Thousands are housed as L.A. County makes progress on Skid Row

Mike Juma sat at the end of the bed in his ninth-floor one-bedroom apartment in downtown Los Angeles, staring at the mountains visible from his window.

“I don’t like high-rises,” he said. “But look at that gorgeous view. That’s what they call a million-dollar view.”

A year ago, Juma, 64, was in a vastly different place in life. He was living in a tent on Skid Row, selling cigarettes to make money and sleeping with a samurai-style sword by his side for protection.

Now, he’s in a furnished apartment listening to the soft whooshing sound of the air conditioner.

Read more at the Los Angeles Times.