Occupancy Rises at Long Beach Homeless Shelters Following Management Transition

Occupancy at four Long Beach homeless shelters has increased significantly in recent weeks following a transition to a new nonprofit service provider.

In late March, the City’s Department of Health and Human Services announced it was ending its contract with former shelter operator First to Serve following an ongoing investigation by the City Auditor’s Office into multiple contract compliance issues. Once Long Beach cut ties with First to Serve, it needed to find a new contractor to take over shelter management immediately.

The City partnered with People Assisting The Homeless (PATH), a regional nonprofit organization that already had an established working relationship with Long Beach through other homeless services initiatives, including operations at the Colonial Motel shelter site.

PATH now manages the City’s shelters at 5950 and 1725 Long Beach Blvd., the Atlantic Bridge Community shelter and the year-round shelter at 702 W. Anaheim St.

The transition happened on an accelerated timeline, requiring the new provider to quickly take over operations, staffing, security, food services and case management systems across all four locations.

Since the transition, shelter occupancy has climbed sharply citywide. Overall occupancy across the four shelters increased from 68% in March to 96% of available beds by May 11.

Several locations saw especially large increases:

• Atlantic Bridge Community increased from 78% occupancy to 93%

• The shelter at 702 W. Anaheim St. rose from 88% to 98%.

• At 1725 Long Beach Blvd., occupancy has risen from 83% in March to 88% in May. The numbers haven’t increased as much at that location because 35 beds are currently offline while rooms undergo maintenance, which is expected to be completed in the coming weeks.

• The site at 5950 Long Beach Blvd. increased from 15% occupancy to 90%

In addition to increasing occupancy, PATH has introduced operational changes focused on improving access to services and creating a more welcoming environment for residents. The nonprofit has expanded outreach and intake efforts, adjusted shelter policies to better accommodate work and school schedules, and increased access to case management services.

PATH is also working to expand supportive services at the shelters, including mental health outreach, housing navigation and new partnerships for substance use treatment and medical support.

The transition comes as Long Beach continues broader efforts to address homelessness and connect residents with shelter, supportive services and long-term housing opportunities.

Since the contract with PATH is temporary, a formal competitive bidding process for long-term shelter operations is expected to begin later this year. In the meantime, the City and PATH will continue working to stabilize operations, improve services and connect more residents to housing and support resources.