Open Source Homelessness Initiative - OSHI

07/20/2021

A few key facts about L.A.’s homelessness crisis. As the population of unhoused individuals balloons in the economic wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, new solutions are desperately needed to mitigate and eventually eliminate homelessness in Los Angeles.



(Information via Los Angeles Times)

07/19/2021

Leon Washington has been painting for over 30 years. His creative prowess blossomed while he was in art therapy for acute depression, schizophrenia, and paranoia. Due to death and displacement, Leon is currently homeless.

Learn more about Leon and his art at these links:
Purchase his art at http://artbyleon.com
Venmo: @/artbyleon
GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/leons-home

07/13/2021

L.A. County faces a shortfall of 500,000 homes, according to the California Housing Partnership. And although efforts to house people experiencing homeless have expanded, the number of Angelenos who have lost their homes in the same timeframe has outpaced these efforts.

Even many Angelenos who have received Section 8 vouchers cannot find available units or interested landlords— a staggering 50%. The Los Angeles Times Editorial Board explains the problem simply: “There are not enough low-cost housing options for people struggling on the margins.”

State Senator Sydney Kamlager’s Senate Bill 679 responds to this problem by inaugurating a new county agency, the L.A. County Affordable Housing Solutions Agency (LACAHSA), whose mission would be to create & maintain affordable housing and protect renters.

Concurrently, a 2022 ballot measure is being drafted that would tax multimillion-dollar property sales in L.A. County potentially generating over $500 million a year. Proponents of the bill posit that with this money LACAHSA could build and maintain 100,000 low-cost units.

Supporters also suggest that since the govt. agency would not be subject to the same “labyrinthine public financing process” as developers, their housing may be more economical, welcome news as construction costs for low-cost housing in L.A. run upwards of $500,000 a unit.

Read the article by clicking the link below.
https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2021-06-20/sb967-affordable-housing-agency

07/08/2021

OSHI’s permanent website (https://oshi-la.org/) is now live!

The platform centralizes and streamlines resources and case studies with the goal of accelerating innovative solutions to eradicate homelessness as we know it. OSHI also showcases art created by, for, about, and on behalf of individuals experiencing homelessness, as a means of celebrating individual expression and elevating human dignity.

Open Source Homelessness Initiative (OSHI) is a non-profit organization that centralizes information and resources to accelerate the eradication of homelessness. Donate to our campaign. OSHI’s shared resources include innovative design and construction practices, sustainable city-building initia...