City Parks and Homelessness
Keri Bales spent over 25 years on the streets of Los Angeles. Her entire world — a tent, some belongings and her dog, Luckybutt — could be found in a small, hidden-away area nestled between the train tracks and a city park. It took 25 years before an advocate stopped by to have a real conversation with her, which culminated in her finally being connected with the resources she needed to find permanent housing. Park and recreation agencies are often on the front lines of combatting homelessness issues. While many agencies and their employees want to help homeless park users like Keri, there is a demonstrable challenge in addressing homelessness with compassion while staying aligned with our park and recreation mission. We came to Los Angeles, which is home to recent ballot measures that will fund affordable housing and homelessness services, to learn how their city is working on all fronts, including in parks and recreation, to end homelessness.