85AA - CONSIDER OPTIONS FOR HOMELESS SHELTER

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But a significant difference this time around is that the Santa Ana City Council, as well as City Manager David Cavazos, are already on board with placing a shelter in Santa Ana. The council approved zoning for a 200 - person shelter "by right" last August. Nonetheless, many of the Santa Ana residents raised concerns -- similar to those raised in Fullerton -- about nearby schools, particularly Kennedy Elementary, which lies on busy McFadden Blvd. about 750 feet from the proposed shelter. "We already do have many homeless," in the area, said Juana Perez, a recent graduate of Century High School. There are several areas where drugs are used by homeless people, including nearby Madison Park, she added. Nelson, meanwhile, said he lived three doors down from Fullerton's seasonal homeless shelter for years without incident. "There was never any problems," he said. As far as the larger issue of homelessness, speakers highlighted how rising housing costs compared to income has generated economic hardship. "The percentage of income devoted to housing can leave many people - many families" homeless, said Jan Wagner, who spoke on behalf of all Orange County chapters of the League of Women Voters. Every school district in the county has homeless students, she added. Urging supervisors to purchase the Santa Ana building, Wagner said league members also want the county to "continue to seek additional sites" for more shelters. Nonprofit representatives also offered to help provide services at the shelter, including homeless veterans advocates at Volunteers of America Los Angeles. Dwight Smith, a longtime operator of a small homeless shelter in Santa Ana, said the county must pursue permanent housing options and find a way to address deaths of homeless people from hypothermia. "Without an adequate and proven response to cold weather, people will perish," said Smith. .O . . e,