URBAN PERSPECTIVE - I have been a housing advocate for years. My early professional career was spent in fair housing. In all the housing cases and policies I have seen over the years, the Community Care Facilities Ordinance is one that has me extremely disappointed with the City of Los Angeles for ever considering it.
I won’t go into detail about what it is because much has been written about it and a simple Google of a key word or words will yield its history and current disposition.
This ordinance is more than addressing what some have argued as a “few bad apples” or poorly run congregate style living homes in R1 and R2 zones. It’s about survival and an oppressive housing environment that will not allow alternative options for those who need it.
Not much has changed since the Civil Rights Act of 1968 or the Fair Housing Act Amendment of 1988.
Disparities in housing and who gets housed still persist. This ordinance will clearly show who’s in and who’s out by categorizing groups who will be suggested to fall under it or who will receive more restrictions. For example, college students and seniors in multiple leases in R1 and R2 zones for affordability versus former substance abusers, homeless, veterans, and parolees. The granting of reprieves under this ordinance will clearly demonstrate how discriminatory it is.
The time and money put into this ordinance is shameful and wasteful. The shameful is the deceiving label “Community Care Facilities” because it is being used as a catch all for housing that does not fall under licensing or codes for the State of California. Tagging it as such subliminally paints a negative picture to foster acceptance by the public. Most importantly, it chokes every effort to house LA’s most vulnerable.
The wasteful are the sunk and prospective costs for an ordinance that’s not needed when nuisance abatement laws are on the books. This local law will put the City’s federal housing funds in jeopardy. The lawsuits waiting in the wings, if there is a decision in favor, will cost the City millions of dollars in litigation and City staff time.
If the City can’t administer its nuisance laws through the City Attorney’s office, how can it implement or impose the Community Care Facilities Ordinance through planning and land use? Sorry, this doesn’t cut the mustard of making any sense. Like the Winston Salem witch trials in the 1600s, the ordinance will force congregate living witch hunts by people or neighborhoods who just don’t want congregate living in their communities.
Here is how I see it. Nix this ordinance now and enforce the nuisance laws already on the books. Put the money that is being spent on consultants, attorneys, or whoever in the City Attorney’s pot.
Restore the Neighborhood Prosecutor Program to go after or resolve quality of life neighborhood abatement issues for problem congregate living homes.
Everyone in this City deserves a housing option that suits their social and economic needs. Instituting road blocks to housing choice is not good for Los Angeles. If this ordinance passes City Council, you won’t have to worry about who’s in your backyard. You will have to worry about who’s at your front door.
(Janet Denise Kelly is a CityWatch featured contributor. She offers more than a decade of accomplishments in the housing and nonprofit sector. Janet brings valuable insight in the areas of community and economic development. Additionally, she brings knowledge regarding the leadership and management challenges faced by large and small nonprofits that are struggling or growing organizations. She blogs at jdkellyenterprises.org and can be reached at: [email protected]) –cw
Tags: Janet Denise Kelly, Urban Perspective, Community Care Facilities Ordinance, Civil Rights Act, Los Angeles, South LA, City Attorney, Fair Housing
CityWatch
Vol 10 Issue 38
Pub: May 11, 2012
CityWatch
Vol 10 Issue 38
Pub: May 11, 2012