by Garth Meyer

The Redondo Beach pallet shelter for the homeless may expand from 20 units to 45 if the city can find funding, the Redondo City Council voted unanimously at its November 7 meeting.

The estimated $1.5 million project would be paid for by city money and grants, including an earmarked $800,000 from L.A. County Supervisor Holly Mitchell’s office. 

A decision needs to be made soon on the expansion because the 64-square foot individual pallet will double in price in January, when a new model is introduced.

Redondo Beach Police Chief Joe Hoffman spoke in support of the expansion. 

“We’ve seen very few calls for service related to the pallet shelter,” he told the city council. “We average 15 transient-related calls per day.”

He noted that when people are in a shelter, it leads to fewer calls. 

A 2023 Redondo Beach homeless count by contractor CityNet found 71 people, down from 85 in 2022 and 92 in 2021.

Joy Abaquin Ford, Redondo Beach quality of life prosecutor, said that only one person appears in all three years’ lists. 

“It shows we are housing people at a faster rate than they are becoming homeless in Redondo Beach,” Ford said, adding that an expansion may serve more of the local homeless population.

“We’ve always had a waiting list,” she said. 

The city will focus on people living in cars in 2024, said City Attorney Mike Webb, whose office runs the homeless initiative.

At the November 7 meeting, the council also approved a new six-month agreement with CityNet for $196,000 for help with outreach, case management and homeless court, beginning in January 2024.

“The agreement doesn’t include a count this year because we want to use every dollar for outreach,” Webb said. 

The three-year old pallet shelter is located on an undeveloped lot next to a city Public Works yard near South Bay Galleria. The expansion would include part of the city yard.

Redondo Beach has already received $2.5 million in grants for its homeless work in 2023-24.

“A lot of the funding is because we’re prepared to do it,” Webb said. “We’re ready and able to use it. I think we can make a real dent. An even further dent.”

City Manager Mike Witzansky estimated the cost to the city to expand the pallet shelter will “probably be far less” than $1.5 million, as a result of the aid from Supervisor Mitchell and other potential grants. 

The Public Works “lay-down yard” is used for materials such as gravel and lightpoles. Space is available to move these items elsewhere. 

“The under-utilized park & ride,” Witzansky said, referring to the transit center.

The Redondo Beach pallet shelter began as a six-month pilot program in 2020. In the first two years, according to Harbor Interfaith, which manages the shelter, 79 people lived on site and 59 have moved out – including 47 who moved to permanent housing.

Nine residents have chosen to return to the streets.

“I’m just really proud of our successes,” Ford said. “We just keep fighting the good fight.”

Homeless Count 2023

The Redondo Beach homeless population decreased again in 2023, according to CityNet, a Long Beach nonprofit that does contracted counts around Southern California. The April 18 survey in Redondo Beach registered 71 people, down from 85 in CityNet’s 2022 total, and 92 in 2021.

Matt Bates, City Net executive vice president, broke down the numbers at the Redondo Beach city council Nov. 7. 

Forty-five percent of those counted were chronically homeless, he said; people on the street for a long time, usually with a disability. Forty-five percent were 55 or older and 21 percent over 65. Gates noted this was the highest number in this age group that CityNet had ever recorded (after more than 50 surveys). 

He said 40 percent in Redondo Beach were interested in receiving resources such as shelter. 

“This was higher than in L.A. County,” Bates said.

The Redondo numbers did not count people living at the pallet shelter.

“From our perspective, you’re doing well,” Bates said. “You’re seeing a decrease when others are seeing an increase. The investments you’ve made have yielded results.”

As far as the people counted, only one registered in the Redondo count in all of the past three years. 

“There is a lot of migration in and out of homelessness,” Bates said. ER