“We are not just building housing,” said Board of Supervisors Chair Mark Ridley-Thomas (above) about the new city-county supportive housing agreement. “We are rebuilding lives.” (courtesy photo)

Los Angeles county and city officials have reached a key milestone in their partnership to create 10,000 units of permanent supportive housing over the next decade. 

Under a Memorandum of Understanding with the County, Los Angeles becomes the region’s first city to formally join forces on a framework to increase permanent supportive housing, which combines housing subsidies with essential services to help chronically homeless individuals and families stay housed, healthy and moving forward. 

Discussions are underway to develop similar agreements with other cities in the County. 

“We are not just building housing,” said Board of Supervisors Chair Mark Ridley-Thomas, “we are rebuilding lives. This unprecedented agreement will ensure that critical Measure H-funded services from the County will be swiftly provided to help people thrive in the thousands of units that will be constructed by the City under Proposition HHH.” 

The agreement was celebrated during a grand opening ceremony today for the Silver Star Apartments—a 49-unit supportive housing community for formerly homeless veterans in the Crenshaw area. The apartments represent the kind of collaborative approach for permanent supportive housing envisioned by the newly signed Memorandum of Understanding. 

“The fight to end homelessness belongs to everybody in Los Angeles,” said Mayor Eric Garcetti. “We’re standing together at all levels of government to get people the shelter and services they need more quickly and efficiently than ever before.”