VOA慢速英语--洛杉矶为无家可归者开放“小型家乡村”

Los Angeles Opens Its First Tiny Home Village for Homeless

Amy Skinner watched as workers began building tiny colorful structures across from a park where she sometimes slept in North Hollywood.

Tiny homes are being used for housing in costly¹ areas of the United States. Others have joined the "tiny house movement" to live a simpler life.

In Los Angeles, California, tiny homes are now being used as temporary shelters for people like Amy Skinner. She has been homeless for three years.

In early February, Skinner received the key to one of the 39 tiny homes on Chandler Street. She and her partner, John Golka, moved into the 6-square-meter space with their little dog, Smalls.

The tiny home has four windows, two beds, places for belongings³, and an air conditioner. The welcome mat at the front door says: "This is our happy place."

"Being able to lock the door and have a place to sleep is huge," said Skinner who is 48 years old. She added, "That's so hard to do when you're on the streets."

The tiny home village also has community space, including tables where people can eat and an area for toilets and showers.

The project was developed and paid for by the city of Los Angeles. It is part of an emergency effort to solve the worsening homelessness crisis⁴. Similar projects went up in other California cities, including San Jose and Sacramento, and also across the United States in Seattle, Washington; Minneapolis, Minnesota; and Des Moines, Iowa.

In 2020, there were about 66,400 homeless people in Los Angeles County. That number is an increase of more than 12 percent from a year earlier. More than 150,000 people are homeless across the state of California.

The pandemic has forced even more people onto the streets. Homeless shelters had to turn away people to maintain social distancing rules. A 2016 measure to pay for homeless housing has not started. So, officials began looking for ways to solve the problem.

City officials selected the land on Chandler Street for the tiny home village because it could not be used for anything else. Not everyone supported the plan. The officials had to promise nearby neighbors that the village would be safe and clean.

Ken⁵ Craft is head of the non-profit Hope of the Valley which operates Chandler Street village. He asked worried neighbors if they would rather have the tents or the tiny homes on the land.

He said the village offers services that can help people out of homelessness. They include mental health treatment, legal aid, and help with job searches. Amy Skinner is getting her Social Security card, which she hopes will help her find a job.

The tiny homes cost $7,500 each. And the cost for the entire project was $5 million. Hope of the Valley is building two more villages in North Hollywood. More are planned in other neighborhoods.

Pete White is director of the Los Angeles Community Action Network. He said the tiny homes of Chandler Street are too small. He said his group is developing a similar community with slightly larger homes for homeless people.

"We know that we can't build ourselves out of the crisis. But we are learning that you can make progress," he said, "if you can show that projects like these actually work."

At Chandler Street, the housing is temporary. The goal is for people to stay a few months and then move on to permanent housing.

Ted² Beauregard is one of the first persons to stay in the tiny homes. The 63-year-old became homeless for the first time when the pandemic stopped his business. He plans to leave in April.

"I'm using this as a stepping-stone," he said of his tiny house.

Words in This Story

park – n. a piece of public land in or near a city that is kept free of houses and other buildings and can be used for pleasure and exercise

tiny – adj. very small

key – n. an instrument by which the bolt of a lock (as on a door) is turned or by which an engine is started

welcome mat – n. a small rug that is placed by the door of a person's house, apartment, etc., for guests to wipe their feet on before entering

lock – n. a fastening (as for a door) in which a bolt is operated (as by a key)

table – n. a piece of furniture consisting of a smooth flat slab⁶ fixed⁷ on legs

toilet – n. a large bowl attached to a pipe that is used for getting rid of bodily waste and then flushed⁸ with water

shower – n. a bath in which water is sprayed on the body or a device for providing such a bath

tent – n. a portable⁹ shelter that is used outdoors, is made of cloth (such as canvas¹⁰ or nylon), and is held up with poles and ropes

stepping-stone – n. a means of progress or advancement

1 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

2 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。

3 belongings   

n.私人物品，私人财物

参考例句：

• I put a few personal belongings in a bag.我把几件私人物品装进包中。
• Your personal belongings are not dutiable.个人物品不用纳税。

4 crisis   

n.危机，危急关头，决定性时刻，关键阶段

参考例句：

• He had proved that he could be relied on in a crisis.他已表明，在紧要关头他是可以信赖的。
• The topic today centers about the crisis in the Middle East.今天课题的中心是中东危机。

5 ken   

n.视野，知识领域

参考例句：

• Such things are beyond my ken.我可不懂这些事。
• Abstract words are beyond the ken of children.抽象的言辞超出小孩所理解的范围.

6 slab   

n.平板，厚的切片；v.切成厚板，以平板盖上

参考例句：

• This heavy slab of oak now stood between the bomb and Hitler.这时笨重的橡木厚板就横在炸弹和希特勒之间了。
• The monument consists of two vertical pillars supporting a horizontal slab.这座纪念碑由两根垂直的柱体构成，它们共同支撑着一块平板。

7 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

8 flushed   

a.(～with sth.)兴奋的，充满喜悦的

参考例句：

• She flushed with anger. 她气得涨红了脸。
• Her face was flushed with anger. 她的脸气红了。

9 portable   

adj.轻便的，手提式的；n.便携的东西

参考例句：

• I have a portable typewriter.我有一个便携式打字机。
• There is a pretty portable pair of steps in one corner of the room.屋角放着一架小巧玲珑的折梯。

10 canvas   

n.粗帆布，一块油画布

参考例句：

• The times that people used canvas boat have become history.人们用帆船的时代已成为历史。
• Smith painted an oil painting on the canvas.史密斯在画布上画了一幅油画。