West LA Times

LOS ANGELES – On May 2, Congressman Ted W. Lieu (D-Los Angeles County) joined VA Secretary Denis McDonough and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass at the grand opening of two new supportive housing units at the West Los Angeles VA. Buildings 205 and 208 will provide 120 supportive housing units for unhoused and at-risk veterans and their families. These two new buildings are a part of the VA’s ongoing efforts to open more supportive housing for veterans and follow the opening of a 59-unit building on campus in February. These new developments were made possible thanks to the West Los Angeles Leasing Act, which Rep. Lieu and Senator Dianne Feinstein wrote in 2016. The law allowed the redevelopment of the campus by enabling the VA to partner with nonprofits to build housing for homeless veterans, as well as creating a framework plan for the revitalization of the campus.

“I am thrilled to join the ribbon cutting ceremony for Buildings 205 and 208 today. As the representative for the West LA VA Medical Center for eight years in Congress, I am so proud to see all of the hard work of community leaders, activists, and most importantly our veterans come together. We were able to start the supportive housing development process thanks to the West Los Angeles Leasing Act, which I co-authored with Senator Feinstein. It is incredible so see our vision come to life, and to see all of the ways veterans in our community will be better supported moving forward thanks to these efforts. These units will provide a safe, comfortable, reliable home for 120 veterans and their families. As we celebrate this grand opening, I know that we cannot stop until all of our nation’s heroes have a place to call home. I look forward to continuing to work with Secretary McDonough and the Biden Administration, Mayor Bass, and local advocates and leaders to finally accomplish our goal of ending veteran homelessness.”

The openings of Buildings 205 and 208 follow the opening of Building 207 in February, which offered brand-new housing units to 59 at-risk and unhoused veterans and their families. In March, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced three new lease agreements for the construction of 264 additional permanent supporting housing units on the West LA VA Campus which are expected to open in 2024 and 2025.

Background on Congressman Lieu’s work to fight veteran homelessness:

Congressman Lieu and Senator Feinstein (D-CA) authored legislation to ensure that lease revenue generated at the West LA VA campus go toward housing and other services for veterans, which was signed into law by President Biden in 2021. In 2022, Congressman Lieu and Senator Feinstein introduced a measure to allow funds specifically generated by easements at the campus to go toward supportive housing developments, which was also signed into law as part of the annual defense authorization bill. In addition, Congressman Lieu cosponsored the PACT Act, a comprehensive new law that provides more than $350 million for housing developments at the West LA VA. He also helped secure $483 million for the Department of Housing and Urban Development-VA Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program that pairs HUD housing assistance with VA case management and supportive services for unhoused veterans.

For more on Congressman Lieu’s work related to veterans, please click here.

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Issues: Local Issues Veterans

Original source can be found here.