California’s Project Homekey, aimed at housing homeless individuals by converting motels, faced setbacks as L.A.-based company Shangri-La and nonprofit Step Up received substantial funds, leading to failed projects and lawsuits due to mismanagement and financial discrepancies.
California’s Project Homekey – Troubles Deepen as Santa Monica Nonprofit Step Up Implicated in Misuse of Funds
According to the Los Angeles Times, California‘s efforts to aid homeless individuals via Project Homekey encountered challenges when L.A.-based company Shangri-La and Santa Monica nonprofit Step Up received significant funding to convert motels into housing, leading to incomplete projects. The state’s legal pursuit against Shangri-La for fraudulent conduct has been exacerbated by disclosures involving Step Up, triggering additional investigations into financial mismanagement.
It turns out Step Up had a secret part in the Homekey projects. They sold their part to Shangri-La for $2.7 million. Shangri-La says this money was supposed to be for building homes, not for Step Up. Step Up says they didn’t know this and thought it was okay. Now, they could be in trouble too because of the lawsuit.
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$3.4 Billion Gone Wrong: California’s Project Homekey Initiative Hits Roadblock with $114 Million in Motel Conversions (PHOTO: Step Up)
Project Homekey Failures Highlight Challenges in Addressing Homelessness and Ensuring Financial Accountability
Furthermore, Project Homekey was meant to help homeless people quickly, but it didn’t work out. Shangri-La and Step Up got a lot of money, but the projects failed. Now, the state is suing, and Step Up is in trouble too. This shows how hard it is to fix homelessness and how important it is to use money wisely.
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