Submitted by Brentwood Community Council
The latest update on the San Vicente homeless encampment in Brentwood, which last weekend was site site of another fire.
As of Friday, August 13, the VA confirmed 54 Veterans were living on the San Vicente sidewalk, an increase from the previous count of 41. In terms of success, 9 Veterans have received permanent supportive housing approval, 3 have been reunited with family. Not all Veterans who have received approval for housing have left the sidewalk and moved into their new units. The VA has about 500 units of shelter, housing or long term programs that include housing available at this time. As a reminder, not all homeless Veterans qualify for VA services due to their discharge status and many do not have proper identification or other paperwork. The BCC Task Force on Homelessness has advocated for faster processing of HUD-VASH housing vouchers for Veterans and rapid Veteran ID services to expedite the housing and/or program accessibilty process.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff Department is currently assessing the encampment for a full, tents down removal and clean up. The LASD will be attending the BCC meeting on Wednesday, September 8 @ 7PM for a full report. Advanced notice to the encampment residents plus intensive outreach providing a variety of services and housing will be made available to those living on the sidewalk. Per the Sheriff, access to public space and ADA access to the sidewalk will be restored and enforced. The San Vicente sidewalk is located on County property and is patrolled by the Sheriff.
On Saturday, August 14, many residents reached out to note that LAFD responded to another fire at the encampment, which spread Northward along Bringham Avenue.
