On the evening of October 8th (Tuesday), a public hearing scheduled by the Rosemead City Council to discuss a proposal from the children’s charity organization Maryvale was met with a large gathering of Asian-American residents. They were there to oppose the proposed change of land use for transitional and supportive housing. Due to chaotic scenes, the discussion was postponed to October 22nd. Protesters were heard chanting “No shelters, no homeless,” expressing concerns that the plan could lead to community safety issues.
The proposal to be discussed at the public hearing was regarding a development application submitted by Maryvale. The plan aimed to legalize and intensify the land use at 7600 Graves Avenue, Rosemead, CA 91770. The goal was to repurpose the former orphanage for transitional and supportive housing, providing accommodation for single mothers and abused teenage girls. Local residents feared that this plan could attract homeless individuals to the area and impact community safety, leading to strong protests.
Maryvale, founded in 1856, is a children and family service organization also known as an “orphanage.” However, with evolving social welfare policies and child protection concepts in the United States, orphanages have gradually been replaced by the foster care system. Government agencies have increased their focus on child welfare and promoted foster care families and adoption systems.
In the present-day United States, there are almost no traditional orphanages. Most children are placed in the foster care system or find permanent homes through adoption. Consequently, Maryvale has strengthened its support services for vulnerable children, including psychological counseling, education, and vocational training.
According to the city government’s published report, the development plan is not a “homeless shelter” but targeted towards specific groups and referrals. The current plan includes providing early education for children and families, affordable outpatient mental health services for children (under 25) and their families, temporary housing for up to nine single mothers for six months, each mother allowed to bring a maximum of two children, and offering 14 beds for female students (18 to 28 years old) facing housing insecurity or family abuse situations.
The Rosemead City Council convenes on the second and fourth Tuesday evenings of each month for municipal issue discussions. A local resident told reporters that they had never seen so many people participate in a council meeting before.
Outside the meeting, protesters of various ethnicities, including Chinese, Vietnamese, and Hispanic, chanted “No shelters, no homeless.” The city government provided translation assistance in Cantonese, Mandarin, Vietnamese, and Spanish.
The continuously increasing crowd made the meeting unusually noisy. Consequently, the council had to dispatch police officers to maintain order and planned to set up TVs outside the plaza temporarily for those unable to enter to follow the discussion. However, due to unforeseen events and slow facility preparations, the meeting was abruptly adjourned to ensure a smooth continuation of the discussion, with plans to reconvene in two weeks on October 22nd.
According to the latest American Community Survey (ACS) data, the Asian population in Rosemead accounts for 63.36%, with many Chinese residents recently receiving similar messages on WeChat urging them to participate in protests at the city hall to prevent a potential influx of homeless individuals from downtown Los Angeles, fearing it could turn the city into an unsafe area, leading to property devaluation and street disorder.
A YouTube channel with nearly 79,000 followers, “CJ’s Life – 20 Years of Real Estate Watching in America,” also released a video calling on Rosemead residents and businesses to gather at the city hall on the 8th to protest, labeling the proposal as the “Rosemead City Government’s plan to build 400 units for the homeless.”
Local residents are concerned that transitional housing would inevitably bring instability to the community and believe that the property is considerable in size, leaving open the possibility of more housing being built for homeless individuals and single mothers in the future. On that day, Chinese residents from surrounding cities in the San Gabriel Valley also showed support, echoing similar worries about safety hazards, insisting that no Chinese city in the San Gabriel Valley should allow an influx of homeless individuals.
The proposal was discussed and approved by the Rosemead City Planning Commission on September 16th (Monday), stating that the project would not have a negative impact on public health, safety, and welfare. On the contrary, resources such as mental health services and early education were viewed positively by the community, reducing crime and substance abuse issues. The San Gabriel Valley Homelessness Alliance (SGVC) also urged support for Maryvale’s development application.
Supporting the protests, attorney Liu Longzhu, currently running for California State Assembly, stated that residents did not want Rosemead to become a homeless shelter, potentially leading the city’s safety into high crime rates. These protesters were voluntarily stepping up to protect their homes. He urged all local residents to attend the council meeting on the 22nd to defend their rights.