The Board of Supervisors approved a comprehensive set of 47 strategies to combat homelessness in Los Angeles County on February 9, 2016 and approved an ADU pilot program on August 15, 2017. Under this initiative, Strategy F4 (the development of an Accessory Dwelling Units Pilot Project) is identified as a source of affordable housing in single-family neighborhoods.

The goal of this strategy is to create an ADU pilot program that:

• Streamlines the permitting process

• Provides technical assistance to homeowners

• Provides financial incentives for preserving and constructing accessory dwelling units in exchange for housing homeless families/individuals

In early 2018, LA-Más was selected by the County of Los Angeles to serve as technical consultants for the LA County ADU Pilot Program. This program will provide three homeowners in unincorporated LA County with a forgivable loan of $75,000 to construct an ADU that will house people transitioning out of homelessness, for a minimum of ten years. Our role has been to develop and manage the homeowner selection process and guide homeowners throughout the process of financing, designing, permitting, and constructing an ADU on their property.

Our LA County project partners include the Chief Executive Office (CEO), the Los Angeles County Development Authority (LACDA), the Department of Regional Planning (DRP), and the Department of Public Works.

Three homeowners have been  selected and LA-Más is currently working with them to  complete three new ADUs by summer 2019!