In ‘By the People,’ Designing for the Underserved and Overlooked

New York Times: “By the People: Designing a Better America,” opening on Friday at the Smithsonian’s Cooper Hewitt, taps into a rich vein of entrepreneurial beneficence. It is about the intersection of poverty, prosperity, innovation and design, and it couldn’t be timelier. If stories like the one from Chattanooga unavoidably turn out to be more complicated than any museum display can make clear, the spotlight is at least pointed in the right direction.

The Six Wins AHF Readers’ Choice Award

We are proud to announce that Affordable Housing Finance (AHF) Readers’ Choice Awards named The Six the best Special-Needs housing development completed in 2015-2016! AHF magazine and newsletter subscribers voted on the best affordable housing developments across the nation, selecting winners in nine categories. Located in MacArthur Park, The Six has 52 apartments and studios for formerly homeless and disabled individuals, as well as onsite supportive programs to help residents achieve health and wellness. On top of being the Trust’s first development outside of Downtown Los Angeles, it is our first with permanent supportive housing set aside specifically for veterans. In the military, “got your six” means “I’ve got your back.” Designed by Brooks + Scarpa Architects to foster community and connection, The Six received LEED Platinum Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.
The Six

Piece by Piece Gala and Exhibition

Piece by Piece is hosting their Gala & Exhibition on October 20th at the iconic Los Angeles Times Building.  The exhibit will display for sale individual works of art from over 25 Artisans, as well as community art made by over 290 participants from Skid Row and South Los Angeles.  There will be special performance by the Urban Voices Project, a Skid Row choir that endeavors to provide healing through music. Tickets are available online!

In partnership with Skid Row Housing Trust, Piece by Piece provides low-income and formerly homeless people free mosaic art workshops using recycled materials to develop marketable skills, self-confidence, earned income and improved quality of life. Their participants learn and practice mosaic technique, ultimately achieving Artisan-level skill and earnings for their work.

Learn more about this inspiring event.

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Vote YES on Housing, Help & Hope to End Homelessness

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Yesterday morning, I had the great privilege of hosting a broad coalition of elected officials, civic leaders, philanthropic partners, nonprofit service providers, and homeless advocates at Skid Row Housing Trust’s New Genesis Apartments, which gathered to urge Angelenos to vote yes on Proposition HHH on the November 2016 ballot. The proposition – “Housing and Hope to End Homelessness”- would allow the city to finance 10,000 units of permanent supportive housing over the next 10 years. It would triple the rate at which Los Angeles currently builds safe, stable, and affordable housing that is desperately needed by thousands of individuals who are currently homeless.

Permanent supportive housing in Los Angeles has a 90% success rate at ending homelessness, and is 43% cheaper than leaving people on the street where they are dependent on emergency services and temporary shelters for care. Not just an apartment, permanent supportive housing offers voluntary on-site health, mental health, recovery and case management services so that formerly homeless individuals can stabilize their lives on their own terms. Unfortunately, there is not enough housing to help all of those in need, and the waitlist is long. Visit yesonhhh.com to learn how Proposition HHH would dramatically accelerate the work that is being done, bringing this proven solution to scale.

Proposition HHH is a common-sense approach based on evidence and years of hands-on experience: Homes end homelessness. It would bring tens of thousands of our neighbors – men, women, children and veterans – home. We were honored to host the launch of this important campaign, which was covered by the LA Times, KCRW, MyNewsLA, ABC, CBS and many more. Join this historic effort to end homelessness in our City by spreading word and voting yes for Proposition HHH this November.

Mike Alvidrez
CEO, Skid Row Housing Trust

 

Sylvia of Downtown Women's Center

City of Los Angeles CAO Miguel Santana, City Council President Herb Wesson, Councilmember Mike Bonin, Mayor Eric Garcetti, Executive Secretary-Treasurer Los Angeles County Federation of Labor Rusty Hicks, Councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawson, Councilmember José Huizar, United Way of Greater Los Angeles President and CEO Elise Buik (not pictured), and Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Gary Toebben (not pictured) listen to formerly homeless advocate Sylvia Hernandez stress the urgent need for housing.