latimes--2020-04-01--The most powerful photos of California during pandemic

A man working out in his driveway because his gym is closed .
People lined up 75 deep waiting to @ @ @ @ @ Home Depot blocked off by shopping carts .
Near-empty parks , freeways and store shelves @ @ @ @ @ of the unusual new scenes across the Southland in the age of the coronavirus pandemic @ @ @ @ @ be at her dance studio practicing for an upcoming competition ; instead she has to @ @ @ @ @ her iPhone to practice with her dance group .
“ It ’ s hard .
@ @ @ @ @ space .
I miss all my friends at the studio , ” Carter said .
@ @ @ @ @ using Zoom because there is a delay in the music , but it ’ s @ @ @ @ @ ” Her competition scheduled for the end of the month has been canceled .

New normal?
Let’s hope not. But the lives of everybody in the state of California and across the globe have changed.
So has the landscape. Crowded freeways, busy shopping centers and packed restaurants have been replaced by empty streets, boarded-up stores and more dogs going on walks than ever before.
Following are some of the unusual scenes across the Southland in the age of the coronavirus outbreak.
This neighborhood gallery will be updated daily.
Armando Mendoza, 53, of Anaheim, celebrates with all his health-care professionals and his family after spending 45 days at St. Joseph Hospital in Orange. Mendoza was the hospital’s second-ever COVID-19 patient.
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
Majid Bradshaw, 33, makes his way down a walkway on a hot afternoon in Santa Monica. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
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A beachgoer walks along the shoreline in Long Beach. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times)
View of Mesquite Dunes, shutdown due to coronavirus at a closed Death Valley National Park, May 6, 2020. (Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
Caroline Kousidonis, 52, of Venice, wears a protective mask while walking past a mural on Lincoln Blvd. in Venice. She is a producer for television commercials and said that her work has been reduced by over 90% because of the coronavirus. (Mel Melcon/Los Angeles Times)
Lee Bloom, 39, of Los Angeles and his son Evan, 7 wear protective masks against the coronavirus during a visit to Kenneth Hahn State Recreation Area in Los Angeles. (Mel Melcon/Los Angeles Times)
Django, wearing a collar after a surgery, spent time looking for lizards while his “dad,” Jared Talla, relaxed on a grassy patch near the Silver Lake Recreation Center in Los Angeles. (Jay L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times)
Jesus Duenas of Riverside practices his slack lining while his brother Alfred Duenas, left, does strength exercises amongst the seclusion of palm trees in Fairmount Park during the coronavirus pandemic n Riverside. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
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A couple of characters from the LAX Aquarium and an employee at the Westin Los Angeles Airport watch a car caravan protest on Century Boulevard. The protesters were demanding healthcare coverage during the coronavirus pandemic. (Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times)
Steve Christopher, right, reads a book in the shade of the pier as a beach-goer does flips across the beach on the last day of open beaches in Orange County. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
Booka Bickar, 59, makes noise with a plastic horn outside a friend’s apartment on Lucile Ave. in Silver Lake, drawing attention to thank essential workers and all the people on the front lines against the coronavirus. Every night for about 5 minutes, starting at 8pm sharp, he and other people on the block and the surrounding area make noise thanking workers. (Mel Melcon/Los Angeles Times)
Marc Milkin, 62, of Silver Lake, uses a ladle and vegetable steamer to make noise as his partner Laura Almo, 54, uses her hand against a pot cover to do the same, thanking essential workers. (Mel Melcon/Los Angeles Times)
A woman walks past a storefront church on Vermont Avenue. L.A. area churches have been closed since late March to help prevent the spread of cornonavirus. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times)
Los Angeles Police Officer Nick Ferara, center, with Officer Dan Brown, right, gives Victoria Taboada a game for her 3-year-old daughter in San Pedro. (Dania Maxwell/Los Angeles Times)
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A soccer game at Albion Riverside Park in Lincoln Heights. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Shuttered storefronts and protective masks for sale in the Garment District in Los Angeles. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
Kim Lockett, 61, who is homeless on skid row in downtown Los Angeles, talks with Jenna Kennedy, a clinician from the People Concern. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
A motorist’s statement in Newport Beach. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
UC Irvine Medical Center health care workers bang on the windows in a return of gratitude as they watch about 25 Orange County first responders parade by. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
A man walks past a gas station in Long Beach. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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The Arts District in downtown Los Angeles. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
A man relaxes next to caution tape at Griffith Observatory. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
Lt. Col. Sam Sachs, a World War II veteran, celebrates his 105th birthday with well-wishers at an assisted living facility in Lakewood. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
An empty 110 and 105 freeway interchange. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Downtown L.A. shines in the setting sun looking east from MacArthur Park. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Nurse anesthetist Nilu Patel quietly stands with fellow nurses at UC Irvine Medical Center for an hourlong candlelight vigil at their shift change. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
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Patton Soole, 5, left, shares a friendly race with L..A County Sheriff’s Deputy Bridget Adams at Grand Park in downtown Los Angeles. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)
John and Jamie Garcia of La Habra toast to Jamie’s birthday with a scenic view from the Beachcomber Inn. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Twin sisters Britta, left, and Haley Cameron and their dog Kiki get some sun in Redondo Beach. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)
Heading to Capistrano Beach. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Denise Martinez of Costa Mesa prays in front of the closed Huntington Beach Pier. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Russel and Kathleen Sion of Torrance, both 29, celebrate their marriage in Anaheim. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)
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A mural on Melrose Avenue. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
An oil tanker off the coast of Long Beach. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Francisco Lorenzo prays in front of the closed doors of the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in downtown Los Angeles. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)
A Starbucks employee in Covina writes inspiring messages on the store window during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
A dinosaur seems to lurk over a jogger in Exposition Park in Los Angeles. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
Beachgoers enjoy the sun and sand along the boardwalk in Venice Beach. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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Alvarado Street in the Westlake area of Los Angeles. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
Johnny Guerrero sells flowers at Novarose by Hilda, his parents’ shop on San Pedro Street in downtown L.A. Guerrero says while the other flower shops are closed, they stay open in hopes of more sales. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
A blood drive at USC. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
The marquee of Landmark’s Nuart Theatre. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)
A man stands on a balcony of an apartment building on Union Avenue in the Westlake area of Los Angeles. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
People walk past a mural of the Virgin of Guadalupe in the Westlake area of Los Angeles. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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Alisun Franson sells face masks from a stand in front of her business Amiga Wild in Venice. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
Michelle Buben hands a sign to Peyton Buss celebrating his 8th birthday as fellow team members from his 2019 Conejo Valley Little League All-Star Baseball Team drive by his home in Thousand Oaks. “This is the best birthday party I’ve ever had!” Peyton said. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
A restaurant worker completes a takeout order for a customer at a taco stand along Redondo Beach Boulevard in Hermosa Beach. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
Dusk settles on downtown Los Angeles and the snow-capped Mt. Baldy. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times.)
Truck traffic is light on the Vincent Thomas Bridge in San Pedro. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
A man walks past a shuttered car wash along Manchester Avenue in South L.A., where the sign serves as a reminder for what to do during the coronavirus pandemic. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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Ebay Williams, right, with the H.E.L.P.E.R. Foundation, gives a youngster and her family groceries at a low income government building in the Oakwood neighborhood in Venice.
(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
L.A. band Sure Sure, whose tour was canceled due to coronavirus, are instead “touring” the different rooms of the home all four members live in, selling virtual tickets and livestreaming stripped-down concerts on successive nights. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
In a quiet cul-de-sac on Emerson Street, neighbors gather to sing “Amazing Grace” on Easter during the coronavirus pandemic on April 12, 2020 in Riverside, California. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
A customer makes his way out of the Coffee Bean on Hollywood Blvd at Orange Dr. with a take out order. A sign taped to the front door informs customers that they won’t be served unless they wear protective face covering before entering. (Mel Melcon/Los Angeles Times)
Ansar “Stan” Muhammad, center, executive director of H.E.L.P.E.R. Foundation, delivers food through a fence to the needy in the Oaklwood Neighborhood of Venice on April 9, 2020. Members with H.E.L.P.E.R. Foundation deliver food and groceries to the needy, those who have lost their jobs and seniors who are sheltering in place in the neighborhood due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
The shadow of a statue of Magic Johnson, left, and a statue of Kareem Abdul Jabbar are frozen in time at Staples Center, where the lights are off and events have been suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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Rush hour on the 110 Freeway doesn’t look like it normally does, viewed from a bridge in Elysian Park on April 10. As the Southland enters the Easter holiday weekend, Los Angeles County health officials warned the region needs to increase social distancing to slow the coronavirus spread. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times)
Aerial views of the Venice Beach skatepark where a handful of skaters defy the City’s closure order. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
Pascacio DaVinci, 65, uses two campers as housing and storage for his artwork. He has been a street vendor in South L.A. for more than 20 years, and is fatalistic about the coronavirus pandemic. “If it’s my time to die, it’s my time to die,” he said. “Mask or no mask, it won’t matter.” (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
Anthony Calderon, 22, of Echo Park, David Escalante, 19, of Koreatown, Yun Park, 21, of Koreatown, and Antoine Montero, 19, of Los Feliz, eat food from Guisados on the trunk of a car in the Elysian Park neighborhood April 10 in Los Angeles. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times)
Stephanie Reyes, 16, sells masks to a traveler on the 3000 block of West Century Boulevard in Inglewood. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
Wanda DeSelle, 76, died of COVID-19 on April 3 in Madera, Calif., where she worked in a medical office. Her family and friends had to attend her funeral from a distance.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Hippie Kitchen in Los Angeles hands out food, water and toiletries to homeless people and residents of skid row. Masks were also offered to help reduce the spread of the coronavirus. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)
Groceries donated by Sadie Chen, left, receive a blessing at the Dhammakaya Temple-Peace Point Meditation Center in Azusa on Wednesday. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
A patient is moved from the Magnolia Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Riverside County, which has seen dozens of COVID-19 infections. Many staff members failed to show up for work two days in a row. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Los Angeles police stop people from using the skate park at Venice Beach. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
Alexander Martinez watches the sunset from the 1st Street bridge in downtown Los Angeles. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
A mural on Broadway in South Los Angeles. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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Billy Gross and girlfriend Kristina Sorensen check out a new mural with a timely suggestion on La Brea Avenue in Los Angeles. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
Tien Vu and Dan Mancini, both 30, take part in a demonstration in Boyle Heights on Wednesday calling for rent forgiveness for the month of April because of the COVID-19 pandemic. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)
Justice Allah cleans up at Harun Coffee on Degnan Boulevard in South Los Angeles. Harun Coffee has paused food and coffee sales and is selling cloth masks lined with coffee filters. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)
Passengers wear masks on a Metro train in downtown Los Angeles. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
Aspiring break dancer Bobby Estrada practices along Los Angeles Street in downtown Los Angeles. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
Robert Hennie, 51, an independent filmmaker, sets up a makeshift gym in the closed-off children’s playground at De Portola Park in Torrance on Thursday. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)
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A man dressed as Superman advertises face masks along Washington Boulevard in Marina del Rey on Saturday. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
Signs of encouragement and praise for healthcare workers battling the coronavirus dot the route to Los Robles Hospital & Medical Center in Thousand Oaks on March 31. Trevor Quirk, a Ventura attorney who had run for office, made them with leftover campaign signs and the “help of a few good friends.” (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
Grace Carter, 15, of Riverside practices a dance routine at home after her dance classes and school were canceled. She had to use the Zoom app on her iPhone to practice with her dance group. “It’s hard. My bedroom is a smaller space. I miss all my friends at the studio,” Carter said. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Young friends play a spirited game of basketball in Azusa despite posted warnings about the coronavirus. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
A man in a Metro tunnel in downtown Los Angeles. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
Pedro Bermudez offers cleaning supplies and toilet paper for sale in Boyle Heights. (Mariah Tauger / Los Angeles Times)
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Sebastian Bachman, with his dog, Chuck Norris, passes time March 25 by playing ukulele in Claremont’s Larkin Park. Bachman, on spring break from school in Portland, Ore., is stuck at home here because of the coronavirus outbreak. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
Margaret Jones, center, waves from her room at an assisted living facility in Redondo Beach as she celebrates her 91st birthday.
(Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)
The Stowe family in Riverside dresses in role-reversal prom attire after a nephew’s prom was canceled because of the coronavirus. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Nilou Zonozi walks her French bulldogs, Ruby, left, and Hansel at Burton Chace Park in Marina del Rey.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
A child plays in the Golden Hills neighborhood of Redondo Beach. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)
Dylan Orland, 14, fields ground balls hit by his dad, Michael, at Van Nuys-Sherman Oaks Recreation Park in Sherman Oaks.
(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)
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Gary St. Germain plays guitar at dusk in front of St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in North Hollywood. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
Father Joe O’Neill livestreams Palm Sunday Mass at Holy Family Church in South Pasadena. While the church remains closed, O’Neill says it has more than 10,000 visitors online. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)
A healthcare worker tends to a patient at a drive-through coronavirus testing site at the Westminster Mall in Westminster. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
A nearly empty street in downtown Los Angeles. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
Dusk falls in a deserted downtown Los Angeles. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
Gary Lindley, 68, who is homeless, lies on a cot at a Long Beach shelter. “I’d like to get back on my feet, to get off these streets for good,” Lindley said. The shelter opened Thursday at the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
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Beaches were ordered closed in Long Beach to prevent people from breaking social distancing guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
Juliann Hartman, center, and her husband, Butch, do their part to cheer people up during the pandemic by holding signs of encouragement on Calabasas Road in Calabasas. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)
A Metro general service employee disinfects high-touch areas such as handrails, elevator call buttons and ticket vending machines at the Mariachi Plaza station in Boyle Heights. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)
A woman named Sarah, who said tigers are her favorite, let out a growl while waiting for a bus on Hawthorne Boulevard in Lawndale. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)
Traffic is light at the interchange of the 101 and 10 Freeways in downtown Los Angeles. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
Osiel Ramirez plays violin at MacArthur Park in Westlake. A warehouse worker, Ramirez was furloughed from his job because of a business slowdown caused by the coronavirus outbreak. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Time)
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Mike Lynn takes advantage of the empty playground at Longfellow Elementary School in Long Beach on March 25. Like public schools, his gym has been closed to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
An Angeleno sells flowers on a 105 Freeway offramp in Inglewood on Monday. Many residents have no choice but to make close contact with the public to get by financially during the coronavirus outbreak. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
A bicyclist rides past a mural by street artist Robert Vargas in downtown Los Angeles on March 30. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
Crystal Armster, left, dances with Athena Hayley, CEO and founder of Love My Neighbor Foundation, on March 26. The group continues to feed homeless people on skid row during the coronavirus pandemic. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)


latimes--2020-03-31--It's April 1. What you need to know if you're a renter during the coronavirus pandemic

More than 1 million Californians have applied for unemployment assistance as coronavirus cases have surged in recent weeks .
The pandemic and the economic devastation it has caused have led many renters to wonder how they ’ re going to pay rent on April 1 — after weeks of being asked to stay home and , in some cases , not work to slow the spread of the virus .
From eviction bans to mortgage relief , here ’ s a guide to protections for renters and homeowners in California .
Yes .
No government program passed to date relieves @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Even in Los Angeles and other cities where renter relief efforts have been approved , tenants are required to ultimately pay back rent in full .
But what if I can ’ t pay ?
Will I get evicted ?
The federal government , state government and individual cities and counties have offered many protections for tenants at risk of getting evicted .
But there is no blanket ban preventing the legal process of eviction across California , and the strength of the protections that exist depends on where you live and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the state , however , are entitled to a delay of an eviction through May 31 if they can ’ t pay rent because of financial or medical circumstances caused by the coronavirus .
To qualify , renters must have lost their job or hours at work , or have had to take care of children whose schools are closed or family members with COVID-19 .
Tenants also must notify their landlords in writing no later than seven days after their rent is due — or by April 8 or May 8 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pay .
Come June 1 , affected tenants can still be evicted if they didn ’ t pay rent in April or May .
What about protections from the federal government ?
As part of the coronavirus economic stimulus package signed by President Trump last week , the federal government has offered additional safeguards for renters .
These provisions , however , are confusing and it will be hard for tenants to figure out if they qualify .
The package included a 120-day eviction moratorium for tenants who can ’ t pay rent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ renters in properties — both single-family homes and apartments — whose owners have federally backed mortgages .
Every renter who lives in federally subsidized low-income housing also is automatically covered , said Shamus Roller , executive director of the National Housing Law Project .
Overall , about 40 % of the nation ’ s single-family homes and about half of multifamily homes qualify , with mortgages backed by Fannie Mae , Freddie Mac or other federal sources , according to the National Housing Law Project and National Multifamily Housing Council .
But renters @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their landlord has such a mortgage .
“ From the tenant perspective , it ’ s very difficult to understand whether you ’ re protected , ” Roller said .
What about protections from cities and counties in California ?
More than 80 local governments — including Los Angeles , San Diego , San Jose and San Francisco — have passed some version of a temporary ban on evictions , according to the California Apartment Assn.
, the state ’ s largest landlord group .
These measures provide protections beyond those offered by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the city of Los Angeles , renters who can not pay their rent because of economic hardship or because their health has been affected by the coronavirus are not allowed to be evicted .
Neither are Angelenos who have had family members move in because of the virus and increase the number of people that would otherwise be permitted under their lease .
Tenants in L.A. have up to a year after the city ’ s emergency order expires to pay back rent .
All late fees for nonpayment will be waived .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ landlords were planning to pull rentals off the market under the Ellis Act or had wanted to displace their tenants by moving in themselves .
On Monday , Mayor Eric Garcetti issued a separate executive order preventing the landlords of hundreds of thousands of apartments across the city from increasing rents during the pandemic .
Oakland approved a less strict policy as part of its eviction moratorium , which limits the ability for landlords to hike rents in properties covered by the city ’ s rent control policies .
What happens if my @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Los Angeles renters can contact the city ’ s housing agency for assistance .
Tenants in L.A. and elsewhere in California also can use the moratoriums approved by their city , or rules approved statewide , as a defense against an eviction in court .
Also , an eviction filing might not go far right now .
Adhering to calls for social distancing , many courts across California have greatly restricted their activities , including the ability to hear eviction cases .
In Los Angeles , such cases have been suspended until further @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , many overlapping government programs provide some protections for tenants against getting evicted right now .
But none ultimately waive rent payments , and just about all of the protections on the books require tenants to demonstrate how they have been harmed by the coronavirus .
The best way for a renter to prevent an eventual eviction is to make sure they ’ ve saved all of their documentation , including employment and health records .
What will homeowners get ?
Homeowners are getting more than renters , as both the federal and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ financial assistance .
Under the federal plan , homeowners with federally backed mortgages can not be forced into foreclosure for at least two months .
Additionally , homeowners who have suffered economic hardship over the virus can request a six-month deferral of their mortgage payments — without penalties , interest or late fees .
Also , last week , Gov .
Gavin Newsom announced that four of the nation ’ s largest banks — Wells Fargo , U.S. Bank , Citibank and JPMorgan Chase — as well as 200 state-chartered banks and credit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to defer payments for at least three months .
Late payments would not be reported to credit agencies .
For landlords , under a plan offered by the federal government , apartment owners with federally backed mortgages can defer their payments for three months .
But if they accept that relief , they also have to agree not to evict their tenants and must waive late fees .
What are landlords doing ?
Some landlords are offering renters relief beyond what ’ s required under the law .
The California Apartment Assn .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ rent increases and evictions for those affected by the coronavirus , plus waive late fees and offer flexible payment plans .
These are just guidelines , however .
While the federal government has increased unemployment benefits and is issuing a one-time direct payout of up to $ 1,200 for most adults , many housing advocates — including landlord groups — believe that ’ s not enough money to ensure renters , particularly in high-cost states like California , can pay all their bills .
“ There isn ’ t direct rental assistance for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Carol Galante , faculty director at UC Berkeley ’ s Terner Center for Housing Innovation .
“ I think that ’ s a mistake.
” Homeowners , on the other hand , are likely to fare a bit better .

More than 1 million Californians have applied for unemployment assistance as coronavirus cases have surged in recent weeks.
The pandemic and the economic devastation it has caused have led many renters to wonder how they’re going to pay rent on April 1 — after weeks of being asked to stay home and, in some cases, not work to slow the spread of the virus.
Advertisement
From eviction bans to mortgage relief, here’s a guide to protections for renters and homeowners in California.
Do I still owe rent?
Yes. No government program passed to date relieves California renters of their duty to pay. Even in Los Angeles and other cities where renter relief efforts have been approved, tenants are required to ultimately pay back rent in full.
But what if I can’t pay? Will I get evicted?
The federal government, state government and individual cities and counties have offered many protections for tenants at risk of getting evicted. But there is no blanket ban preventing the legal process of eviction across California, and the strength of the protections that exist depends on where you live and who your landlord is.
All renters in the state, however, are entitled to a delay of an eviction through May 31 if they can’t pay rent because of financial or medical circumstances caused by the coronavirus. To qualify, renters must have lost their job or hours at work, or have had to take care of children whose schools are closed or family members with COVID-19. Tenants also must notify their landlords in writing no later than seven days after their rent is due — or by April 8 or May 8 — if they’re unable to pay.
Come June 1, affected tenants can still be evicted if they didn’t pay rent in April or May.
What about protections from the federal government?
As part of the coronavirus economic stimulus package signed by President Trump last week, the federal government has offered additional safeguards for renters. These provisions, however, are confusing and it will be hard for tenants to figure out if they qualify.
The package included a 120-day eviction moratorium for tenants who can’t pay rent. But the moratorium only applies to renters in properties — both single-family homes and apartments — whose owners have federally backed mortgages. Every renter who lives in federally subsidized low-income housing also is automatically covered, said Shamus Roller, executive director of the National Housing Law Project.
Overall, about 40% of the nation’s single-family homes and about half of multifamily homes qualify, with mortgages backed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac or other federal sources, according to the National Housing Law Project and National Multifamily Housing Council. But renters have no easy way of knowing whether their landlord has such a mortgage.
“From the tenant perspective, it’s very difficult to understand whether you’re protected,” Roller said.
What about protections from cities and counties in California?
More than 80 local governments — including Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose and San Francisco — have passed some version of a temporary ban on evictions, according to the California Apartment Assn., the state’s largest landlord group. These measures provide protections beyond those offered by the federal and state governments.
In the city of Los Angeles, renters who cannot pay their rent because of economic hardship or because their health has been affected by the coronavirus are not allowed to be evicted. Neither are Angelenos who have had family members move in because of the virus and increase the number of people that would otherwise be permitted under their lease.
Tenants in L.A. have up to a year after the city’s emergency order expires to pay back rent. All late fees for nonpayment will be waived.
Also protected from eviction are tenants whose landlords were planning to pull rentals off the market under the Ellis Act or had wanted to displace their tenants by moving in themselves.
On Monday, Mayor Eric Garcetti issued a separate executive order preventing the landlords of hundreds of thousands of apartments across the city from increasing rents during the pandemic. Oakland approved a less strict policy as part of its eviction moratorium, which limits the ability for landlords to hike rents in properties covered by the city’s rent control policies.
What happens if my landlord tries to evict me anyway?
Los Angeles renters can contact the city’s housing agency for assistance. Tenants in L.A. and elsewhere in California also can use the moratoriums approved by their city, or rules approved statewide, as a defense against an eviction in court.
Also, an eviction filing might not go far right now. Adhering to calls for social distancing, many courts across California have greatly restricted their activities, including the ability to hear eviction cases. In Los Angeles, such cases have been suspended until further notice except for emergencies.
In short, many overlapping government programs provide some protections for tenants against getting evicted right now. But none ultimately waive rent payments, and just about all of the protections on the books require tenants to demonstrate how they have been harmed by the coronavirus.
The best way for a renter to prevent an eventual eviction is to make sure they’ve saved all of their documentation, including employment and health records.
What will homeowners get?
Homeowners are getting more than renters, as both the federal and state governments have secured different forms of financial assistance.
Under the federal plan, homeowners with federally backed mortgages cannot be forced into foreclosure for at least two months. Additionally, homeowners who have suffered economic hardship over the virus can request a six-month deferral of their mortgage payments — without penalties, interest or late fees.
Also, last week, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that four of the nation’s largest banks — Wells Fargo, U.S. Bank, Citibank and JPMorgan Chase — as well as 200 state-chartered banks and credit unions will allow affected homeowners in California to defer payments for at least three months. Late payments would not be reported to credit agencies.
For landlords, under a plan offered by the federal government, apartment owners with federally backed mortgages can defer their payments for three months. But if they accept that relief, they also have to agree not to evict their tenants and must waive late fees.
What are landlords doing?
Some landlords are offering renters relief beyond what’s required under the law. The California Apartment Assn. is advising its members to halt all rent increases and evictions for those affected by the coronavirus, plus waive late fees and offer flexible payment plans. These are just guidelines, however.
What’s the bottom line?
While the federal government has increased unemployment benefits and is issuing a one-time direct payout of up to $1,200 for most adults, many housing advocates — including landlord groups — believe that’s not enough money to ensure renters, particularly in high-cost states like California, can pay all their bills.
“There isn’t direct rental assistance for everybody who needs it,” said Carol Galante, faculty director at UC Berkeley’s Terner Center for Housing Innovation. “I think that’s a mistake.”
Homeowners, on the other hand, are likely to fare a bit better.


latimes--2020-03-30--It's April 1. What you need to know if you're a renter during the coronavirus pandemic

More than 1 million Californians have applied for unemployment assistance as coronavirus cases have surged in recent weeks.
The pandemic and the economic devastation it has caused have led many renters to wonder how they’re going to pay rent on April 1 — after weeks of being asked to stay home and, in some cases, not work to slow the spread of the virus.
From eviction bans to mortgage relief, here’s a guide to protections for renters and homeowners in California.
Advertisement
Do I still owe rent?
Yes. No government program passed to date relieves California renters of their duty to pay. Even in Los Angeles and other cities where renter relief efforts have been approved, tenants are required to ultimately pay back rent in full.
But what if I can’t pay? Will I get evicted?
The federal government, state government and individual cities and counties have offered many protections for tenants at risk of getting evicted. But there is no blanket ban preventing the legal process of eviction across California, and the strength of the protections that exist depends on where you live and who your landlord is.
All renters in the state, however, are entitled to a delay of an eviction through May 31 if they can’t pay rent because of financial or medical circumstances caused by the coronavirus. To qualify, renters must have lost their job or hours at work, or have had to take care of children whose schools are closed or family members with COVID-19. Tenants also must notify their landlords in writing no later than seven days after their rent is due — or by April 8 or May 8 — if they’re unable to pay.
Come June 1, affected tenants can still be evicted if they didn’t pay rent in April or May.
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What about protections from the federal government?
As part of the coronavirus economic stimulus package signed by President Trump last week, the federal government has offered additional safeguards for renters. These provisions, however, are confusing and it will be hard for tenants to figure out if they qualify.
The package included a 120-day eviction moratorium for tenants who can’t pay rent. But the moratorium only applies to renters in properties — both single-family homes and apartments — whose owners have federally backed mortgages. Every renter who lives in federally subsidized low-income housing also is automatically covered, said Shamus Roller, executive director of the National Housing Law Project.
Overall, about 40% of the nation’s single-family homes and about half of multifamily homes qualify, with mortgages backed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac or other federal sources, according to the National Housing Law Project and National Multifamily Housing Council. But renters have no easy way of knowing whether their landlord has such a mortgage.
“From the tenant perspective, it’s very difficult to understand whether you’re protected,” Roller said.
What about protections from cities and counties in California?
More than 80 local governments — including Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose and San Francisco — have passed some version of a temporary ban on evictions, according to the California Apartment Assn., the state’s largest landlord group. These measures provide protections beyond those offered by the federal and state governments.
In the city of Los Angeles, renters who cannot pay their rent because of economic hardship or because their health has been affected by the coronavirus are not allowed to be evicted. Neither are Angelenos who have had family members move in because of the virus and increase the number of people that would otherwise be permitted under their lease.
Tenants in L.A. have up to a year after the city’s emergency order expires to pay back rent. All late fees for nonpayment will be waived.
Also protected from eviction are tenants whose landlords were planning to pull rentals off the market under the Ellis Act or had wanted to displace their tenants by moving in themselves.
On Monday, Mayor Eric Garcetti issued a separate executive order preventing the landlords of hundreds of thousands of apartments across the city from increasing rents during the pandemic. Oakland approved a less strict policy as part of its eviction moratorium, which limits the ability for landlords to hike rents in properties covered by the city’s rent control policies.
What happens if my landlord tries to evict me anyway?
Los Angeles renters can contact the city’s housing agency for assistance. Tenants in L.A. and elsewhere in California also can use the moratoriums approved by their city, or rules approved statewide, as a defense against an eviction in court.
Also, an eviction filing might not go far right now. Adhering to calls for social distancing, many courts across California have greatly restricted their activities, including the ability to hear eviction cases. In Los Angeles, such cases have been suspended until further notice except for emergencies.
In short, many overlapping government programs provide some protections for tenants against getting evicted right now. But none ultimately waive rent payments, and just about all of the protections on the books require tenants to demonstrate how they have been harmed by the coronavirus.
The best way for a renter to prevent an eventual eviction is to make sure they’ve saved all of their documentation, including employment and health records.
What will homeowners get?
Homeowners are getting more than renters, as both the federal and state governments have secured different forms of financial assistance.
Under the federal plan, homeowners with federally backed mortgages cannot be forced into foreclosure for at least two months. Additionally, homeowners who have suffered economic hardship over the virus can request a six-month deferral of their mortgage payments — without penalties, interest or late fees.
Also, last week, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that four of the nation’s largest banks — Wells Fargo, U.S. Bank, Citibank and JPMorgan Chase — as well as 200 state-chartered banks and credit unions will allow affected homeowners in California to defer payments for at least three months. Late payments would not be reported to credit agencies.
For landlords, under a plan offered by the federal government, apartment owners with federally backed mortgages can defer their payments for three months. But if they accept that relief, they also have to agree not to evict their tenants and must waive late fees.
What are landlords doing?
Some landlords are offering renters relief beyond what’s required under the law. The California Apartment Assn. is advising its members to halt all rent increases and evictions for those affected by the coronavirus, plus waive late fees and offer flexible payment plans. These are just guidelines, however.
What’s the bottom line?
While the federal government has increased unemployment benefits and is issuing a one-time direct payout of up to $1,200 for most adults, many housing advocates — including landlord groups — believe that’s not enough money to ensure renters, particularly in high-cost states like California, can pay all their bills.
“There isn’t direct rental assistance for everybody who needs it,” said Carol Galante, faculty director at UC Berkeley’s Terner Center for Housing Innovation. “I think that’s a mistake.”
Homeowners, on the other hand, are likely to fare a bit better.


latimes--2020-04-02--Coronavirus cases approach 10,000 as California braces for worsening conditions

Coronavirus cases across California barreled toward 10,000 Wednesday — with the death toll topping 200 — as officials desperately tried to keep unprecedented social distancing orders enforced while also trying to get more supplies to hospitals as patient numbers surged .
The rapid spread of the virus brought new concerns about whether the state ’ s healthcare system could handle the flow of patients .
Many California hospitals are grappling with shortages of supplies while rushing to prepare for what is expected to be a deluge of patients in the coming weeks .
As bad as the numbers are , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ worse if Californians don ’ t adhere to the stay-at-home orders , which now could last well into May .
California faces 5,000 coronavirus deaths a week if the state ’ s stay-at-home policies are relaxed too early , according to one Bay Area health officer .
“ Some of the modeling is predicting — at the peak — up to 5,000 deaths a week throughout California , ” Dr. Chris Farnitano , health officer for Contra Costa County , told his Board of Supervisors .
That would mean 600 deaths a week @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the central Bay Area and 100 to 200 deaths a week in Contra Costa County , he said .
“ We are still hopeful we can avoid [ this scenario ] if we don ’ t relax our efforts to flatten the curve , ” said Farnitano , who shared the possible epidemic outcomes on the same day that six Bay Area counties the nation ’ s first coronavirus .
The news came as local health officials across the state began revealing estimates of potential coronavirus death tolls .
There could be 2,000 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and perhaps 1,000 deaths in Ventura County , health officers for both counties said .
Last week , the city of San Jose released an estimate saying there could be 2,000 to 16,000 coronavirus deaths in .
Dr. Robert Levin , health officer for Ventura County , said the number of coronavirus cases coming into hospitals could be like a tsunami .
In the last 21 years he ’ s been tracking the data , the worst year for flu deaths came two years ago , with 49 fatalities — a small @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could bring to Ventura County .
“ This is not influenza .
This is much more serious , ” Levin said at a Board of Supervisors meeting Tuesday .
But he added that he hopes the stay-at-home order will significantly curtail the projected death toll .
Some health officers in California said there are early signs that the order is working .
Farnitano noted that California ’ s coronavirus death toll has been about 10 % of New York ’ s .
Santa Clara County health officer Dr. Sara Cody said that she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the number of COVID-19 cases , although she added that she was speaking cautiously .
“ The sacrifice that everyone has made , I believe it is starting to bend the curve .
But it ’ s not enough , and it hasn ’ t been in place for long enough , ” Cody said .
“ So we need to keep at it .
We just need to keep at it .
I believe it ’ s beginning to make a difference , and it ’ s giving our hospitals more time.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ rose dramatically Wednesday as officials reported more than 500 new cases , bringing the total number of people infected by the virus in the region to 3,528 .
County officials also reported 12 additional deaths , bringing the toll to 66 .
Nine of the 11 people who most recently died were older than 65 , and seven had underlying health conditions .
One person was between 18 and 40 years old , and another was between 41 and 65 years old , said Barbara Ferrer , director of the Los Angeles County @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has also spread to the most vulnerable populations in the county , with five homeless people testing positive for COVID-19 , Ferrer said .
Orange County saw its biggest single-day increase in coronavirus infections to date Wednesday , as officials announced 107 new cases and three additional deaths .
In all , 606 COVID-19 cases and 10 deaths have been confirmed countywide .
Another focus of concern was California ’ s elderly population , who are at high risk of death from the virus .
California regulators that they must accept patients even @ @ @ @ @ @ @ order comes amid a fierce debate among healthcare providers .
Hospitals are desperate to clear space for an expected wave of COVID-19 patients , so they are discharging as many patients as possible , including nursing home residents .
Many nursing home administrators are to keep those residents out until they are proven virus-free , fearing a catastrophic result if the deadly pathogen gains a foothold in their institutions .
, in a letter this week to facilities from California Department of Public Health Deputy Director Heidi Steinecker , appears to side squarely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nursing facilities “ shall not refuse to admit or readmit a resident based on their status as a suspected or confirmed COVID-19 case.
” Amid the preparations , federal prosecutors were dealing with a bizarre incident in San Pedro .
Federal prosecutors Wednesday charged a locomotive driver at the Port of Los Angeles with intentionally derailing a train near the U.S. Navy ’ s because he suspected it was not there to help with the coronavirus crisis .
Eduardo Moreno , 44 , of San Pedro , was charged with deliberately wrecking a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ led to a derailment and fuel leak , according to the charges .
Prosecutors allege that Moreno derailed the train and deliberately crashed through barriers designed to stop engines before grinding to a halt 250 yards from the Mercy .
Moreno reportedly said , “ You only get this chance once .
The whole world is watching .
I had to .
People don ’ t know what ’ s going on here .
Now they will.
” Times staff writers Melissa Gomez , Matt Hamilton , Jack Dolan , Joseph Serna and @ @ @ @ @ @ @

Hannah Fry, Rong-Gong Lin II, Luke Money, Richard Winton

Musicians hang out in Mariachi Plaza in Boyle Heights on Wednesday.
Coronavirus cases across California barreled toward 10,000 Wednesday — with the death toll topping 200 — as officials desperately tried to keep unprecedented social distancing orders enforced while also trying to get more supplies to hospitals as patient numbers surged.
The rapid spread of the virus brought new concerns about whether the state’s healthcare system could handle the flow of patients. Many California hospitals are grappling with shortages of supplies while rushing to prepare for what is expected to be a deluge of patients in the coming weeks.
As bad as the numbers are, health officials warned it could get much worse if Californians don’t adhere to the stay-at-home orders, which now could last well into May.
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California faces 5,000 coronavirus deaths a week if the state’s stay-at-home policies are relaxed too early, according to one Bay Area health officer.
“Some of the modeling is predicting — at the peak — up to 5,000 deaths a week throughout California,” Dr. Chris Farnitano, health officer for Contra Costa County, told his Board of Supervisors. That would mean 600 deaths a week from the disease known as COVID-19 in the central Bay Area and 100 to 200 deaths a week in Contra Costa County, he said.
Politics Coronavirus recession now expected to be deeper and longer Forecasts for economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic have quickly turned much darker – both for the depth and duration of the damage.
“We are still hopeful we can avoid [this scenario] if we don’t relax our efforts to flatten the curve,” said Farnitano, who shared the possible epidemic outcomes on the same day that six Bay Area counties extended and strengthened the nation’s first coronavirus shelter-in-place order .
The news came as local health officials across the state began revealing estimates of potential coronavirus death tolls. There could be 2,000 to 14,000 deaths in Contra Costa County, and perhaps 1,000 deaths in Ventura County, health officers for both counties said.
Last week, the city of San Jose released an estimate saying there could be 2,000 to 16,000 coronavirus deaths in Santa Clara County .
Dr. Robert Levin, health officer for Ventura County, said the number of coronavirus cases coming into hospitals could be like a tsunami. In the last 21 years he’s been tracking the data, the worst year for flu deaths came two years ago, with 49 fatalities — a small fraction of the 1,000 deaths the coronavirus could bring to Ventura County.
“This is not influenza. This is much more serious,” Levin said at a Board of Supervisors meeting Tuesday. But he added that he hopes the stay-at-home order will significantly curtail the projected death toll.
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Some health officers in California said there are early signs that the order is working. Farnitano noted that California’s coronavirus death toll has been about 10% of New York’s.
Tracking the coronavirus in California The latest maps and charts on the spread of COVID-19 in California.
Santa Clara County health officer Dr. Sara Cody said that she is seeing a bit of slowing in the number of COVID-19 cases, although she added that she was speaking cautiously.
“The sacrifice that everyone has made, I believe it is starting to bend the curve. But it’s not enough, and it hasn’t been in place for long enough,” Cody said. “So we need to keep at it. We just need to keep at it. I believe it’s beginning to make a difference, and it’s giving our hospitals more time.”
Coronavirus cases in Los Angeles County rose dramatically Wednesday as officials reported more than 500 new cases, bringing the total number of people infected by the virus in the region to 3,528.
County officials also reported 12 additional deaths, bringing the toll to 66. Nine of the 11 people who most recently died were older than 65, and seven had underlying health conditions. One person was between 18 and 40 years old, and another was between 41 and 65 years old, said Barbara Ferrer, director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.
The coronavirus has also spread to the most vulnerable populations in the county, with five homeless people testing positive for COVID-19, Ferrer said.
Orange County saw its biggest single-day increase in coronavirus infections to date Wednesday, as officials announced 107 new cases and three additional deaths. In all, 606 COVID-19 cases and 10 deaths have been confirmed countywide.
Another focus of concern was California’s elderly population, who are at high risk of death from the virus.
California regulators have told skilled nursing facility operators that they must accept patients even if they have the virus.
The order comes amid a fierce debate among healthcare providers. Hospitals are desperate to clear space for an expected wave of COVID-19 patients, so they are discharging as many patients as possible, including nursing home residents.
Many nursing home administrators are equally desperate to keep those residents out until they are proven virus-free, fearing a catastrophic result if the deadly pathogen gains a foothold in their institutions.
The directive , in a letter this week to facilities from California Department of Public Health Deputy Director Heidi Steinecker, appears to side squarely with the hospitals. It says skilled nursing facilities “shall not refuse to admit or readmit a resident based on their status as a suspected or confirmed COVID-19 case.”
Amid the preparations, federal prosecutors were dealing with a bizarre incident in San Pedro.
1 / 83 Socially distanced bikers and walkers, against a backdrop of the Queen Mary, make their way along pedestrian and beach bike path on the first day that Long Beach reopened the path on Monday May 11, 2020. The city of Long Beach eased a few of its public health restrictions, allowing under certain guidelines the reopening of pedestrian and beach bike paths, tennis centers and courts. Beach bathrooms are also reopening, but the parking lots and beaches still remain closed. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times) 2 / 83 Traffic remains light on the southbound 110 Freeway headed toward downtown Los Angeles on April 28. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 3 / 83 Dominique Barrett, center, known as “King Vader” to his 2.4 million TikTok followers, prepares to shoot a video on April 30 in Glendora. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times) 4 / 83 Cody Purcell of Redondo Beach rides a wave, glowing from the bioluminescence, in Hermosa Beach, CA, after midnight Friday morning, May 8. (Jay L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times) 5 / 83 Friends play spikeball, a game perfect for social distancing on an open but restricted San Buenaventura State Beach. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 6 / 83 The majority of golfers are wearing masks while hitting balls on the driving range at Van Buren Executive Golf Course in Riverside. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) 7 / 83 Beaches including Harbor Cove Beach were open but beachgoers were not supposed to be sitting on the sand. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 8 / 83 Tango instructor Yelizaveta Nersesova leads a Zoom tango event from her Los Angeles home April 27 that brought together hundreds of dancers from around the world. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times) 9 / 83 Grocery store workers, joined by United Food and Commercial Workers International Union Local 770 representatives and community members, hold a rally in support of strict social distancing on May 1 at a Ralphs store in Hollywood where 19 employees have tested positive for COVID-19. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) 10 / 83 Mostly masked commuters keep their distance from one another on a Metro bus in downtown Los Angeles on April 29. (Gabriella Angotti-Jones / Los Angeles Times) 11 / 83 Gregory Kuhl, 69, heads home after a shopping trip in Hollywood on April 28. Big cracks in the street, cars parked in driveways blocking sidewalks and uneven pavement levels make navigating his route difficult. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times) 12 / 83 Tenants and their supporters from across Los Angeles gather at city hall to call on L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti, the L.A. City Council and California Gov. Gavin Newsom to cancel rent and mortgage payments during the COVID-19 crisis. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 13 / 83 Aerial view of over 100 vehicles lined up at the West Valley COVID-19 testing center at Warner Center in Woodland Hills. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 14 / 83 Senior Mason Wise, left, helps his sister, Mackenzie, a sophomore, clean out her PE locker at El Camino Real Charter High School in Woodland Hills. School officials were allowing no more than five students at a time on campus to take home their belongings. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 15 / 83 Shuttered storefront businesses in the garment district of Los Angeles. California’s unemployment rate has skyrocketed since the statewide coronavirus shutdown took effect. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 16 / 83 Healthcare workers celebrate as Claudia Martinez is discharged from the ICU after she recovered from COVID-19 at Scripps Mercy Hospital in Chula Vista. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) 17 / 83 Carson residents Kaeli Burks, 3, left, and her cousin Bailey Watson, 5, look out the window of their car after their mothers helped them with self-testing at a new drive-up testing site for COVID-19 in Carson. Free COVID-19 testing is available to all city residents thanks to a partnership between the city and US Health Fairs. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) 18 / 83 Norm and Tracy Kahn enjoy eating dinner outside on a small cafe table sitting in blue chairs on their side yard during the coronavirus pandemic on April 27 in Riverside. “During this pandemic, eating outside offers us an opportunity to change surrounding and appreciate the calmness of being outdoors among trees, scents from nature and the sounds of birds,” she said. Also adding, “Mixing up where we eat puts variety into our days and takes away the sameness of feeling trapped at home.” (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) 19 / 83 Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center nurses carry supplies outside the hospital. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 20 / 83 Tom Sean Foley pauses on a walk with his kids, Cathelen Claire, “C.C.,” 3, and Timothy Joseph, 4, to take a photo in front of the “Love Wall,” mural by artist Curtis Kulig, outside of Smashbox Studios in Culver City. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times) 21 / 83 Protesters stand along Mission Blvd. in Pacific Beach during A Day of Liberty rally on April 26. The protesters were against the government shutdown due to the coronavirus. (K.C. Alfred / San Diego Union-Tribune) 22 / 83 People make orders at a food truck along Shoreline Avenue in Long Beach. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 23 / 83 Medical staff, wearing protective gear, work inside a COVID-19 isolation area inside the emergency department at Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center in Los Angeles, where patients with the virus are being treated. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) 24 / 83 Neighbors practice social distancing while enjoying the nice weather near The Strand in Hermosa Beach. (Gabriella Angotti-Jones / Los Angeles Times) 25 / 83 Counter-protesters attend a protest to call on state and local officials to reopen the economy in downtown Los Angeles. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) 26 / 83 A group of protesters cheer on cars during a vehicle caravan protest to call on state and local officials to reopen the economy in downtown Los Angeles. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) 27 / 83 Cedar Mountain Post Acute Rehabilitation staff member Navi Cavaltera waters a flower pot put up by the community to show their support for the nursing staff of the facility in Yucaipa. Eighteen of 20 coronavirus-related deaths in Yucaipa were residents of the skilled nursing facility. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 28 / 83 A pedestrian wearing a protective mask passes a mural on a store on Melrose Avenue in the Fairfax district of Los Angeles. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) 29 / 83 Jonte Florence, a freestyle dancer, does a handstand on a mostly empty Hollywood Walk of Fame. Florence said he normally performs for hundreds of tourists along the busy street. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) 30 / 83 The Tyrannosaurus rex overlooking the intersection of Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue wears a protective mask while practicing social distancing. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) 31 / 83 Businesses are shuttered and pedestrians are few and far between on Hollywood Boulevard. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) 32 / 83 Daniel Rogerson wears a vintage military gas mask while riding a bike along the beach path in Santa Monica, which is closed to enforce social distancing because of the coronavirus pandemic. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 33 / 83 A face mask seller in colorful dress appears to be part of a mural behind a bus stop on Soto Street in Los Angeles. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 34 / 83 Life around Cesar E. Chavez Boulevard and Soto Street has slowed down as California officials extended stay-at-home orders into May and residents entered Easter weekend with unprecedented limits on their movements. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 35 / 83 UC Irvine Medical Center health care workers return their gratitude as about 25 Orange County first responder vehicles participate in a drive-by parade of gratitude as they battle COVID-19 at the hospital. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) 36 / 83 Billy Budd, 55, of Hollywood, walks along Hollywood Boulevard with a protective face covering. Budd is a scenic artist for movies and television who is currently out of work due to the coronavirus outbreak. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) 37 / 83 Stuart Reyes and his sister, Stephanie, sell masks for $5 each on the 3000 block of West Century Boulevard in Inglewood. Stuart Reyes said he is selling masks to support his mother. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 38 / 83 A jogger runs on a closed trail past dozens of pieces of caution tape, torn off by hikers and mountain bikers at El Escorpion Canyon Park in West Hills. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 39 / 83 Alex Herron and nurse Mercy Pineda at a blood drive sponsored by USC athletics and the American Red Cross at USC’s Galen Center. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) 40 / 83 Los Angeles City Hall displays blue lights to show support for healthcare workers and first responders. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) 41 / 83 After being indoors for several days because of rainy weather and coronavirus stay-at-home orders, Olivia Jacobs, 4, and her mom, Cia Jacobs, enjoy a warm and sunny afternoon making chalk drawings on the sidewalk in front of their home in West Hills. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 42 / 83 An Oceanview Plaza security guard sports a whimsical mask while on patrol. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 43 / 83 Jacob De Wilde, left, and Lesli Lytle load a car with food during a food distribution organized to mark Good Friday. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 44 / 83 As a late season storm continues to make its way across the Southland, a young basketball player dribbles along an alley through an Elysian Park neighborhood in Los Angeles. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) 45 / 83 People are silhouetted in a window of an apartment building in Hollywood, where a stay-at-home order remains in effect to help curb the spread of the coronavirus. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 46 / 83 The Wilshire Grand Center display blue lights and a heart to show support for healthcare workers and first responders. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) 47 / 83 Women wear masks as they stroll along Highland Avenue in Hollywood. Wearing masks while outdoors is mandatory in the city of Los Angeles. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 48 / 83 Patients are removed from Magnolia Rehabilitation and Nursing Center after 39 tested positive for the coronavirus and nursing staff was not showing up to work. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) 49 / 83 A specimen is turned in at the new mobile testing site for people with symptoms of the coronavirus at Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in South Los Angeles. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) 50 / 83 Hippie Kitchen in Los Angeles hands out food, water and toiletries to homeless people and residents of skid row. Additionally, masks were offered to help reduce the spread of the coronavirus. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times) 51 / 83 Nurses pose for a fun photo during a break in drive-through public testing for the coronavirus at Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 52 / 83 A woman shows a notice from her doctor that allows her to obtain a test for coronavirus at a new drive-up testing site in a parking lot at the South Bay Galleria in Redondo Beach. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) 53 / 83 A person who wishes to remain anonymous strikes from her car to support McDonald’s employees who are demanding the company cover healthcare costs of any worker or immediate family member who gets sick from COVID-19 in Los Angeles. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times) 54 / 83 Cassidy Roosen, with Beach Cities Health District, holds up a sign that says, “We’re All in This Together,” while waiting to direct cars at a drive-through, appointment-only coronavirus testing location at the South Bay Galleria in Redondo Beach. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times) 55 / 83 Juliann Hartman, center, and her husband, Butch, wave signs they created to cheer up people on Calabasas Road in Calabasas during the pandemic. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) 56 / 83 Grace Carter, 15, of Riverside, practices a dance routine at home after dance classes and school were canceled. She has to use the Zoom app on her iPhone to practice with her dance group. “It’s hard,” she said. “My bedroom is a smaller space. I miss all my friends at the studio.” (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) 57 / 83 A man works from his home in Long Beach. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) 58 / 83 A San Bernardino County healthcare worker takes a sample at a coronavirus drive-through testing site at the county fairgrounds in Victorville. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 59 / 83 A Metro general service employee disinfects a bench in Boyle Heights. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) 60 / 83 A runner jogs past the Pottery Barn in Pasadena. Some businesses in the area have boarded up their stores. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) 61 / 83 Raquel Lezama and daughter Monica Ramos collect meals for their family at Manual Arts High School. Lezama was laid off from her $17.76-an-hour job at a Beverly Hills hotel. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) 62 / 83 The Iron City Tavern in San Pedro tries an incentive to lure takeout customers. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 63 / 83 Healthcare workers gather outside UCLA Ronald Reagan Medical Center to call for further action from the federal government in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 64 / 83 Kristen Edgerle, of Victorville, collects information from a blood donor before drawing blood at The Richard Nixon Presidential Library blood drive during the coronavirus pandemic in Yorba Linda. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times) 65 / 83 Shauna Jin, of Los Angeles, with her dog, Bodhi, practices social distancing with John Kiss, of Los Angeles, at the entrance of Runyon Canyon Park in Los Angeles. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) 66 / 83 A lending library had some additional useful items, including a roll of toilet paper and cans of beans and corn, in a Hermosa Beach neighborhood. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times) 67 / 83 Protesters drive by the Getty House, the home of L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti, in Hancock Park. Tenant advocates are demanding a total moratorium on evictions during the coronavirus crisis. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 68 / 83 Venice residents Emily Berry and Gavin Kelley take a break at Venice Beach. Berry, a cocktail waitress at Enterprise Fish Co., lost her job due to the coronavirus outbreak. Kelley, a manager at a performing arts school with a focus on music, said that he still has a job and that classes at the school will resume online this coming Monday. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) 69 / 83 The JW Marriott at L.A. Live is sharing a message of hope with red lights in 34 windows, creating a 19-story display on the hotel’s north side. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) 70 / 83 Juan Diaz Jr., a lifelong Dodgers fan, prays that the season will start by May in front of Dodger Stadium on what would have been opening day. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) 71 / 83 Hayley, CEO and founder of Love My Neighbor Foundation, right, dances with Crystal Armster, 51, while she and her colleagues continue to feed the homeless on skid row amid the pandemic. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) 72 / 83 A masked passenger on a Metro bus in downtown Los Angeles. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 73 / 83 Dede Oneal waits for a coronavirus test at the Crenshaw Christian Center in South Los Angeles. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) 74 / 83 A man in a mask passes a closed restaurant along Spring Street in downtown Los Angeles. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 75 / 83 Artist Corie Mattie paints a mural on the side of a pop-up store as a man takes a picture in West Hollywood. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 76 / 83 Medical assistant Zoila Villalta works with Rosie Boston, 32, of Glendale, who is donating blood for her first time at L.A. Care Health Plan downtown. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) 77 / 83 A couple wait for a bus outside the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 78 / 83 With all Los Angeles schools closed until further notice, LAUSD buses sit idle in Gardena. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 79 / 83 A lone traveler makes his way to catch a flight in Tom Bradley International Terminal. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) 80 / 83 Denise Young looks on as her daughter, Allison, 9, a fourth-grader at EARThS (Environmental Academy of Research Technology and Earth Sciences) Magnet School in Newbury Park, receives a Chromebook. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) 81 / 83 Hollywood Boulevard is devoid of the usual crowds. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 82 / 83 Michael Ray, 11, plays before a movie at the Paramount Drive-In. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 83 / 83 Isabella Leader, 15, counts how many flags have been left for World War II veteran Lt. Col. Sam Sachs who was celebrating his 105th birthday at the Mom & Dad’s House, an assisted living facility, in Lakewood. Lt. Col. Sachs appealed to the public for birthday cards after the coronavirus pandemic forced the cancellation of a big celebration and wound up receiving thousands, including a letter and photo from President Trump. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
Federal prosecutors Wednesday charged a locomotive driver at the Port of Los Angeles with intentionally derailing a train near the U.S. Navy’s hospital ship Mercy because he suspected it was not there to help with the coronavirus crisis.
Eduardo Moreno, 44, of San Pedro, was charged with deliberately wrecking a train during the incident Tuesday, which led to a derailment and fuel leak, according to the charges.
Prosecutors allege that Moreno derailed the train and deliberately crashed through barriers designed to stop engines before grinding to a halt 250 yards from the Mercy.
Moreno reportedly said, “You only get this chance once. The whole world is watching. I had to. People don’t know what’s going on here. Now they will.”
Times staff writers Melissa Gomez, Matt Hamilton, Jack Dolan, Joseph Serna and Taryn Luna contributed to this report.


latimes--2020-04-02--Want to adopt or foster a pet during the coronavirus crisis? Here's a list of resources

Numerous organizations support fosters and adoptions .
Among them : Petfinder.com : A good starting point in the process , with answers to common questions and lists of shelters based on your location .
L.A .
Animal Services ( City of Los Angeles ) : Currently needs help with medium- and larger-sized dogs and adult cats .
Visit website for listings of new animals .
Pasadena Humane Society and SPCA : Keeping waiting lists amid high demand .
For information , visit the website or email foster @ pasadenahumane.org for fostering options .
Little Angels Project : Agoura Hills rescue @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a waiting list for dogs .
Animal Care and Control : Busy , high-turnover L.A. County system serves unincorporated areas of the county and 47 cities .
To foster : email foster @ animalcare.lacounty.gov .
To see available pets , go to the website .
Kitten Rescue : Organization is “ inundated ” with requests for information on fostering and adopting .
Also handles dogs on occasion .
CatCafe Lounge : Shop closed for quarantine reasons , but still placing cats with the rescue group it partners with , Stray Cat Alliance .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Watts and South Los Angeles and arranges fostering and adopting .

Many shelters and rescue groups post photos of animals needing homes online.
Numerous organizations support fosters and adoptions. Among them:
Petfinder.com: A good starting point in the process, with answers to common questions and lists of shelters based on your location.
L.A. Animal Services (City of Los Angeles): Currently needs help with medium- and larger-sized dogs and adult cats. Visit website for listings of new animals.
Advertisement
Pasadena Humane Society and SPCA: Keeping waiting lists amid high demand. For information, visit the website or email foster@pasadenahumane.org for fostering options.
SpcaLA: Offering adoptions by appointment. Also accepting drop-off donations Monday, Wednesday and Friday 9 a.m. - 10 a.m. at the spcaLA South Bay Pet Adoption Center, 12910 Yukon Ave., Hawthorne; spcaLA Pitchford Companion Animal Village & Education Center, 7700 E. Spring St., Long Beach.
Little Angels Project: Agoura Hills rescue organization is currently placing cats and keeping a waiting list for dogs.
Animal Care and Control: Busy, high-turnover L.A. County system serves unincorporated areas of the county and 47 cities. To foster: email foster@animalcare.lacounty.gov. To see available pets, go to the website.
Kitten Rescue: Organization is “inundated” with requests for information on fostering and adopting. Also handles dogs on occasion.
CatCafe Lounge: Shop closed for quarantine reasons, but still placing cats with the rescue group it partners with, Stray Cat Alliance.
Watts Project: Takes animals from shelters in Watts and South Los Angeles and arranges fostering and adopting.


latimes--2020-04-02--The latest shortage? Dogs and cats, as folks foster and adopt pets during quarantine

Emily Bates needed some sort of salve for her growing sense of dread .
Heidi Torres needed a coronavirus distraction for her three children — bored , worried and home from school .
Her answer : fostering Benny , a spaniel mix who ’ d just been pummeled by a car .
Liz Bridges , far from her Pasadena home , just needed a pal .
So , she took home a 4-week-old stray puppy who was being kept alive — barely — by monks on the streets of Talpe , a tiny beach town in southern Sri Lanka .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , in fretful and uncertain times , it sometimes seems as though every cat and mutt is now a therapy pet .
“ Dogs are such healers , ” said Namiko Ishii-Danganan , who just fostered a blue nose pit bull named Sky .
“ She ’ s a great distraction … the biggest love bug ever.
” Shelter and rescue organizations nationwide are reporting unprecedented interest in fostering and adopting as people who are sheltering in place turn to kittens and puppies , dogs and cats , and here and there a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ crisis .
Amid the lockdown , a restless and hard-headed nation has discovered that what it really needs right now is a snuggle and a slurp .
“ We are being inundated with offers to foster kittens and are also seeing a sharp increase of interest in adopting , ” said Ben Lehrer , president of Kitten Rescue , which has been placing stray kittens and cats across Los Angeles for 25 years .
Kristi Labrenz Galvan , who runs the CatCafe Lounge , a shop full of available cats and coffee ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in West Los Angeles , reports a similar surge .
“ We ’ ve had so many adoptions … it ’ s been so great.
” Jack Hagerman , a vice president at the Pasadena Humane Society , reports a “ massive uptick ” of interest , adding that within a week or so of his group sending sent out its first plea for foster volunteers on March 12 , “ we ’ ve had 1,451 people come forward wishing to foster a shelter pet , ” with all 124 animals that were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Just ... wow.
” Thinking of checking out one of the locations run by Los Angeles Animal Services , one of the largest municipal shelter systems in the country ?
“ If people want a small dog , we have only a few at this time , ” said Agnes Sibal-von Debschitz , a representative for the agency .
A new addition to a household can ease anxiety , allowing people to focus on something other than the pandemic .
Nikki Weingarten , a La Cañada Flintridge family and marriage therapist , says @ @ @ @ @ @ @ They can be especially helpful for people who live alone , and , when it comes to families with kids , the message is , “ We ’ re getting this pet , life goes on , everything will work out OK. ” Fostering was already on the rise across the country , and experts say that about half of all fostered pets end up as permanent residents of their foster homes .
But the thoroughness of some animal fostering protocols ( and adoption procedures as well ) inspired now-familiar complaints from prospective @ @ @ @ @ @ @ easier to qualify for a mortgage than to adopt a cat or dog .
Staffers at shelters and rescue groups insist the red tape has been cut in recent years .
And , in the past few weeks , with interest skyrocketing , the procedures have been further streamlined as organizations scramble to place pets in homes , knowing they would soon have to get by with only skeleton staffs .
( Animals in need of special care were a priority . )
Groups increasingly turned to online applications and confirmations .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ happened , ” says Bates of her adoption through Little Angels , a popular rescue group .
“ I think it was a little bit different because everyone was working from home.
” “ We ’ ve rescued but we ’ ve never fostered , ” said Torres , who took Benny after he ’ d been struck by a car and suffered a broken pelvis .
“ We got the call , and in a couple of hours we had him.
” At first , they had to carry Benny everywhere , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ around on his own as he heals .
“ I kept telling the kids what a good example he is , ” said Torres , who lives in La Cañada and is mother to Graysen , 12 , Jakob , 16 , and Maddie , 19 .
“ I feel like he ’ s taught us lessons.
” The stories of fostering and rescues come from near and far .
Bridges adopted the dog she named Ruby from the streets of tiny Talpe , Sri Lanka , where the rules of the lockdown @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out to shop only every three days .
She was holed up in Talpe with her boyfriend as they waited to launch a backpacking business .
“ I couldn ’ t imagine this without her , ” Bridges , said in an email , adding that Ruby was initially covered with fleas and ticks .
“ She ’ s keeping me mentally and physically occupied through everything , and I couldn ’ t be happier that she was dropped into our hands.
” In Chicago , dental student Jenna Kirk took advantage of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Honey , a 5-pound poodle pup with eyes like a Christmas toy .
“ I have all day to spend with her now , ” said Kirk , 29 .
“ I can adapt to her schedule and she can adapt to mine.
” For Sandra Sempowicz , who recently lost her husband of 36 years , having her recently adopted dog , Bob Dylan , around to comfort her during the quarantine has been a salvation .
“ One day , we did five walks , ” said Sempowicz , who also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in pets could hardly come at a better time ; March is typically kitty and puppy season , when the rate of births among stray animals explodes .
Experts say the season is running a little late this year , although they admit their ability to get a count has been hindered by the pandemic .
The later the season starts , the greater the boom , Hagerman said , which could set the stage for an even more robust — and troubled — season a year from now , particularly for kittens @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are also concerned about the long-term implications of the economic downturn and how it will affect the donations and grants that sustain them .
With so many organizations involved , the procedure for moving an animal into a home varies , but typically , the flow runs this way : Shelters , often public facilities , take in strays and abandoned pets .
In some municipalities , animals may eventually be euthanized , but the city of Los Angeles has a no-kill policy .
Animals that aren ’ t adopted directly from a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , often small private nonprofits , that place them in the homes of volunteers , or those who have been cleared to foster .
During those transfers , organizations are now taking steps to limit human-to-human contact and allow for social distancing , using crates for dogs and cats and doing the exchanges outside the facilities when possible .
The process of fostering or adoption doesn ’ t always go smoothly .
Shelters and rescue groups work to help prospective owners understand that pets require more than “ just food and a litter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ don ’ t know , they think it ’ s easy , ” said Cristin Tamburo Coll , a feline behavior consultant who works with CatCafe and the Stray Cat Alliance .
“ Just like humans , cats are all very different .
They need toys , and something to scratch .
Believe it or not , they get bored.
” Kitty Block , who heads the Humane Society of the United States , urges those considering a foster pet to ask about a facility ’ s policy on veterinary care .
Many @ @ @ @ @ @ @ charge , but the details should be confirmed before committing .
Many also provide food , treats and even toys and loaner crates to foster families , Block said , but that varies and should also be discussed ahead of time .
And experts want to remind anyone looking at a pet that even though we are sheltering in place , if restrictions ease in the future and people return to work and school , animals will continue to need attention and care .
For now , new pet parents say they are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the intangibles that a dog or cat brings to their lives .
“ I just think of that phrase : ‘ A house is not a home without a dog , ’ ” says Ishii-Danganan , who found Sky through the Watts Project , a busy South Los Angeles rescue group .
“ I ’ m glad to foster and save a life .
”

Namiko Ishii-Danganan, center, and her daughters Ami Ishii, left, and Miya Ishii are fostering Sky, a 1-year-old blue nose pit bull, at their home in Downey.
Emily Bates needed some sort of salve for her growing sense of dread.
Her solution: adopting a terrier mix named Frankie.
Heidi Torres needed a coronavirus distraction for her three children — bored, worried and home from school.
Her answer: fostering Benny, a spaniel mix who’d just been pummeled by a car.
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Liz Bridges, far from her Pasadena home, just needed a pal.
Liz Bridges and her new pup, Ruby, in Sri Lanka, where the Pasadena native is waiting out a coronavirus lockdown. (Liz Bridges)
So, she took home a 4-week-old stray puppy who was being kept alive — barely — by monks on the streets of Talpe, a tiny beach town in southern Sri Lanka.
Across Los Angeles and around the world, in fretful and uncertain times, it sometimes seems as though every cat and mutt is now a therapy pet.
“Dogs are such healers,” said Namiko Ishii-Danganan, who just fostered a blue nose pit bull named Sky. “She’s a great distraction … the biggest love bug ever.”
Shelter and rescue organizations nationwide are reporting unprecedented interest in fostering and adopting as people who are sheltering in place turn to kittens and puppies, dogs and cats, and here and there a rabbit, for comfort during the coronavirus crisis.
Amid the lockdown, a restless and hard-headed nation has discovered that what it really needs right now is a snuggle and a slurp.
Kristi Labrenz Galvan, founder of the CatCafe Lounge, spends time with some of her furry friends at the Westside establishment. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
“We are being inundated with offers to foster kittens and are also seeing a sharp increase of interest in adopting,” said Ben Lehrer, president of Kitten Rescue, which has been placing stray kittens and cats across Los Angeles for 25 years.
Advertisement
Kristi Labrenz Galvan, who runs the CatCafe Lounge, a shop full of available cats and coffee (currently open only for adoption services) in West Los Angeles, reports a similar surge. “We’ve had so many adoptions…. It’s been so great.”
Jack Hagerman, vice president at the Pasadena Humane Society, reports a “massive uptick” of interest, adding that within a week or so of his group sending out its first plea for foster volunteers March 12, “we’ve had 1,451 people come forward wishing to foster a shelter pet,” with all 124 animals that were available currently placed. “Wow. Just … wow.”
Thinking of checking out one of the locations run by Los Angeles Animal Services, one of the largest municipal shelter systems in the country? “If people want a small dog, we have only a few at this time,” said Agnes Sibal-von Debschitz, a representative for the agency.
A new addition to a household can ease anxiety, allowing people to focus on something other than the pandemic. Nikki Weingarten, a La Cañada Flintridge family and marriage therapist, says a new pet “represents hope.” They can be especially helpful for people who live alone, and when it comes to families with kids, the message is, “We’re getting this pet, life goes on, everything will work out OK.”
Fostering was already on the rise across the country, and experts say that about half of all fostered pets end up as permanent residents of their foster homes. But the thoroughness of some animal fostering protocols (and adoption procedures as well) inspired now-familiar complaints from prospective pet parents, who suggested it was easier to qualify for a mortgage than to adopt a cat or dog.
Staffers at shelters and rescue groups insist the red tape has been cut in recent years. And in the last few weeks, with interest skyrocketing, the procedures have been further streamlined as organizations scramble to place pets in homes, knowing they would soon have to get by with only skeleton staffs. (Animals in need of special care were a priority.) Groups increasingly turned to online applications and confirmations.
“I was shocked at how quickly it happened,” says Bates of her adoption through Little Angels, a popular rescue group. “I think it was a little bit different because everyone was working from home.”
“We’ve rescued but we’ve never fostered,” said Torres, who took Benny after he’d been struck by a car and suffered a broken pelvis. “We got the call, and in a couple of hours we had him.”
At first, they had to carry Benny everywhere, but lately, he’s getting around on his own as he heals.
“I kept telling the kids what a good example he is,” said Torres, who lives in La Cañada Flintridge and is mother to Graysen, 12, Jakob, 16, and Maddie, 19. “I feel like he’s taught us lessons.
“And he’s just so sweet.”
Siblings Maddie, left, Greyson and Jakob Torres, with their foster pup, Benny. (Heidi Torres)
The stories of fostering and rescues come from near and far. Bridges adopted the dog she named Ruby from the streets of tiny Talpe, Sri Lanka, where the rules of the lockdown allowed the beach town’s residents out to shop only every three days. She was holed up in Talpe with her boyfriend as they waited to launch a backpacking business.
“I couldn’t imagine this without her,” Bridges said in an email, adding that Ruby was initially covered with fleas and ticks. “She’s keeping me mentally and physically occupied through everything, and I couldn’t be happier that she was dropped into our hands.”
In Chicago, dental student Jenna Kirk took advantage of an extended spring break to bring home Honey, a 5-pound poodle pup with eyes like a Christmas toy.
“I have all day to spend with her now,” said Kirk, 29. “I can adapt to her schedule and she can adapt to mine.”
Sandra Sempowicz and her new pal, Bob Dylan. (Sandra Sempowicz)
For Sandra Sempowicz, who recently lost her husband of 36 years, having her recently adopted dog, Bob Dylan, around to comfort her during the quarantine has been a salvation.
“One day, we did five walks,” said Sempowicz, who also lives in Chicago.
The booming interest in pets could hardly come at a better time; March is typically kitty and puppy season, when the rate of births among stray animals explodes. Experts say the season is running a little late this year, although they admit their ability to get a count has been hindered by the pandemic.
The later the season starts, the greater the boom, Hagerman said, which could set the stage for an even more robust — and troubled — season a year from now, particularly for kittens. Rescue operations such as Kitten Rescue are also concerned about the long-term implications of the economic downturn and how it will affect the donations and grants that sustain them.
Cristin Tamburo Coll at the CatCafe, where she works on feline behavior. (CatCafe Lounge)
With so many organizations involved, the procedure for moving an animal into a home varies, but typically, the flow runs this way:
Shelters, often public facilities, take in strays and abandoned pets. In some municipalities, animals may eventually be euthanized, but the city of Los Angeles has a no-kill policy, though even that means some animals often need to be put down.
Animals that aren’t adopted directly from a shelter are sometimes taken by rescue organizations, often small private nonprofits, that place them in the homes of volunteers, or those who have been cleared to foster.
During those transfers, organizations are now taking steps to limit human-to-human contact and allow for social distancing, using crates for dogs and cats and doing the exchanges outside the facilities when possible.
The process of fostering or adoption doesn’t always go smoothly. Shelters and rescue groups work to help prospective owners understand that pets require more than “just food and a litter box.”
“A lot of people don’t know, they think it’s easy,” said Cristin Tamburo Coll, a feline behavior consultant who works with CatCafe and the Stray Cat Alliance. “Just like humans, cats are all very different. They need toys, and something to scratch. Believe it or not, they get bored.”
Honey, a small red poodle, was adopted recently in Chicago. (Jenna Kirk)
Kitty Block, who heads the Humane Society of the United States, urges those considering a foster pet to ask about a facility’s policy on veterinary care. Many shelters and rescues provide it free of charge, but the details should be confirmed before committing. Many also provide food, treats and even toys and loaner crates to foster families, Block said, but that varies and should also be discussed ahead of time.
And experts want to remind anyone looking at a pet that even though we are staying home, if restrictions ease in the future and people return to work and school, animals will continue to need attention and care.
For now, new pet parents say they are grateful for the companionship and all the intangibles that a dog or cat brings to their lives.
“I just think of that phrase: ‘A house is not a home without a dog,’” says Ishii-Danganan, who found Sky through the Watts Project, a busy South Los Angeles rescue group. “I’m glad to foster and save a life.”