They need lower rents

That's not happening in California anytime soon unfortunately

That would definitely help a small percentage of them since that's the primary reason they're homeless.

Even I have moments of complete and utter stupidity because I commented on having a cell phone and how it would be a little help. However, when the battery runs down, where are they going to plug it in to charge it? See how easy it is for those who "have" to forget what life is like for those who "have not?"

[evening sun]

Originally Posted by HereOnMars

That would definitely help a small percentage of them since that's the primary reason they're homeless.

Even I have moments of complete and utter stupidity because I commented on having a cell phone and how it would be a little help. However, when the battery runs down, where are they going to plug it in to charge it? See how easy it is for those who "have" to forget what life is like for those who "have not?"

Some state parks have electrical outlets, as do shelters. Or the library.
But without an address it is hard to get food stamps etc. I read that our town is offering a free ride home to any homeless who want it. They will buy them a ticket home. One person I know who volunteers for the program, said many of them are afraid to go home, they are estranged from family.

I don't think cheap rent will help those with mental health or addiction issues.

[JGC97]

Originally Posted by evening sun

Some state parks have electrical outlets, as do shelters. Or the library.
But without an address it is hard to get food stamps etc. I read that our town is offering a free ride home to any homeless who want it. They will buy them a ticket home. One person I know who volunteers for the program, said many of them are afraid to go home, they are estranged from family.

I don't think cheap rent will help those with mental health or addiction issues.

That's true, evening sun. I can't remember but I think I read or heard on the news about state parks and the homeless. Are they allowed to stay there indefinitely or are they mandated, like others, to move along after a month?

Also true, no family to go to either because there is no one or, like you say, they're estranged. Not an easy situation to be in when you're in this world alone and have no job, no home, no one to turn to.

[Thekdog]

Originally Posted by HereOnMars

That would definitely help a small percentage of them since that's the primary reason they're homeless.

Even I have moments of complete and utter stupidity because I commented on having a cell phone and how it would be a little help. However, when the battery runs down, where are they going to plug it in to charge it? See how easy it is for those who "have" to forget what life is like for those who "have not?"

Why would it only be a small percentage?

[CA4Now]

Originally Posted by HereOnMars

...However, when the battery runs down, where are they going to plug it in to charge it? See how easy it is for those who "have" to forget what life is like for those who "have not?"

Good point.

A landmark new report surveyed thousands of people in California about how they came to be without housing, and researchers conducted in-depth interviews with hundreds of them. For most, high rental costs were crucial.

"People just ran out of the ability to pay, whether it happened quickly or slowly," says lead investigator Margot Kushel of the University of California, San Francisco.

Some said they'd had their work hours cut. Others lost a job because of a health crisis. Many crowded in with relatives or friends, who were also likely to be poor and struggling. "And we found that those relationships, when they fell apart, fell apart quickly," Kushel says. "People only had one day's warning" to leave. Even those with their own lease had on average just 10 days to move out.

Their median monthly household income in the six months before they became homeless was $960, she says. The median rent for a one-bedroom apartment in California is $1,700.

https://www.npr.org/2023/07/12/11868...ng-encampments

[JGC97]

Originally Posted by Thekdog

Why would it only be a small percentage?

Because, like it or not, there are people who would not or cannot be responsible for taking care of themselves. Just as evening sun stated a few posts ago, cheap rent won't help those with mental health or addiction issues.

[JGC97]

Very good report, CA4Now. It's a disaster that has reached a fevered pitch. I don't know what we can do to change it, either. Some areas in the state, like yours, are inundated with homeless, whereas my area isn't terribly overwhelmed which makes it a bit easier to get some off the street. We have a small organization that secured a patch of land and placed some small units on them. They aren't big but they're nice, clean and the outside area looks like any other small community. The people that live in the units are still employed and working on getting back on their feet. So far, it's working well. Although, they have to meet a certain criteria; one of them being that they are still employed without any addiction problems.

I don't know if your area has something like that but if you do, kudos for that because even getting one or a hundred into a place where they can feel normal is a step in the right direction.