The issue is clear to see - on the grassy bank behind this Dignity Moves project in Santa Barbara….is a homeless encampment.
These new small homes at La Posada are designed to give those people a place to call home. Friday is the groundbreaking ceremony…but by April, these 80 small homes will be ready for people to move in, and that ease and speed of putting together the pre-fabricated homes, is part of the reason this is a solution to homelessness, says Aaron Edelheit from Dignity Moves.
"What we're using is county land," Edelheit explained. "And so this was a former juvenile hall and parking lot that is empty and not being used. Right above one of the almost finished units, there are people living in tents. There is a homeless community right over there and down by the railroad tracks," he explained.
"What it makes me so proud as we of a community has basically said, no, these people deserve dignified housing. And so everyone's going to have their own unit doors that will lock. The idea is to stabilize them, get them on the right track and then transition them to more stable permanent housing," said Edelheit.
The development is similar to Dignity Moves developments in downtown Santa Barbara and Santa Maria, and don’t just provide a temporary supportive housing community, but 24-hour security and a range of wrap around mental and physical health services. Services which are an essential part of the solution, says Toni Navarro the director of Santa Barbara County Behavioral Wellness.
"They're vital. They go hand in hand. Housing without treatment for folks who have been through the challenges of homelessness is essential," she said.
The county-owned parcel of land at 4500 Hollister was unused. Laura Capps, the Second District Supervisor from the County of Santa Barbara, says unsheltered homelessness is unsafe, unhealthy…and unacceptable.
"Homelessness is such a hard issue to solve and it starts with housing," said Capps. "The cost of housing is so high. Santa Barbara City is one of the most expensive places to live in the country. Our county is the sixth most expensive county in the entire country, so homelessness is a housing issue that we can solve because people want the dignity of having four walls and a door that they can lock, and a place to keep their belongings and have a pet. And we're doing that here," she said.
These small homes are not just the plan for Santa Barbara, but the blueprint for a way to tackle the issue of homelessness in the State of California. Explained Hafsa Kaka, California Governor Gavin Newsom’s Senior Advisor on Homelessness.
"Addressing homelessness benefits the entire community. Because, number one, it's humanitarian. We're all helping each other. Number two, it's really important that we're able to help gain folks on the path of self-sufficiency. It feeds back into the economy. People who lost their jobs, getting them services they need, getting them into shelter or programs such as this allows them, with that case management, to get them right back on their feet and help the workforce," said Kaka.
Kirsten Cahoon, the Director of Homeless Services from Good Samaritan Shelter – who have partnered on the project, says the existing developments have already had success stories.
"We've served 100 people at our Santa Barbara Street village, and 80% of them have transitioned into permanent housing, and 85% have gained medical care now that they never had before," said Cahoon. "We had folks coming in with undiagnosed cancer, just some really horrible things that they were battling on the streets that they never had any services for. So that's just a really huge statistic for us as well."
And the intention is to provide a healthy and safe living environment not just for the residents, but to improve the quality of life for the whole community.
