Burbank has never provided shelter for transients and was pressed to do so in the face of construction going on this winter at Glendale’s National Guard Armory, which usually houses the homeless from Dec. 1 to March 15.
The Union Rescue Mission stepped in to run the shelter, and the Burbank City Council approved the armory as an acceptable location after a contentious Dec. 4 debate.
While Burbank is new to providing services to the homeless, Glendale has been in the business nearly 15 years.
Glendale has been providing homeless services since 1994 and has been helping to run a winter shelter program from its armory for more than 10 years, said Jess Duran, Glendale’s assistant director of community development for housing.
Last year, Glendale received $2.1 million in federal Housing and Urban Development funds and used more than $1 million in Los Angeles County funds to operate year-round centers and provide transitional programs, Duran said.
“Glendale is the standard,” Golonski said. “Their approach is the model.”
To help get a homeless service program off the ground, Burbank could apply for federal funds that are doled out through the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority.
Last year, the authority received nearly $68 million from the federal agency, a portion of which Burbank could compete for against other cities in Los Angeles County that are considering similar homeless service projects, said funding manager David Howden.
In addition to federal funds, Burbank might access some of its redevelopment agency money for transitional housing programs, Golonski said.
