They're Coming Back for the CoC. This Time, They Mean It.

HUD has announced a new NOFO due by June 1 that attempts to reshape nearly $4 billion in federal homelessness funding — while the administration's FY2027 budget proposes eliminating the CoC program entirely. Here's what that means for Los Angeles.

Housing Policy, Letters to the Housed, Federal PolicyPaul AsplundMay 19, 2026homelessness, housing policy, Continuum of Care, CoC, HUD, federal funding, Housing First, permanent supportive housing, ESG, Los Angeles, LA County, housing justice, 2028 OlympicsComment

We Have The Money

The LA28 organizing committee has a $7.1 billion budget. The federal government allocated $1 billion for Olympic planning. LA Metro is requesting $2 billion for transit alone. The amount specifically allocated to house residents displaced by Olympic preparations: zero new dollars. This is an article about where the money already exists — and why it isn't being used.

2028 OlympicsPaul AsplundApril 20, 2026Los Angeles, LA2028Olympics, LettersToTheHoused, Housing Policy, housing firstComment

Ask Them First: What Paris Taught Us About Whose Expertise Counts

In 2023, a coalition of 80+ organizations formed to document every displacement, every broken promise, every cascading health crisis Paris's Olympic planning caused. They weren't just opponents. They were architects of a better approach. Los Angeles has two years to decide which version of this story it will tell.

2028 OlympicsPaul AsplundApril 14, 2026Olympics2028, HousingJustice, Homelessness, Los Angeles, Displacement, Paris Olympics, Mega-Events, Co-Design, LivedExperience, Community Power, Radical Hospitality, Encampment Sweeps, Housing Policy, ChangeWell, Le Revers de la MedailleComment

What Paris Taught Us, and What LA Could Still Accomplish

On the morning of July 26, 2024, Paris opened its Olympic Games with a ceremony that stretched the length of the Seine. Millions watched. A woman in irregular housing watched from inside a squat she was afraid to leave. What her story tells us about Los Angeles in 2028.

2028 OlympicsPaul AsplundApril 5, 2026Olympics2028, Housing Justice, Homelessness, Los Angeles, Displacement, Paris Olympics, Mega-Events, Housing Policy, Encampment Sweeps, Radical HospitalityComment

LA Community Services

Help is available. Listed are people and organizations dedicated to providing quality, radically compassionate services throughout Los Angeles. Here you will find helpful information to access these offerings.

InformationalPaul AsplundNovember 18, 2024community services, community support, free showers, homeless, homeless services, Los Angeles, hygiene, health, food pantry, soup kitchen, hunger relief, compassion, unhousedComment

Wardo

‘Wardo’: As we got to know each other, sharing the stories that brought us both to MacArthur Park, doing laundry and providing showers for our guests, we found out we had a lot in common. Enough that we quickly became friends.