County Grant to Keep Homeless Shelter Open

Los Angeles County has agreed to give a Long Beach organization $15,000 to keep a cold-weather shelter open.

The shelter, run by Christian Outreach Appeal, had used up most of its initial $50,000 allocation sheltering people from rain and brisk temperatures.

Christian Outreach Appeal, one of eight services working with the county, spends about $10 a night to feed and house each homeless person at the National Guard Armory on 7th Street. By the end of last week, the center had housed 4,777 people, spending $47,770.

The county requires the centers to house people from Dec. 15 to Feb. 13, the coldest part of winter. Otherwise, from Nov. 1 to March 31, the shelter opens only when the temperature is expected to fall below 40 degrees or below 50 degrees when it is raining.

“We’ve just been inundated with people,” said John Jensen, director of Christian Outreach Appeal.

The county was able to send Long Beach and the other centers additional money after receiving federal funds earmarked for low-income projects.

Jay Glassman, the Los Angeles County Homeless Coordinator, said the additional $15,000 would not be enough to keep the shelter open through March but that the county has other options, such as applying to the Federal Emergency Management Agency for more funds.

“We are not panicking yet,” Glassman said. “There are still a couple of things we should try.”

The center will not be expected to repay any of the money, Glassman said. “We’ve had worse weather than we had last year, and there are more homeless people than there were last year,” he said.