City Establishes Field Command Center in Response to Homelessness Emergency

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PRESS RELEASE

Long Beach, CA - Today, the City of Long Beach established a Field Command Center in effort to provide immediate and critical support and resources in the City's homelessness emergency response. The Field Command Center will serve as a location for the City's Interdepartmental Team to further coordinate planning and services for the downtown area.

"The Field Command Center will be a tremendous asset in our City's emergency response," said Mayor Rex Richardson. "We are working together to make real-time decisions in the field and offer our staff and partners the resources and support they need to address this crisis."

The Field Command Center will be in the Downtown area for the next three weeks and will be staffed by people from various City departments, including the Department of Health and Human Services (Health Department), Public Works Department, The Police Department and Fire Department. The City's stated mission is to reduce the number of people experiencing homelessness in Long Beach by increasing housing opportunities and enhancing current initiatives that provide field-based outreach, engagement and supportive services while maintaining the safety and security of people experiencing homelessness, the general public and staff, and address and improve overall public safety for the entire community. The Feld Command Center will assist staff in the field working to fulfill this mission.

While the Field Command Center plays a supportive role in the response and does not offer direct services to people experiencing homelessness, direct services continue to be provided in the downtown area through Homeless Services Bureau Outreach Teams and the Mobile Access Center. Services are also available through the City's Multi-Service Center, via citywide outreach and through the City's partner organizations.

For more information on the City's efforts to reduce homelessness in Long Beach, people may visit longbeach.gov/homelessness and follow @lbhealthdept and @longbeachcity on social media and follow the hashtag #EveryoneHomeLB.

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