From the fourth-floor rooftop patio on East Vernon Avenue, Los Angeles is a 360-degree panorama: to the north, the skyscrapers of downtown; to the south, the Palos Verdes Peninsula; to the west, the Santa Monica Mountains; to the east, snow-capped Mt. Baldy.
This serene tableau will soon be enjoyed by 20 homeless people who will begin moving into the South Los Angeles building next week.
Their new home, a tower of concrete and wheat-toned cladding between a taqueria and a stucco house, is the prototype for an initiative to be announced Wednesday to build up to 1,800 units of supportive housing for homeless people without government construction subsidies.
The goal is to demonstrate how the private sector, in alliance with key nonprofits and the faith community, can build housing for homeless people faster and for less than developers working through traditional government programs.
Read the full story on LATimes.com.