“Budget Targets Homelessness, Infrastructure” was originally published by the Los Feliz Ledger

 

Excerpt:

A record setting $10.6 billion budget for the city of Los Angeles goes into effect July 1st for fiscal year 2019-2020 with significant investment in homelessness intervention, law enforcement and roadwork.

Los Angeles City Councilmember David Ryu, who represents local Council District 4, called the new budget “one of our city’s strongest.”

“The street you commute on, the trees on your block, the safety of your neighborhood—these are bread and butter issues,” Ryu said in a recent statement. “I’m glad to see these priorities get the funding they deserve.”

The budget allocates $457 million to combat homelessness, a $43 million increase from last year. Funding from Proposition HHH, a 2016 voter-approved homeless housing funding measure, accounts for $281 million of that total.

Homelessness in the city spiked 16% last year according to count data released in June by Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA).

Council District 4, which includes Los Feliz, Silver Lake and the Hollywood Hills among other neighborhoods, had the largest percentage increase—its homeless population went up 53% in the last year to 1,187 homeless residents, according to LAHSA.

Council District 13, which includes Atwater Village, Echo Park, and parts of Hollywood is home to 2,983 unsheltered residents, per the count. That area saw no percentage change in its homeless population last year.

A total of $1.7 billion has been allocated toward police services, a nearly 6% increase over the previous fiscal year, including expanded funding for Los Angeles Police Dept. (LAPD) recruitment, more than $14 million for improved information and communications technology and increased funding for police overtime pay.

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Carl recently reported on the 2019-2020 Los Angeles City Budget. Get the local spin on the big city problem for Los Feliz, Silver Lake, Atwater Village, Hollywood Hills and more.