In an event Friday co-hosted by actor Duane Henry, known for his role in “NCIS,” and actress Meredith Baxter of “Family Ties,” DignityMoves broke ground on its newest tiny-home village for people experiencing homelessness.
La Posada, at 4500 Hollister Ave. in Santa Barbara at the former Juvenile Hall site, will be the third installment of temporary housing communities in Santa Barbara County built by DignityMoves, following the downtown Santa Barbara community at 1016 Santa Barbara St. and the upcoming 94-unit Hope Village in Santa Maria.
The La Posada temporary interim housing community will have 80 cabin units for unsheltered people currently living in encampments in the nearby area. The community also will have supportive services provided by the Good Samaritan Shelter, including housing navigation, medical support, public health nurse visits and more.
The site is also set to include office space, clinic and case management space, laundry units, showers and restrooms, and two dining units for residents.
The Good Samaritan Shelter will be the operator and service provider for the La Posada village.
“Projects like La Posada and our other DignityMoves non-congregate model shelters have been a game-changer in helping our unsheltered community,” said Kirsten Cahoon, director of shelter operations for the Good Samaritan Shelter. “The results of the Santa Barbara Street project have been nothing short of amazing. … The focus of the project was to serve the unsheltered in the downtown corridor in Santa Barbara, and the positive impacts of this project have been undeniable.”
The Santa Barbara Street DignityMoves project has been open for 18 months, and Cahoon said it has served 100 residents, nearly 70% of whom have moved into stable housing. She added that 14 of the project’s residents have been able to gain employment, five are attending Santa Barbara City College, 87 have been connected to health care, 69 have been connected to mental health services and 85% are document-ready, which means they have all the necessary items to transition into permanent housing.
Once the La Posada temporary housing community — which Aaron Edelheit of DignityMoves said is expected to open in April — and the Santa Maria Hope Village opens — expected to be in the middle to end of February — DignityMoves will have built a total of 208 pallet shelter cabins to serve local unsheltered people.
While opening the event, Henry spoke about how he was homeless before becoming a series regular on “NCIS,” so homelessness is an important issue to him.
“I was part of the homeless community, so I always vowed that I’d always lend my hand — when you get, you give,” Henry told Noozhawk. “I think Santa Barbara can really set the stage for the rest of everywhere on how to deal with homelessness in a calm, communitive way.
“Being homeless, you feel a sense of community, no matter what situation. It’s just something that I’m always going to have. It’s not business, it’s not for likes, it’s just something personal to me, something I’m always going to be a part of — so anytime I can lend a hand, I will.”
Friday’s groundbreaking ceremony included showing appreciation to the many donors who have contributed toward making the DignityMoves projects a reality. Some other donations also were announced at the event.
Kirsten McLaughlin, market vice president at Cox Communications, announced that the James M. Cox Foundation has donated $100,000 to DignityMoves for the La Posada project, and Santa Barbara County Behavioral Wellness Director Toni Navarro said the department has invested money for half of the beds.
Other speakers on Friday included county Supervisor Laura Capps; Hafsa Kaka, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s senior advisor on homelessness; Santa Barbara County Fire Chief Mark Hartwig; and representatives from the Balay Ko Foundation.
More information on DignityMoves and its projects to address homelessness is available on its website here, with information specific to La Posada available here.