WESTMINSTER : City Agency OKs Lease for Homeless Shelter

The Asian American Senior Citizens Assn. has won preliminary approval to lease a small three-bedroom house as temporary lodging for homeless seniors.

The vacant house, at Olive and Wyoming streets, needs considerable work before it is habitable, officials said, including painting, landscaping, installation of a new roof and some windows.

City Councilman Tony Lam said he has lined up contractors to renovate the house for free. “This is an issue that has really touched the hearts of this board and the community,” he said.

Increasingly, Lam said, elderly Vietnamese Americans are not being cared for by their adult children, contrary to the custom in Vietnam. The seniors are often caught by surprise and end up homeless because of a lack of money and English-language skills, he said.

The association will make a monthly payment that will vary with costs for maintenance and repairs, said Don Anderson, the city’s community development director. The city has a similar arrangement with Shelter for the Homeless, which maintains some property leased from the city, Anderson said.

Officials still must determine the length of time that seniors would be allowed to stay at the house. It would most likely be decided on a case-by-case basis, Anderson said.

Officials have not set a date for completion of the repairs. The city Redevelopment Agency approved the lease Tuesday, and the City Council is expected to give its approval later this month.

Association officials were not available for comment.