Interim Housing Sites
Ted’s Place : Located in Whittier, Ted’s Place offers 45 crisis beds for individuals experiencing homelessness, providing a safe and supportive environment where residents can stabilize and begin their journey toward permanent housing. The program is funded in part by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) and serves clients referred through the Coordinated Entry System (CES), ensuring services are directed to those with the highest need across Service Planning Area (SPA) 7.
Ted’s Place utilizes a trauma-informed, harm reduction approach, delivering on-site case management, housing navigation, and essential support services tailored to reduce barriers and foster long-term self-sufficiency. Each year, the site serves approximately 180 unduplicated individuals, including justice-involved individuals and others with complex housing and health needs.
As the foundation of First Day, Ted’s Place is also home to two of our cornerstone programs: Access to Care, which provides rental assistance, mental health care, and employment services; and the C.A.R.E. (Culinary Arts and Resource Education) Program, which offers hands-on culinary training, job placement support, and a therapeutic garden. Together, these programs empower residents to heal, gain stability, and build a path toward lasting independence.
Hondo Center for Healing (Downey) : This DHS-funded facility in Downey offers 80 beds and delivers intensive case management and clinical services to clients experiencing homelessness with complex health, mental health, and substance abuse issues. The center focuses on holistic healing, providing tailored care plans that address the multifaceted needs of each resident. With a dedicated team of case managers and healthcare professionals, the Hondo Center for Healing supports approximately 250 unduplicated individuals each year, helping them move toward permanent housing and stability.
Pathway Home Program (Santa Fe Springs) : The Pathway Home program provides short-term interim housing and supportive services to individuals transitioning directly from selected, LA County-approved encampment locations. This low-barrier, trauma-informed program is designed to help clients rapidly stabilize, access essential services, and work toward permanent housing solutions. Pathway Home operates out of motel-based sites, ensuring that individuals who have been living in unsheltered environments receive immediate shelter, safety, and support.
As of January 2025, First Day has fully implemented the Pathway Home program in Santa Fe Springs, with 106 residents currently enrolled. The program works in collaboration with Los Angeles County, LAHSA, and community partners, ensuring that participants receive wrap-around services tailored to their individual needs. Many residents in Pathway Home have been chronically homeless and require intensive support to transition successfully into permanent housing. First Day’s Housing Navigation team plays a critical role, helping participants secure rental assistance, landlord connections, and supportive housing placements.
Midvale Tiny Home Village (West Los Angeles) : The Midvale Tiny Home Village is First Day’s newest interim housing site and the organization’s first expansion into Service Planning Area (SPA) 5. In partnership with Los Angeles Council District 5, First Day’s 33-unit tiny home village—located at Pico Boulevard and Midvale Avenue—marks the district’s first non-congregate interim housing site open to the general population experiencing homelessness. Each private, climate-controlled unit is fully furnished and designed to offer privacy, stability, and dignity to individuals transitioning from unsheltered settings.
The Midvale Tiny Home Village represents a strategic expansion of First Day’s footprint into the Greater Los Angeles area and responds directly to the area’s urgent need for safe, service-rich interim housing options.