LOS ANGELES — The chief of a top Los Angeles homeless agency announced his resignation on Monday, saying he was proud of its work even as America’s second-largest city grapples with spiraling numbers of people living on the streets and rising home prices. Peter Lynn, who saw homelessness rise 33% during his five years as head of the Los Angeles Homeless Service Authority, said he would leave the job by Dec. 31. As in San Francisco to the north, Los Angeles city officials have come under increasing pressure to reduce the growing homeless population, which has swelled by 12% during the past year as a shortage of affordable housing deepens in Southern California. In August an audit by the city’s controller found that the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority had missed its goals of placing transients in permanent housing by wide margins. The Washington Post reported in November that White House officials were readying a plan to crack down on homelessness in Los Angeles and other major California cities.

Source: National Post December 02, 2019 22:30 UTC