Mountain View, Calif. — In light of this week’s media coverage concerning the LifeMoves Mountain View interim housing community, the City of Mountain View is issuing the following statement about the City’s approach to addressing homelessness, which is a regional issue that all cities should be addressing:
The City is taking a multipronged approach to its homelessness response, which includes interim housing such as LifeMoves Mountain View. Permanent affordable housing is vital and a desired end goal – but it takes significant time and funding to come online. Interim housing communities like LifeMoves Mountain View provide opportunities for individuals to stabilize their current situation, and these housing programs are built much more quickly and at a lower cost. The City moved quickly – during a pandemic – to establish public/private partnerships that made this new pilot program come to life in a very short period.
The City anticipated that issues may come up with the interim housing community that serves individuals experiencing homelessness when it first opened in May 2021. It has been less than two years that this program has been operating. But how the nonprofit operator, LifeMoves, responds to these situations is paramount, including informing City staff of issues in a timely manner.
While seeking to address the root causes of homelessness, the City also works with community partners and the County of Santa Clara to provide varied services to help our unhoused neighbors transition to a stable environment.
Fear of problems with potential homelessness solutions shouldn’t stop our City organization from trying new approaches when supported by the City Council. As demonstrated by past City actions, it’s better to do something than to do nothing to address homelessness in our region.
Quote from Mayor Alison Hicks
“I’m proud that the City and LifeMoves acted extraordinarily quickly to house vulnerable people at the height of the pandemic. We knew that this was a pilot program that would be improved over time. I am gratified that our community embraced the program, as nothing is worse than just leaving people to live on the street. We are actively involved in improving the program.”
News release in Spanish and Chinese.
About the City of Mountain View
Located between the Santa Cruz Mountains and San Francisco Bay, Mountain View is a diverse community with an estimated population of 83,864. Mountain View covers just over 12 square miles, featuring over 1,000 acres of park and wildlife areas including the 750-acre wildlife and recreation area called Shoreline at Mountain View. In the heart of Silicon Valley, Mountain View is home to a vibrant downtown and headquarters to many nationally and internationally known corporations including Google, LinkedIn, Intuit and NASA’s Ames Research Center. For more information, visit MountainView.gov.
Media Contact
Lenka Wright, Chief Communications Officer
650-903-6615 or Lenka.Wright@mountainview.gov
