Guest Commentary: In Santa Barbara homeless and vagrants are not the same

In an article for the Montecito Journal, Lang Martinez, who has experienced homelessness as a former addict, argues that chronic vagrancy and homelessness are two different sets of problems and should be treated as such. 

He claims that the government's Housing First Model and programs like Project Room Key have had a less than desirable outcome for sustaining an individual in long-term permanent housing solutions. Millions of dollars are being spent on these programs, but the funds lack public scrutiny and transparency, and outcomes are not measured effectively.