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Public Counsel
Professor of law emeritus at UCLA Law School and special counsel at Public Counsel, a pro bono law firm
PROFILE
Gary Blasi
Guest
FROM Gary Blasi
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Progress Report on L.A.'s Homeless Problem Los Angeles city leaders have promised ambitious efforts to tackle L.A.’s daunting homelessness problem, but the city has a long way to go before those efforts are implemented. Will a recent report that found that homelessness is up again across the city and county be the catalyst for more immediate action?
Which Way, L.A.?
LA County and Homes for the Homeless LA County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl calls it an "unprecedented financial commitment" — if she and Mark Ridley Thomas can get one of their three other colleagues to go along. They want to spend $100 million a year on affordable housing from a County budget of $27 billion, as a way to help people who are already homeless and others who are in danger of being.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Making L.A.: Housing the Homeless Los Angeles is having its worst homeless crisis in years. More than 44,000 people live on streets, in cars and in shelters. That’s 12 percent more than two years ago. Encampments are up 85 percent as well. Mayor Eric Garcetti promised to end chronic homelessness by the end of next year, and to end veteran homelessness this year. But that’s proving to be difficult. Last week, Garcetti moved the deadline to next summer.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
New Study Finds Growing Homeless Population A new study paints a bleak picture of LA County’s homeless situation. There are 13,000 new homeless people a month, according to the Economic Roundtable, a nonprofit research group based in L.A. Driving around, you’ve probably seen evidence of this: encampments under overpasses, and streets lined with overflowing shopping carts. Two city ordinances aimed at cleaning things up were implemented in July. But they’re controversial, confusing, and unevenly enforced.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Homeless Vets Mayor Eric Garcetti has promised today to end homelessness among veterans by the end of next year. It’s a pledge the White House has asked mayors around the country to make. And today, the mayor and First Lady Michelle Obama were in Century City unveiling plans to make good on their promise.
Which Way, L.A.?
Homeless Vets and the VA The number of homeless American veterans has dropped in the past two years, but Los Angeles still has 6000, roughly 10 percent of the nation's total, and a recent lawsuit says many ought to be housed on Veterans Administration property on the Westside of LA. Some 387 acres were dedicated for that purpose back in 1888, but since the 1960's, much of the land's been converted for rental-car storage, a hotel laundry, the UCLA baseball team and the Brentwood School. This week, the VA issued a press release describing plans for modernization.
Which Way, L.A.?
Counting the Homeless in LA County Despite the economic recession, the number of homeless people in LA County has dropped by 38%. In 2007, the count was 68,000; this year it's put at 43,000 . That's according to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, or LHASA, which took its latest census in January.
Which Way, L.A.?
L.A.’s Safer Cities Initiative, One Year Later LA’s Safer Cities Initiative was launched just a year ago to address the homeless living on ‘Skid Row’, a square mile of downtown Los Angeles. The area was flooded with police officers and crime has dropped by 40%. Mayor Villaraigosa says he wants to “continue the momentum.” But what is likely to happen next? At UCLA , law students reviewed some 15,000 pages of public records from the LAPD , the City Attorney’s Office and the city’s Homeless Authority . They also interviewed more than 200 people to come up with a one year assessment.
Recommended
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Accusations of lying fly between James Comey and White House During his testimony Thursday, former FBI Director James Comey accused President Trump and other White House officials of lying when they said the FBI was in disarray and its staff had lost confidence in him. President Trump’s lawyer said Comey was wrong -- that the president never asked for his loyalty, and never asked him to back off the investigation into former NSA director Michael Flynn.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Why is Trump so behind on filling staff jobs, establishing concrete policies? Yesterday Donald Trump signed a “decision memo” to revamp the air traffic control system. But there was little legislative detail in the plan. There’s not much to other splashy announcements from the White House, including tax cuts and the arms deal with Saudi Arabia. And hundreds of positions are unfilled in federal agencies.
Good Food
Shaking up the USDA, 'The Beef Cookbook' and 'Tartine All Day' Peggy Lowe explains why Trump’s pick for USDA Secretary is rattling rural America. Dario Cecchini talks future plans for Chianti ramen, and Richard Turner shares cuts from “PRIME: The Beef Cookbook.” Writer Matthew Sedacca looks at the controversy behind liquid smoke. Jonathan Gold tries Chengdu-style dishes, and Elisabeth Prueitt of Tartine fills us in on the latest. Plus, chef Michael Beckman shares a recipe for cactus confit.
Design and Architecture
Farewell LA freeways, Peter Shire is back Angelenos don't want more freeways but we seem not to want mass transit either. Metro has killed the 710 freeway extension, and bus and train ridership is down across the region. What's the future of getting around in LA? And, Peter Shire is having a comeback. What attracts a new generation to his playful ceramics and furniture?