Hafsa Kaka of Dignity Moves breaks ground on La Posada Village. Photos ©2024 by Isaac Hernández de Lipa / IsaacHernandez.com
SANTA BARBARA — The DignityMoves community in downtown Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara Street Village has been a proven success for both housing and supporting those who were previously homeless, and it has not gone unnoticed by local leaders. Last year, the County Board of Supervisors voted to partner with DignityMoves to build an additional 300 rooms County-wide – enough interim supportive housing to help close the “shelter gap” in the county.
The County has identified several county-owned parcels across the County based on the regional distribution of unsheltered homelessness.
Duane Henry, from left, Janet Garufis, Meredith Baxter and Jack Lorenz.
La Posada Village follows the most recent groundbreaking of Hope Village in Santa Maria with 94 rooms for adult individuals and couples and youth experiencing homelessness. Ten of these rooms are dedicated to young adults experiencing homelessness and 30 rooms provide recuperative/respite care services allowing individuals experiencing homelessness to have a safe place to rest and recover after hospital discharge. The balance of the rooms is for those experiencing chronic homelessness, mostly coming directly out of encampments nearby. Hope Village is slated to open its doors for residents on February 25, 2024.
La Posada Village, at 4500 Hollister, will house individuals living in encampments near the 101 and railroad tracks in the immediate area. This community will have 80 rooms, provide 24/7 security, intensive case management for each resident, 3 meals a day, and mental and physical health care services and transportation. DignityMoves anticipates opening doors to residents on April 1, 2024. When this village opens DignityMoves will have built 208 residential units in less than 2 years. As with the Santa Barbara Street Village, La Posada is a public-private collaboration between DignityMoves, the County of Santa Barbara, and Good Samaritan Shelter, which will serve as the service provider and operator. https://goodsamaritanshelter.org/
The 80-unit La Posada Village will be a temporary supportive housing community serving people experiencing unsheltered homelessness in Southern Santa Barbara County. Permanent housing is the longer-term goal, and La Posada closes the gap between living outdoors and housing stability, where residents can be safe and receive the critical supportive services needed.
At La Posada, each person or couple will have their own private cabin with a lock-in door. This sense of safety, privacy, and dignity allows people to move forward with the services needed to end their homelessness.
La Posada will allow individuals to get off the streets, out of encampments, and focus on longer-term stable housing solutions. Interim supportive housing gives our community members a chance to connect to mental health care, addiction services, career counseling, Social Security, and other benefits—all without the constant worrying about where they will spend the night or get their next meal. The cabins at La Posada will be similar to those at DignityMoves developments in Santa Barbara and Santa Maria, and will provide 24/7 staffing, including professional security.
DignityMoves www.dignitymoves.org works to end unsheltered street homelessness in our communities through the construction of Interim Supportive Housing as a rapid, cost-effective, scalable solution. Using innovative approaches such as prefabricated materials and modular housing, DignityMoves takes advantage of vacant parking lots or other underutilized sites to build temporary “pop-up” communities which can be relocated, as necessary.