L.A. Leads in Rise in Ranks of Homeless, Survey Finds

The demand for emergency shelter for the homeless increased by an overwhelming 50% in Los Angeles this year, by far the biggest rise among 25 big cities surveyed by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the conference said Wednesday.

The average increase in such demand was 20%--substantially lower but still significant--and the figure is expected to continue to increase next year in a vast majority of the cities, according to a report by the conference.

The report is the latest to contribute to a growing body of evidence that shows a combination of economic and social factors is swelling the rolls of the nation’s homeless. At the same time, it likely will fuel a debate between conservatives and liberals, who differ sharply over the magnitude of the problem.

Regardless, the magnitude is such that “in 72% of the cities, emergency shelters must turn away people in need because of lack of resources,” the report found.

Los Angeles has been trying to keep up with demand but clearly “hasn’t been able to fill the gap,” said Laura DeKoven Waxman, assistant executive director at the conference. Although the mayors group found a 40% increase in emergency shelter beds in Los Angeles--the largest rise among cities surveyed--Waxman said large numbers of homeless people are still forced to sleep outdoors.

Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley, while conceding that the number of homeless nationwide is “staggering,” asserted through a spokesman that city officials “are doing our best to meet the needs of the homeless, but no one city can get the job done alone.” Bradley called on state and federal officials to help in the effort.

An estimated 33,000 people are homeless in Los Angeles, and Bradley’s spokesman, Ali Webb, said the city has spent about $60 million in the last two years to provide shelter for them. About 1,600 new beds were added this year, Webb said.

According to the report, three cities, New Orleans, Salt Lake City and Charleston, S.C., said they actually had fewer beds than in earlier years.

The data on homelessness is part of a mayors report that also focuses on the issues of hunger and poverty. The conference released only the homelessness portion Wednesday, with the balance to be released today.

Single men continue to be the largest group of the homeless, averaging 56% in the cities surveyed. The highest percentage, 85%, was found in Charleston and Minneapolis.

However, the survey noted a disturbing trend. “By far, the most significant change in the cities’ homeless population has been in the number of families with children,” it said, “with four out of five of the survey cities reporting that the number of families with children seeking emergency shelter has grown.”

For example, Louisville, Ky., reported a 46% increase in the number of homeless families with children, the highest rise, followed by a 40% gain in Detroit. In Los Angeles, the number of such families rose 30%.

The survey also found that in almost three-fourths of the cities, families made up the largest group in need of shelter and unable to get it.

In addition, a large percentage of the homeless in several cities were drug and alcohol abusers. In Louisville, the figure was 70%, while in both Minneapolis and Hartford, Conn., half of the homeless were substance abusers, the report said. About 30% of Los Angeles’ homeless fell into that category, it found.

The most frequently cited reasons in the survey for the escalating needs of the homeless were the lack of affordable housing for the poor, unemployment, mental illness, poverty and the lack of financing for social services.

In Los Angeles, Robert G. Vilmur, senior grants management specialist in the city’s human services division, said there is an 18-month waiting list for public housing.

Moreover, he characterized the city’s homeless population as being made up of three main types: those with chronic disabilities, such as alcoholism; those who have been traumatized by events at home and may have run away, and those who have lost their jobs.

“We have conditions that are either creating or continuing homeless problems,” Vilmur said. “With modest resources, we don’t have the programmatic muscle to deal with the number of people who are homeless.”

And nationwide, “the cities don’t see those causes abating next year,” Waxman said, explaining why the problems are expected to worsen.

In Los Angeles, Webb noted that a special factor--the weather--contributes to the city’s homeless problem. The city “will continue to be a magnet” for the homeless from across the nation, she said.

Other cities included in the survey were Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Denver, Kansas City, Nashville, New York, Norfolk, Va., Philadelphia, Phoenix, Portland, Ore., San Antonio, San Francisco, San Juan, Puerto Rico, Seattle, Trenton, N.J., and Yonkers, N.Y.