The Veterans Collective celebrates the opening of its first housing complex on the VA’s West Los Angeles Campus. (Photo: The Veterans Collective)
On Feb. 28, the first of more than 20 permanent housing complexes on the VA’s West Los Angeles Campus opened its doors to at-risk veterans.
Officially designated Building 207, the complex was renovated by The Veterans Collective, a partnership between Thomas Safran & Associates, Century Housing, and U.S.VETS. The complex hosts 59 fully-furnished units, along with basic amenities and several common areas. Additionally, the complex hosts both onsite management, intended to maintain a safe environment, and a supportive services case worker to help veterans stay off the streets and connect with VA benefits.
According to an email newsletter from The Veterans Collective, an unspecified number of veterans over the age of 62 are already moving into the units through a process being developed with the VA.
In addition to Building 207, The Veterans Collective has broken ground on three more complexes, which are expected to include an additional 268 low-income units. Construction on a further 112 units is set to begin in May. In total, the VA and its partners have plans to build close to 1,700 units on the West Los Angeles campus. Once complete, the campus will be able to house as many as 3,000 veterans and their families.
Financing for the housing project comes from multiple sources, both private and public. While the former includes unnamed philanthropic interests, the latter includes funding from the VA itself, the public housing fund, and tax revenue.
To date, it’s unclear when all units will be completed, but construction is anticipated to last through the decade. Overall, the project is part of the VA’s goals to eliminate veterans homelessness by first focusing its efforts on Los Angeles, widely seen as the epicenter of the issue in the United States.
Author: Christian Southards
Coming from a family with a proud military background and wanting to contribute his writing skills to a worthy cause, Christian began writing for the California American Legion in August of 2020. His father is a 25-year Army Veteran and his grandfather served in the Navy during Vietnam.