H4WRD Blog

An Important Message to Hollywood 4WRD Members and Stakeholders

Understanding the City's Decision to Revoke 41.18 Enforcement Zones in Council District 13

Thank You for Joining Us at the H2.Open House!

Hollywood 4WRD Community Count News Release

This is Forward: Telling Our Collective Hollywood Story

RECAP: ULA 3 Years In. (Audio recording)

Housing policy leaders speak on a panel on Measure ULA

Care at the Speed of Trust

12 Stars of Hollywood Impact

Remember to Sign Up: LA County Homeless Count Jan 20, 2026

Hollywood 2.0 Update: Clinic Grand Opening

Welcome Hollywood Mental Health Cooperative: A New Era of Community-Centered Mental Health Care

Community Spotlight: Andrew Froemming -- The Origins of a Community Hub

From Showers to Systems Change — One Compassionate Connection at a Time

RAND Webinar Recap: LA LEADS Study Reveals Homelessness is Down, But Needs are Up

7/30 RAND Corporation webinar features LA LEADS co-authors in timely conversation about the key takeaways from their recent study

Community Spotlight: Ed Ortiz–Bridging Systems, Building Solutions

After his recent arrival in Hollywood, Ed brings a commitment to designing more humane, community-based systems of care to flourish.

Community Spotlight: Brandon Marlowe, a Native Son with a Heart for Hollywood

A concerned community member moves from awareness to activation

Hollywood 2.0 Annual Report (Year Three)

H20's Annual Report for Year Three captures 12 months of engagement, expansion, & more compassionate, community-based care

Recap of Hollywood 2.0pen House on 6/4/25 at the W Hollywood

A truly interactive H20pen House spotlighting H20's leaders, clients and community!

Community Spotlight: Nicole Farley/H4WRD Board Member and Lifelong Advocate for the Vulnerable

Tracking the journey from childhood loss to champion of our community's most vulnerable

Hollywood 4WRD newsletter: 5-19-25

Hollywood 4WRD newsletter published on 5/19/25

Community Spotlight: Brian Folb of Hollywood Offices

Brian Folb – A business leader with a five-decade dedication to Hollywood and a heart for its unhoused

Hollywood 4WRD Community Event: 5/6/25 from 2 - 3:30pm

A Hollywood 4WRD Member Meeting open to the entire community

News to Know for March 2025

The homelessness-related news that mattered in March '25

Community Spotlight: Safe Haven Program at My Friend’s Place

A Safe Haven in the Heart of Hollywood/How My Friend’s Place Launches Young People on Their Journey to Wellness

How a Mental Health Community Saved Lives in LA Fire

As fire erupted in the Hollywood Hills in early January, the leaders of Fountain House Hollywood sprang into action.

H4WRD Great Reads for February 2025

The February '25 round-up of articles and resources focused on housing and homelessness in Hollywood

Community Spotlight: Indu Subaiya - From Tech to the Trenches

Dr. Subaiya's journey highlights the effectiveness of Neighborhood Councils

H4WRD Great Reads for January 2025

The January '25 round-up of articles and resources focused on housing and homelessness in Hollywood

Community Spotlight: Mark Logan - A Survivor Not a Victim

Our first Community Spotlight of 2025 shines on the remarkable Mark Logan

Hollywood 4WRD's Annual Report (2024)

H4WRD's Annual Report for 2024 celebrates a year of advocacy, education, and community collaboration.

H4WRD Great Reads for December '24

The December round-up of relevant articles and resources focused on housing and homelessness in Hollywood

Community Spotlight: Anthony Conley/Covenant House California

H4WRD's final Community Spotlight of 2024 is lit brightly by Anthony Conley of Covenant House California

H4WRD Great Reads for November '24

A round-up of relevant articles and resources focused on housing and homelessness in Hollywood

Hollywood 4WRD's 2024 Holiday Volunteer Roundup

Upcoming holiday volunteer opportunities through the H4WRD community

H4WRD Great Reads for October '24

Great Reads for October '24, offering a range of articles and resources on current topics relevant to housing and homelessness in Greater Hollywood

Community Spotlight: Savannah Portillo Heap

H4WRD's October Community Spotlight shines on Government partner, Savannah Portillo Heap, Field Deputy, Supervisorial District 3

H4WRD Great Reads for September '24

Curated articles from September '24, focusing on the urgent need for housing solutions

Community Spotlight: Jensy Rafael

H4WRD's 2nd Community Spotlight shines on Hollywood's newest Case Manager, Jensy Rafael

A Concerning Rise in Rough Sleeping Threatens Recent Progress on Unsheltered Homelessness in Los Angeles

H4WRD Founding Board Member Louis Abramson offers a sobering RAND commentary on 'Rough Sleeping'

9/18 Community Summit: Hollywood leaders address homeless crisis ahead of #LA28

Featuring a live NBC LA report from TV City, along with follow-up resources from H4WRD's community summit on 9/18, 'Off the Sidewalk'

Talk May be Cheap, but Critical Conversations are Priceless* (* If you know how to have them!)

H4WRD's Executive Director on Making Talk Matter

H4WRD Great Reads for August '24

Curated articles for August '24: Gov. Newsom's directive to clear encampments on state land.

Community Spotlight: Reverend Kathy Cooper-Ledesma

H4WRD's 1st Community Spotlight shines on HUMC's departing Co-Senior Pastor, Rev. Kathy Cooper-Ledesma

H4WRD Great Reads for June/July '24

Curated articles for June-July '24: LAHSA's '24 Count results and Grants Pass decision

Homeless encampment cleanups do little to change numbers of people on the street, study finds

LA Times: "Several trends were moving in the right direction in Hollywood... an area where it seemed like a lot of relatively effective things are going on."

Hollywood 2.0 Annual Report (Year Two)

H4WRD releases the 2024 H20 Annual Report

Special In-Person H4WRD Member Meeting on 6/18/24 at Javista

Our Board Chair Steve Fiechter leads a special in-person H4WRD member meeting at Javista Coffee

Hollywood 2.0-pen House | 06.5.24 | Sliders, Cookies and Community

H20-pen House #3 drew close to 200 attendees as community feels impact of innovative program.

Newsom promised 1,200 tiny homes for homeless Californians. A year later, none have opened

Cal Matter report on why Newsom's Tiny Homes promise remains unfulfilled

HFLA Podcast: From Strength to Strength: A Glimpse Into What Defines Resilience

A Heart Forward LA podcast with the resilient Georgette Darby in Hollywood

LA Times: From unhoused to high school grad: L.A. ceremony honors students who overcame the odds

LA Times article on high school ceremony to honor students who overcame the odds

LA County homeless service providers decry failed, bureaucratic payment system

LA Daily News reports on the frustrations of LA's homeless service providers

Hollywood in Sacramento: H4WRD's Advocacy in Action

An overview of Hollywood 4WRD's most recent advocacy efforts

NY Times Opinion: A job can’t always lift someone out of homelessness. What more is needed?

Opinion: What more is needed? Three voices of experience weigh in.

Hollywood Businesses set up garden beds, planters along sidewalk to clear homeless encampments.

ABC News report on several Hollywood businesses' approach to clearing encampments

NY Times: Supreme Court Seems Poised to Uphold Local Bans on Homeless Encampments

NY Times update on the Supreme Court preparing to rule on Grants Pass case.

H4WRD 2024 FAQ Spotlight: Hollywood Clubhouse & Board and Care Homes

A Hollywood Clubhouse ambassador sheds light on H4WRD's Revised 2024 FAQ

Criminalizing Homelessness Won’t Make It Go Away: Hundreds of thousands of people are homeless. This filmmaker wants you to see them.

NY Times opinion video offers a humanizing look at people experiencing homelessness

LA Daily News: Mayor Karen Bass says status quo is being disrupted in her State of the City

A recap and analysis of the Mayor's State of the City address

Thanks for Playing: Hollywood 4WRD Clippers Giveaway Winners Announced

Recap of H4WRD's recent giveaway campaign and the positive impact on our continued growth.

Hollywood 4WRD Releases Its Revised 2024 FAQ

H4WRD releases its revised FAQ for 2024, containing 30+ new pages and extensive updates on the rules and regulations around homelessness in Hollywood.

LAists' The Brief: Hidden City Report: Controversial encampment law is failing

LAists' The Brief: Hidden City Report: Controversial encampment law is failing

Released after two years of locked psychiatric care: A battle few families can fight

Fueled by efforts by his sister (long-time H4WRD member, Sarah Dusseault), John Maurer was moved on Valentine's Day from a locked psychiatric facility to a Board and Care in Hollywood.

OutPatient Conservatorship (OPC) Study: Addressing Mental Health Disability in Unsheltered Homelessness

Compared to usual care, the OPC intervention demonstrates untapped opportunities to minimize time spent in highly-restrictive settings for individuals experiencing grave disability.

It’s now significantly more deadly to be homeless. Why are so many people dying?

The mortality rate for unhoused Americans more than tripled in 10 years. New data makes clear lives are at stake as California leaders try to combat the homelessness crisis.

LAist article from their "Housing and Homelessness" section: A Wave Of Departures Shakes Up LA’s Homeless Agency

The staffing shakeup at Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) comes on the heels of a mistake-prone Homeless Count.

A Formidable First Year: Annual Report for The Hollywood Partnership’s Community Dispatch Center

Annual Report tracking the impact of the Community Dispatch Center's first year

A Life Without a Home: Sunday NYTimes Op-Ed

A multi-media article that captures the voices of people living in tents, shelters, cars, motels and couches from across the country.

Untreated & Unhoused: A Review of LA County's Programs for People Experiencing Homelessness -- Budget and Performance

LA Alliance's extensive budget and performance report on the County's behavioral health programs, many of which target people experiencing homelessness.

When We Walk By: Forgotten Humanity, Broken Systems, and the Role We Can Each Play in Ending Homelessness in America

A must-read guide to understanding housing instability, supporting our unhoused neighbors, and reclaiming our humanity.

A Fond Farewell to and from Founding Hollywood 4WRD Board Member, Nathan Sheets

Parting words from H4WRD founding member, Nathan Sheets

Bass appoints LA's 1st deputy mayor of homelessness and community health

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass announced the appointment of Dr. Etsemaye Agonafer as the city's first deputy mayor of homelessness and community health.

A Count Night to Remember: the 2024 Hollywood Homeless Count, Part 2

A recap of the monumental volunteer effort required for the Hollywood Homeless Count on 1/25/24

How to Vote in LA's March 5th Primary if Homelessness is Your Top Issue

LAist's homelessness-focused guide for the upcoming primary

Opinion: The Fentanyl Crisis is Being Driven by Supply -- Not Demand

Journalist Sam Quinones' latest piece on the new realities of the drug world.

Photos: 2024 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count is underway

LA Times photo series documenting the 2024 LA Homeless Count

The 2024 Hollywood Homeless Count: Why It Counts and Why You Should, Too

A brief overview on the Homeless Count and the importance of being a volunteer counter

Hollywood 4WRD's Homelessness Help Sheet

A one-sheet of homelessness-related resources in Hollywood

As ‘Mansion Taxes’ Catch On in US Cities, Los Angeles Offers Lessons

CityLab Daily: Los Angeles’ New ‘Mansion Tax’ Offer Lessons

Hollywood's Helpers: Entities Providing Homelessness Services in Hollywood

List of Service Providers in Hollywood

The little-understood reason why clearing homeless encampments became harder in California than most other states

Why California faces greater challenges than other states in clearing encampments

Why It's So Hard To Know How Many Unhoused People Mayor Bass Has Housed

LAist examines Mayor Bass's pledge to house 17,000 people a year after taking office.

H4WRD’s First Advocacy Platform: Five Initial Policies to Strengthen The Organization

Hollywood 4WRD's first Advocacy Platform gives the organization a stronger, clearer perspective of its own

Hollywood 4WRD's Holiday Volunteer Roundup

Volunteer opportunities available through the H4WRD community

Inside the world’s largest AIDS charity’s troubled move into homeless housing

A Times investigation has found that many of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation’s more than 1,300 residents live in squalid conditions

Do Time-Limited Subsidy Programs Reduce Homelessness for Single Adults?

A new policy brief from California Policy Lab finds that Time-Limited Subsidy (TLS) programs help reduce homelessness for single adults.

Nonprofits making progress in tackling homelessness among veterans, but challenges remain

A hopeful perspective which also notes the significant room for improvement that remains to help the many veterans still experiencing homelessness in LA.

Hollywood 2.0-pen House | 11.8.23 | Ice Cream Social

Recap of H20-pen House #2, an Ice Cream Social at First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood

Housing alone won’t solve homelessness. California must expand its mental health system

A mother whose son has experienced homelessness AND a serious mental illness, takes a clear-eyed look at the need for greater mental health support if we hope to create more efficient safeguards against folks falling between the cracks and into homelessness.

Opinion: I run an L.A. homeless services organization. But I can’t afford to live in L.A. anymore

The Center's Executive Director (and H4WRD Board Member) Nathan Sheets shares in a LATimes Op-Ed that LA's housing affordability crisis isn't only impacting our most vulnerable citizens; it's also hitting those working hard to help them.

LA County's guaranteed income program now giving some foster youth $1,000 per month

ABC news story about the Breathe program offering foster youth $1,000 per month

To address homelessness crisis, L.A. County needs mental health workers, fast

An illuminating article examining the challenge facing H4WRD's city partners at LACDMH to hire much-needed new employees.

Healing on Wheels: Saban’s Mobile Clinic Brings Medical Care to the Streets of Hollywood

An overview of a rolling resource making a big impact on the streets of Hollywood

Fall '23 Hollywood 2.0-pen House

2nd H20-pen House on 11/8 -- from 4-6pm at First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood

New York City to boost clubhouse services as better mental health treatment

ABC News: Article on Fountain House's Clubhouse program in New York City

The Long 'ARC' of Recovery: Why Trauma-Informed Care is So Critical for Our Most Vulnerable Youth

A deeper look at a particularly effective approach to supporting youth experiencing homelessness

Why does Los Angeles have so much homelessness?

LA Times series on why Los Angeles has so much homelessness

Fallen from the middle class: 60, living in an RV and fighting to be housed

LA Times: Article tracing the story of a woman attempting to navigate the often perilous experiencing of living out of an RV in Los Angeles.

Federal Court Approves Historic LA County and LA Alliance Settlement to Further Strengthen Response to Homelessness

LA County Homeless Initiative: Fact Sheet on Recent Federal Court Ruling

Finding 'Somewhere to Exist' in Los Angeles

A new report from the RAND Corporation looks at the landscape of daytime services in LA County

LA County Is Now On The Hook For Adding 3,000 Mental Health Beds for Unhoused People After Judge Approves Major Settlement

LAIst: Article on a recent ruling from a federal judge that could have a major impact on homelessness in Los Angeles

To Board and Care in Hollywood

A Sobering Look at the State of Board and Care Homes in Los Angeles

California lawmakers approve key changes to landmark mental health law

LA Times: California lawmakers gave final approval late Thursday to a significant overhaul of the state’s landmark 1967 behavioral health law

Record Number of Hollywood Workers Facing Evictions, Seeking Rent Assistance Amid Strikes

The Hollywood Reporter: Actors, writers and crew members are being hit by both the work stoppage and an end to COVID tenant protections

IOAD Reminder: Remaining Aware of The Impact of Addiction on Homelessness

A look at the impact of addiction on homelessness, and the options for getting help that are available

USC Price alum, Brittney Weissman, tackles homelessness, mental health issues

H4WRD’s Executive Director Brittney Weissman receives a well-deserved spotlight in this recent profile in the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy magazine

It Takes a Community: The Importance of Community to Hollywood 4WRD and Hollywood 2.0

A year-in-review for H20 and H4WRD's "new" Communications and Operations Director

Mayor Karen Bass launches Inside Safe program in Hollywood

KTLA report: The Mayor's recent Inside Safe event on Selma Ave.

Tackling the Mental Health Crisis in Los Angeles. Can it be done Without Cops?

LA Times webinar: Co-hosted by USC's Center for Health Journalism

Hollywood 2.0-pen House | 8.1.23 | Taco Tuesday

Recap of the first H20-pen House, hosted by H4WRD at The Center in Hollywood

Suffering in Silence: Operating a Los Angeles board and care home today

An in-depth interview with a couple who've devoted the last 22 years to operating a Board and Care home in Los Angeles

Letters to the Editor: As homelessness rises, board-and-care homes close. This is a huge problem

Letter to the LA Times editor: From H4WRD Founding Board Member, Kerry Morrison, on the alarming rise in Board and Care closures

Editorial: L.A.’s homeless numbers are grim. We must keep building housing and expanding services

LA Times Editorial: Reaction from the LA Times editorial board to the results of the 2023 Homeless Count

What Does California’s Homeless Population Actually Look Like?

The New Yorker

Hollywood 2.0 – Year One for This Innovative Program Casts Hollywood 4WRD in the Role of Community Engagement Partner

He Was Handcuffed and Hospitalized. Now He’s on Track for Housing.

New York Times - Sunday Edition

Opinion: Will L.A. have an office apocalypse or housing boom? Tax breaks might make the difference

Los Angeles Times

Hollywood 4WRD Special Event – In the Eye of a Tragic Storm: The Intersection of Homelessness and Addiction in 2023

Recap of H4WRD's Special Event on June 13th at the W Hotel Hollywood on Homelessness and Addiction

L.A. mayor reports that 14,000 homeless people have moved off the streets

Los Angeles Times

Hollywood 2.0 Annual Report - Year One

Annual Report for Year One of Hollywood 2.0

FAQ: The Hollywood 4WRD Handbook on Homelessness in Hollywood

The creation of Hollywood 4WRD’s FAQ guide was not an easy task. Soon after H4WRD’s Education Committee began meeting to discuss the project, they realized from their initial research they were attempting to create something that did not exist; something that would not simply answer a few questions about homelessness in Hollywood, but would instead serve as a comprehensive guide or handbook on the subject. 

A Tree Grows in Hollywood: The Genesis of Hollywood 4WRD

The seeds for what would become Hollywood 4WRD were planted in 2004 when PATH (People Assisting the Homeless) launched their Project: YIMBY

Homeless people fight to save lives, and stay alive, as L.A.’s fentanyl crisis worsens

Los Angeles Times

HoFoCo’s 2nd Annual Comedy Fundraiser at The Groundlings Theater

Fentanyl Overdoses Contribute to Surge in L.A. County Homeless Deaths

LA Times: A devastating surge in drug overdoses has driven up deaths among unhoused people in Los Angeles County in recent years.

The Hollywood Hike to End Homelessness – Fundraiser for The Center in Hollywood

Mayor Bass seeks $250-million expansion of homelessness program in first State of the City speech

Los Angeles Times

Crosswalk – The Home Stretch of Hollywood 2.0’s First Year

H4WRD Counts: The 2023 Hollywood Homeless Count

Grand Opening of The Hollywood Partnership’s Community Dispatch Center

The Power of Lived Experience: H20’s Three Focus Groups in Year One