Program To Convert Unused Space Into Homes For The Unhoused Hit Milestone

Gov. Gavin Newsom joined Orange County leaders on Thursday to celebrate having built over 15,000 units of housing statewide through Project Homekey to address the California's homelessness crisis.

Newsom made the announcement outside a former Motel 6 in Costa Mesa, which officials said will soon be converted into nearly 90 units of affordable housing.

"We're addressing blight," Newsom said. "We're building a sense of community, optimism we can solve this problem, and doing it in speed and scale that we've never done in the state's history and US history."

Newsom said that nearly all of the $3.5 billion that had been allocated to the program has been used.

"We want to keep this going," Newsom said. "Here's the challenge: That three-and-a-half billion dollars? That money's running out."

At the news conference, the governor advocated for Proposition 1, which would allot an additional $2 billion for housing through bonds, including $1 billion earmarked for unhoused veterans.

"This is the kind of momentum and scale that is required to address this crisis and to fundamentally make the dent that the taxpayers of California expect and deserve," he said.

Project Homekey branched off Project Roomkey, the state's 2020 program to help unhoused Californians socially distance during the COVID-19 pandemic. Project Homekey was established later that year to provide permanent housing in addition to transitional housing.

Christopher Martin with the nonprofit Housing California welcomed the news while noting that Project Homekey is just one piece of the puzzle.

"15,000 is no drop in the bucket, but at the same time, there's so much need," Martin said. "So we see this as a critical piece and an important piece, but not the only piece of the puzzle long-term."