LOS ANGELES (CNS) — The Los Angeles City Council Wednesday approved a motion calling for the development of temporary housing on a parcel of city- owned land across from City Hall.

What You Need To Know

  • LA City Council voted in favor of building temporary housing across the street from City Hall

  • The motion calls for the building of a modular housing village

  • Councilman Kevin de León introduced the motion

  • The Bureau of Engineering will coordinate and design proposals for the temporary homeless housing project

The council voted 13-0 to support the motion introduced by Councilman Kevin de León to begin the process of building a modular housing village for the homeless in downtown L.A.

"Right across the street on First and Broadway, and Spring Street, we have a huge open lot," de León said prior to the vote. "It's a dirt lot and oftentimes we see homeless encampments right outside on the sidewalk."

"This is a big piece of land here, and eventually it will be a park that we're going to create as a centerpiece for the city of Los Angeles, just like when we broke ground on the first phase of Pershing Square just a few days ago," he added.

The motion instructs the Bureau of Engineering to coordinate and design proposals for the temporary homeless housing project in Council District 14. The project will be located at 217 W. First Street.

The proposals will consider the site's suitability based on criteria from the state, which includes resident safety, quality of life, staff safety and access to on-site services, according to the motion.

Additionally, the BOE will coordinate with the Department of Recreation and Parks to identify placement of all utilities at First and Broadway for future park usage.