L.A.’s new homeless solution clears camps but struggles to house people

Inside Safe is Los Angeles’ program to provide hotel and motel rooms as shelter for people experiencing homelessness. Seven months in, CalMatters took a look at how the initiative’s performed thus far, and spoke to Abt experts Nichole Fiore and Lauren Dunton.

Nichole described Inside Safe as a “really promising model,” noting that it addresses disincentives in other shelter models by offering private space with doors that can be secured.

That said, Lauren acknowledged that a crucial aspect of addressing homelessness is providing social services—including mental and physical health care—in addition to permanent housing, something CalMatters determined Inside Safe is struggling to do. “Inside Safe has a hard job,” said Lauren. “It’s not simple.”