Comments
WESTSIDE - It was a somber assessment of the state of homelessness here in Venice and the rest of LA County as Jonah Glickman, the Housing & Homelessness liaison for LA County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath (also board Chair), made his presentation to this VNC standing committee via ZOOM presentation on Thursday, October 30th.
The Homelessness committee is chaired by Alley Bean and tonight was co-chaired by Dr. Naomi Nightengale. The other committee members are Julie Bean, Dr. Judy Goldman, Sarah Mahir, Pat Rafael, Lisa Redmond and John Reimers.
Glickman discussed the scaled down responsibilities of LAHSA, the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority and the establishment of a new, but unnamed county department that will address specific goals and objectives come January of 2026.
While the presentation was sketchy at best in terms of this new department, it seems LAHSA's new role will be somewhat in limbo, and another example of lost confidence in government to make any tangible progress on the number one issue that continues to plague both Los Angeles city and county.
Glickman acknowledged that there has been limited engagement between the public and service providers like St. Joseph Center, that was roundly criticized by several committee members as well as those participating residents on the call.
One primary criticism was the absence of any measurable or reliable data as it pertains to the specific number of homeless here in Venice.
This information used to be part of the annual homeless count, but no more.
And while the role of LAHSA has been reduced due to unfavorable audits, they will apparently still receive city, state and federal funding for the time being.
Dr. Judy Goldman asked the question of contract oversight, and that the public's confidence in these service providers to be more transparent and accountable.
The question of whether there has been a net improvement when it comes to homelessness was met with a wall of silence amongst those on the call.
It was best summed up by local community advocate Lydia Ponce as saying there "was nothing new here".
Nevertheless, Glickman said that more resources will be available to the county as he described the state of homelessness as "regional" in scope and depth.
Glickman was asked to comment on the state of the RV crisis along Washington Boulevard and that his office was committed to working with LA Councilwoman Traci Park (CD-11) in addressing the concerns.
To date, LA County has offered no solutions.
Glickman noted that with the changes in governmental deployment, the new county agency will address what was described as "Housing for Health," and that full-service partnerships regarding mental illness would be possible.
Glickman noted that the "level of engagement" and "intensive case management" would be priorities moving forward in this reorganization of tackling homelessness.
Chairperson Alley Bean asked Goldman that locals "not be shutout" and that the housing first model is not working.
"The numbers are alarming," offered Beal.
Committee member Pat Rafael, who is unhoused asked "where does the buck stop? Immediate action and engagement" are necessary now.
It became apparent to many that what was being presented was in many cases redundant and in fact futile given the massive failure by government to make any serious dent in improving the homeless crisis both here in Venice and the rest of Los Angeles or LA County.
Glickman offered no quick fixes and noted that the road ahead will be hard and difficult.
Here are more detailed numbers and developments regarding the status of the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) and the changes underway in Los Angeles County’s homeless-services system:
For FY 2023-24, LAHSA’s budget breakdown shows the City of Los Angeles contributed approximately $249.6 million (≈ 27 %) and Los Angeles County contributed about $433.9 million (≈ 47 %) with 16 % from the state. Earlier reports noted that LAHSA manages an annual budget in the ballpark of $875 million for homelessness services (city + county + other sources). The county’s overall spending plan for homelessness (via its “Homeless Initiative”) for FY 2023-24 was about $609.7 million (plus additional funds) to address encampments, housing placements, etc.
Under the county’s new plan, by July 1, 2026, the county intends to transfer ≈ $300 million annually (coming from the new Measure A sales-tax proceeds and other funds) out of LAHSA’s control into the newly created county department.
A March 2025 independent audit found major weaknesses at LAHSA:
Payments were made to contractors without verifying services had been completed. The audit also found that LAHSA was unable to track expenditures for approximately $2.3 billion of city spending due to poor documentation and data gaps.
LAHSA had issued $50.8 million in cash advances to service providers since FY 2017-18 without proper repayment agreements; by July 2024 only around $2.5 million had been recovered. The audit concluded LAHSA’s contractual clarity, data collection, and vendor oversight were all inadequate, making the agency “vulnerable to waste, fraud, and abuse.”
In response to these findings, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted 4-0 to create a new dedicated county department for homeless services, effectively reducing LAHSA’s role.
The new department is designated as the Los Angeles County Department of Homeless Services and Housing. On July 8 , 2025, the first director, Sarah Mahin, was appointed.
The transition timeline is as follows:
Phase I: Already underway ― merging the County’s “Homeless Initiative” (CEO) and “Housing for Health” (DHS) programs into the new department.
By January 1, 2026, the department will be officially established. By July 1, 2026, integration of LAHSA-administered county programs is scheduled.
During this transition, LAHSA will retain some functions ― particularly its role as the lead for the Continuum of Care (federal homeless-services system) and the Point-in-Time count.
While LAHSA is still operational and carrying out key responsibilities (e.g., homeless count, contract administration) but is losing major funding streams and operational control to the new county department.
The structural shift is aimed at streamlining oversight, improving data and contracting practices, and consolidating previously fragmented programs. For service providers: The transition plan states that contracts should not be interrupted, and efforts will be made to avoid service gaps.
For stakeholders, the audit’s findings have raised serious concerns about past accountability; and the reforms reflect a regional urgency for better performance and transparency which has been woefully lacking.
In other committee business, a directive was passed to provide emergency shelter at the Oakwood Recreation Center to VNC President Brian Averill. The motion also asked to seek other shelter options in Venice.
In board discussion the committee noted a 2024 motion that was previously passed, but apparently not sent to the stated agencies at the time. In a brief phone conversation with Averill, he stated any motions or resolutions that were approved by the VNC are routinely sent to the intended governmental officials and departments.
To reach the Homelessness Committee, you can e-mail them at [email protected]
(Nick Antonicello is a thirty-two-year resident of the neighborhood and exclusively covers the deliberations and actions of the Venice Neighborhood Council. Have a take or a tip on all things Venice? Contact him at [email protected])
