The Good Place or The Bad Place?

‘Horrendously vandalized’ CPS school — shuttered in 2013 — transforming into housing, health center “This isn’t only a matter of restoring a building, but it’s also a process of reclaiming the dignity of these communities,” one community leader involved in redeveloping the former Woods academy said. By Nader Issa@NaderDIssa Oct 26, 2020, 7:03pm CDT Share this story Share this on Facebook (opens in new window) Share this on Twitter (opens in new window) SHARE All sharing options Rami Nashashibi, executive director of the Inner-City Muslim Action Network Rami Nashashibi, executive director of the Inner-City Muslim Action Network, stands by the shuttered Granville T. Woods Math & Science Academy Elementary School, which his group plans to transform into a community center, Monday, Oct. 26, 2020. Tyler LaRiviere/Sun-Times Community groups in Englewood are working to transform an abandoned elementary school that was one of 50 shuttered by city officials in 2013 into a community cente...

S.F. looks to expand sanctioned tent sites as homelessness surges Photo of Trisha Thadani Trisha Thadani Oct. 20, 2020 Updated: Oct. 20, 2020 7:08 p.m. Comments 5 One of San Francisco’s sanctioned safe sleeping sites is across the street from City Hall next to the Main Library and the Asian Art Museum. 1 of 5One of San Francisco’s sanctioned safe sleeping sites is across the street from City Hall next to the Main Library and the Asian Art Museum.Photo: Noah Berger / Special to The Chronicle District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman spoke at a press conference at Dolores Park in San Francisco, Calif. on Sept. 4, 2020. The City parterned with the Sisters of Perpetual indulgence to distribute 1000 masks to prevent the spread of Covid 19 over Labor Day Weekend. 2 of 5District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman spoke at a press conference at Dolores Park in San Francisco, Calif. on Sept. 4, 2020. The City parterned with the Sisters of Perpetual indulgence to distribute 1000 masks to prevent the spr...

DeSantis lets eviction moratorium expire, saying it’s no longer needed after CDC issued freeze By CAROLINE GLENN ORLANDO SENTINEL | SEP 30, 2020 AT 6:51 PM Ignoring calls from renter advocates, Gov. Ron DeSantis decided Wednesday not to extend the state’s eviction moratorium, arguing it was no longer needed because the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a federal eviction ban earlier this month. The CDC order, which went into effect on Sept. 4, was intended to stop evictions nationwide for virtually all renters. All they have to do is sign a document provided by the CDC and give it to their landlords. It attests they have been financially affected by the pandemic and cannot pay rent, have tried to get government assistance to cover their bills and will become homeless or have to move in with friends or family if they are evicted. Advertisement 00:00 The order also carries consequences, including fines and jail time, for landlords who ignore it. But advocates worry...

Half a million Texas households at risk of losing power in coming weeks as pandemic protections lapse Experts worry that the loss of basic utilities for Texans could exacerbate the spread of COVID-19, a continuing public health crisis in the state. Since March 26, more than 620,000 Texas households enrolled in the state's electricity relief program. Since March 26, more than 620,000 Texas households enrolled in the state's electricity relief program. By Dom DiFurio 6:00 AM on Oct 1, 2020 Hundreds of thousands of Texas households are at risk of losing necessities like electricity in the coming weeks as the state’s moratorium on utility disconnections lapses. And that worries legal experts, who fear the loss of pandemic-sparked protections could have a compounding effect on the spread of COVID-19. Since March 26, more than 620,000 Texas households enrolled in a utility relief program set up by the Public Utility Commission of Texas. The agency launched the program as busines...

  S.F. to begin moving homeless out of hotels soon. Some might get housing, others ‘safe’ tent sites Trisha Thadani   Sep. 26, 2020  Updated: Sep. 26, 2020 8:04 a.m. Comments 2 1 of 2 Signs remind visitors of meal times, curfew and mask requirements at an undisclosed hotel housing the homeless during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Bay Area, Calif. Thursday, August 6, 2020. The race is on to get in on the first round of applications for $100 million in Project Homekey funding to covert hotels in the Bay Area into permanent  Photo: Jessica Christian / The Chronicle 2 of 2 Several hotels in San Francisco are providing housing for homeless people during the pandemic at a cost to the city much higher than a typical shelter. Photo: Jessica Christian / The Chronicle San Francisco’s program to house the homeless in hotels is stretching its already strapped budget, with monthly costs topping $18 million, although the federal government is expected to pay for 75% of it. On ...

  Program to house homeless people in hotels is ending after falling short of goal Genia Hope, 52, moves into her new room at a hotel on July 7 as part of Project Roomkey, an L.A. County program that repurposed hotels and motels emptied by the coronavirus as safe havens for homeless people. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) By  DOUG SMITH ,  BENJAMIN ORESKES SEP. 22, 2020 3:58 PM One hotel emptied its rooms in late August. Another did so last week. A third is winding down this week. It’s the beginning of the end for L.A. County’s Project Roomkey, the $100 million-plus program to repurpose hotels and motels emptied by the coronavirus as safe havens for homeless people. After  peaking  at just over 4,300 guests — about 30% of its ambitious goal — the project will shed several hundred beds monthly until it closes down early next year, said Heidi Marston, executive director of the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority. The program is being squeezed by uncertain ...

  ‘Nobody wanted to look at them’ — but this photographer insists that we do Edward Soto, 27, known as Smokey, shoots up Neiko Clayton, 29, known as Trap, with crystal methamphetamine as Karla Saenz, 46, cooks on an adobe stove in April 2019 at their homeless encampment in the Sepulveda Basin near the Los Angeles River. (Ivan Kashinsky / For The Times) Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options By  BENJAMIN ORESKES SEP. 16, 2020 3 AM Last fall, I found myself sitting on a trash-strewn couch tucked under the elevated Orange Line busway in the Sepulveda Basin with a man who was heating a meth pipe. He goes by Rabbit and described years spent in and out of prison, falling in with a gang, and his life on the streets of the San Fernando Valley. His bracing honesty and entrenched hopelessness were startling. I had heard many stories like his but few in such vivid detail and in such a short period of time. I kept wanting to hear more about how he made a home for himself in the basin,...