La Kretz Villas to Provide Affordable Housing for the Homeless

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Imagine paying as low as 56 dollars a month for a plush 1-bedroom apartment?

Well thanks to Path Ventures and many others, 48 homeless people have been afforded the opportunity to live in their own house, and pay just 30 percent of their income as rent.

"Where there is a will, there's a way," said Councilman Eric Garcetti. He explained that this project was about more than just taking advantage of an area full of warehouses.

"In this overbuilt city there are still so many opportunities like this, which was just a vacant lot a few years ago; that we can take these parcels of land and transform them. But we don't just transform the parcels, we transform the lives of the people that live here," he emphasized.

One individual whose prayer was answered by the new complex is Calvin Schwartz.

"When they say they put people in your path to help you out at the most dire needs of your time, it has been true," he said.

After over 3 years of homelessness, the new opportunity that is La Kretz Villas has helped put Schwartz's life back on track.

"Thank you for giving me a smarter outlook, thank you for giving me a stepping stone for tomorrow, thank you for giving me another day," he said.

Residents like Schwartz are expected to pay 30 percent of their total income for rent thanks to the federal section 8 housing voucher for low-income citizens and Garcetti says this is the future in housing the homeless.

"I don't care if you don't ethically see this issue," Councilman Garcetti continues. "But if you are just a hard-nose budget expert, it is time for us to end homelessness because it is less expensive and the right thing to do."

And Path Ventures already has plans for two similar complexes to be built within the next few years.