Pacific Palisades Task Force on Homelessness Conducts Eighth Annual Homeless Count

By LILY TINOCO | Assistant Editor

More than 40 individuals volunteered time early Wednesday morning, January 25, to help conduct the annual Homeless Count in Pacific Palisades.

The Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count is a three-day census of individuals and families experiencing homelessness. This year’s count included an Unsheltered Count, Youth Count and Housing Inventory Count—which accounted for individuals living in supportive housing.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development requires an annual point-in-time count of individuals experiencing homelessness. LAHSA began hosting the Homeless Count in 2016 to provide an “improved analysis regarding the trends of people experiencing homelessness.”

“The Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count is an important resource for understanding the scope and nature of homelessness in Los Angeles County,” Interim Executive Director of LAHSA Stephen David Simon said in a statement. “The Count is an opportunity to reflect on the life-saving impact of our collective investments, the challenges we continue to tackle together and the humanity of the homelessness crisis.”

This was the Pacific Palisades Task Force on Homelessness’ eighth time conducting the count locally since forming in 2015.

Palisadians Kim Clary and David Morena have spearheaded the count each year since its inception, acting as co-chairs. This year, the count was dedicated to Morena—who died on January 7—and was deemed “David’s Count.”

“Kim is just amazing, how she continued to lead this effort,” PPTFH Co-Chair Sharon Browning said to the Palisadian-Post.

The count was scheduled for the early morning, beginning at 5 a.m. at Corpus Christi Church. Over 40 volunteers worked the morning, which included members of PPTFH and its Outreach Team, Los Angeles Police Department and Beach Patrol, funding partners, and community members.

Individuals were then divvied up into 10 teams that made their way through the streets, from Will Rogers State Beach to The Riviera, taking count of encampments, tents, vehicles and individuals.

“The volunteers were great,” Browning said. “There was a real spirit of getting it done. I was really pleased with the people who showed up and were able to help … This is a very important count for us.”

Clary said this year’s findings presented a decrease in some numbers. According to the raw data collected, the task force noticed a decrease in the number of individuals—15 to 11—and tents and makeshift shelters—eight to two.

The data collected showed that areas near Pacific Coast Highway saw a higher count, between Sunset and Temescal, and east of Chautauqua to Sunset.

The raw data from the Homeless Count is given directly to LAHSA, where it is used for geographic studies and formulated to eventually come up with a total number of individuals. The official numbers from the count will not be available until early summer.