The latest data shows homelessness has increased in Council District 1 along the coast. Residents in La Jolla weighed in on this increasingly complicated issue offering their criticisms, insights, and possible solutions.
Mary Munk, a member of the La Jolla Shores Association speaking on her own behalf, offered one possible solution to the homeless situation, which she believes could mitigate some of the problems associated with the homeless along the beachfront.
“Where things could be improved would be more restrooms with attendants in areas where homeless congregate,” said Munk, who has extensive experience with designing and implementing restroom facilities both in San Diego and Portland, Ore., where she helped that City develop its restroom designs.
Ann Dynes, a member and past chair of La Jolla Parks and Beaches, Inc., speaking for herself, said her impression is “that Gov. Newsom and Mayor Gloria have the right general approach by moving in the direction of conservatorships for chronically dysfunctional people due to substance abuse and mental illness. Other temporarily homeless people, who are victims of unfortunate but generally temporary circumstances, have a variety of social services to turn to. But dysfunctional people should be taken off of the streets for the good of the group, including themselves.”
Melinda Merryweather issued a plea for a more humanitarian approach to the homeless crisis in La Jolla.
“I believe most of the homeless people are vets and need mental help,” said Merryweather adding, “We have abandoned them. It is hard to live with the fact you may have killed women and children. We need to create more mental hospitals to rehabilitate these people to who we owe so much to.”
Added Merryweather, “There is a new (type of) homeless people, which could be any of us who can not afford rent even though they have jobs. All someone has to do is miss two (housing) payments and they can not recover. I have a friend that applied for (federal) HUD (housing assistance) and the waiting list is 10 years. She will be dead in 10 years.”
Sally Miller believes one answer to homelessness in La Jolla lies in going back to a service model for the disadvantaged that has worked in the past.
“We could turn back time and reopen all the nationwide ‘halfway’ houses that had room and board for people that needed help, and were overseen by professional counselors,” said Miller. She added, “Just plain having an old roof over your head is not the only solution. Single women with children should be the first to get off the streets. It is just too dangerous to be out there.”
Added Miller, “I have worked with church groups that do bring in women with their children, give them help in many different ways, and there are good success stories associated with these programs. We just need millions more of them.”
Caryn Blanton of the nonprofit Shoreline Community Services, which aids the homeless with an office in Pacific Beach serving the central beach area, which includes Mission and Pacific beaches up through La Jolla Shores, said unhoused people are being helped to connect with wrap-around services available to them.
“What makes us unique as an organization is that we are calling our community into finding creative solutions to these issues of homelessness that impact all of us,” Blanton said. “We work with businesses, other organizations, agencies, local government, faith communities, and neighbors to help address the challenges that we face. Together, we are making positive changes at a grass-roots level while the bigger system works on reform at a higher level.”
Blanton noted Shoreline Community Services offers these three programs to address the needs of the homeless in the Central Beach community:
– Volunteer Community Outreach Team – “Trained volunteers who go out into the community to meet with unsheltered neighbors where they are to build trust, relationships, and support. This is a crucial piece of the work that we do intend to increase the possibility that they will access services and resources needed to get off the street.”
– Respite Medical Hotels – “Medically fragile people being released from a hospital stay, or an emergency room incident, are given time to recover in a hotel room instead of being turned back to the street. Guests are offered supportive services through our community partners to ensure individual needs are assessed and addressed.”
– The Compass Station – “A drop-in center at 1004 Chalcedony St. where people experiencing homelessness can connect with resources and services from our community partners. This is a safe, friendly, and ‘local’ place for them to engage with those who care and offer compassionate assistance.”
Some of the services offered are phone/tablet/laptop charging, access to laundry, access to showers, benefits enrollment assistance, ID/driver’s license vouchers, document recovery, computers to look/apply for work, onsite volunteer nurses, mail acceptance, family reunification assistance, mental health service connections, substance use service connections, veteran services connections, and housing service connections.
