A jubilant crowd of civic leaders, planners and social workers gathered Wednesday to celebrate the conversion of a North Long Beach motel to a shelter for the homeless.
About three years after its purchase for $16.6 million, the former Luxury Inn, once a rundown lodge, was reintroduced to attendees with a $6.5 million facelift that included everything from major structural work and flooring to drapes, bedspreads and a pastel blue and gray exterior.
The 78-unit shelter will begin moving people inside next month and cost $2.3 million annually to operate. Paul Duncan, director of the city homeless bureau, said those admitted to the shelter will be permitted to stay up to a year while they train to re-enter society, working toward jobs, consistent health care and permanent housing…