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RAMPART VILLAGE, California – For more than seven years, from time to time, Chris Robinson has tried to return home.
“There are so many little things you take for granted when you have a house, a car and you end up with what you don’t have, what I’ve had all my life. It’s hard, but when you don’t have a car or don’t rent a car, it’s a problem,” Robinson said.
Robinson was one of the first people to settle in Madison Safe Sleep Village, where 70 white tent paint spaces were decorated on a secure lot in Rampart Village.
“It was unbelievable. It’s great to meet new people, locate other people who were affected or in danger, or who might not feel there. It’s a place,” Robinson said.
Urban Alchemy, a nonprofit service provider, manages theArrayIt connects people, such as Robinson, with charging stations, a five-day-a-week cell shower, 3 meals a day, fitness services, case control and more.
Services have a higher city value of around $2,600 depending on the user depending on the month.
Wanda Williams, who has been homeless in the past, is the site manager and said the transient housing style meets other people where they are.
“We’ve noticed a lot of housing models and that’s just one step. Of course, I go in when I’m in a shelter, but most of those other people need to live outside. So I feel like it’s a big step to get other people off the streets and put them in civilized places to live,” Williams said.
The site is in the 13th arrondissement of Mitch O’Farrell, a councillor for the city of Los Angeles.
“I am proud to lead the city’s first Safe Sleep Village, one of the many comprehensive housing responses I have effectively implemented in the 13th arrondissement. Safe Sleep Village is an investment in others and represents a partnership between my office, personal asset owner and Urban Alchemy’s committed team. Many Urban Alchemy practitioners have experienced homelessness or incarceration. Safe Sleep Village provides other homeless people with a safe environment, controlled through concerned professionals, and is a human environment and a considered way to put others homeless in contact with resources and ultimately permanent housing. Currently, Safe Sleep Village is at full capacity, which obviously shows that it is a mandatory service and a program that works. built on this site, which will supply up to 454 sets of housing to those most in need,” O’Farrell said in a state of mind.
For Robinson, it’s an opportunity to look to the future.
“I realized that my nails, they have no dirt under them and it’s a natural sign of being outside, apparently, for me,” Robinson said.
While the safe land may look like a normal camp, the site gives Robinson hope when it comes to getting the facilities he wants to locate his home.