Latest news with #LaQuintaInn
Business Journals
9 hours ago
- Business
- Business Journals
University Inn & Suites Berkeley hotel files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
The 113-room University Inn & Suites Berkeley hotel at 920 University Ave., formerly the La Quinta Inn by Wyndham Berkeley, was scheduled for foreclosure auction this week as its owner, Kubera Hotel Properties LP, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
100s of Coloradans could be back on the streets with end of housing voucher program
Gary Jackson rests in bed at a former La Quinta Inn on Park Avenue in Denver, June 12, 2022. He lived at the hotel during the spring of 2022 after receiving an emergency housing voucher due to his vulnerability to COVID-19 while managing congestive heart failure. (Giles Clasen for Colorado Newsline) Gary Jackson's most recent spell of homelessness happened during the COVID-19 pandemic. After being released from a more than 12-year prison sentence, his son died. He then lived unsheltered for a couple of years before his heart began to fail, which Jackson says is a direct result of his homelessness. These challenges made Jackson a perfect candidate for the federal Emergency Housing Voucher program. EHVs were created by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 to provide housing for the chronically homeless; people fleeing domestic violence, human trafficking or sexual assault; and families facing housing instability. About 70,000 EHVs were distributed to public housing authorities across the nation. Jackson's EHV helped him get a room at the La Quinta hotel at Interstate 25 and Park Avenue in Denver while he received medical treatments for his heart condition. The EHV gave him enough stability to receive a Section 8 voucher that he's used to rent an apartment of his own for more than a year. 'I got the Holy Grail of housing vouchers, apparently,' Jackson said. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Jackson is one of a handful of EHV holders who have successfully transitioned to more stable housing. However, there are hundreds more EHV holders in Colorado facing the possibility of being sent back to the streets. In March, the Colorado Division of Housing received a letter from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development saying that the EHV program is expected to run out of money by the end of 2026, four years earlier than originally expected. Part of the reason for the lack of funding for the program is the national spike in rent costs. Median rents across the U.S. stood at $1,781 per month at the end of 2021, according to Those rents peaked in July 2022 at around $1,850 per month, though they have steadily fallen to $1,694 as of March 2025. Should the funding for this program end, many participants will go back to the dangerous living situations they were in. – Shannon Gray, spokesperson for the Colorado Division of Housing At the same time, the Trump administration has made it clear that it does not intend to continue funding the program. 'While these EHV funds are being obligated to your PHA, you should manage your EHV program with the expectation that no additional funding from HUD will be forthcoming,' the letter DOH received says. Colorado received 996 EHVs, which it then distributed to 12 public housing agencies across the state. Those public housing agencies were primarily located in Front Range counties like Boulder, Denver, Jefferson, and Adams. Cities like Fort Collins, Aurora, Colorado Springs and Littleton also received vouchers. Altogether, nearly 1,200 households benefitted from EHVs, according to federal data. There are 892 EHV units still leased, DOH spokesperson Shannon Gray told Colorado Newsline in an email. 'We are concerned about the implications of non-renewal of the funding for all (EHV) participants in Colorado,' Gray said. 'Should the funding for this program end, many participants will go back to the dangerous living situations they were in.' For public housing officials, the anticipated end of the EHV program has become a significant cause for concern. Peter LiFari, CEO of Maiker Housing Partners in Adams County, told Colorado Newsline that there is a 'mad frenzy' of communication and collaboration among public housing authorities in Colorado to figure out contingency plans for the remaining EHV holders. Those contingency plans are complicated as Colorado leaders have already had to navigate a $1.2 billion state budget shortfall, and federal support remains uncertain. Meanwhile, advocates at the National Low Income Housing Coalition expect the Trump administration to significantly overhaul the Housing Choice Voucher program and reduce the number of available vouchers by around 200,000 in the fiscal year 2026 budget. Housing Choice Vouchers, also known as Section 8 vouchers, are the most common voucher available to people experiencing homelessness. One change LiFari expects the Trump administration to push for is adding work requirements to the HCV program. HUD Secretary Scott Turner said after his confirmation that the agency should work to 'increase self-sufficiency and empower Americans to climb the economic ladder toward a brighter future.' A 2022 federal review of work requirement policies found that they can increase part-time employment, but the impact of the policies to 'reach a level that enables self-sufficiency remains unclear.' 'This is an appetizer from the administration to move the Overton window on work,' LiFari said. Cathy Alderman, spokesperson for the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless, told Colorado Newsline that many of the EHV holders don't have other housing options. 'They can't just find another affordable place,' Alderman said. 'It's not likely that they have a great deal of resources saved up to move them into a market-rate unit that doesn't accept vouchers, which is going to ultimately put a lot of people into the cycle of homelessness at a time when homelessness is already on the rise.' Over the last year, homelessness in Colorado increased by more than 29% to more than 18,700 people, according to federal data. Subpopulations like families with children saw an even more significant increase in homelessness, rising 134% compared to 2023. Moving people from an EHV to a more permanent housing voucher is also a complicated process, Alderman added. About 20% of the people who qualify for a housing voucher receive one for various reasons. The number of available vouchers fluctuates every year. There are also waitlists for people to apply for housing vouchers. The program also relies on landlords who accept housing vouchers, which can be inconsistent. The Coalition has units it owns that can be used to provide housing for people who lose their EHV, but Alderman said there are not enough housing units to help the nearly 900 people who could be impacted. 'There's no affordable housing for people to move into,' Alderman said. 'It's why we have the homeless crisis that we have.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
USA Today
05-05-2025
- USA Today
Second person charged with murder in death of Super Bowl reporter Adan Manzano
Second person charged with murder in death of Super Bowl reporter Adan Manzano Authorities in Louisiana have charged a second person with second-degree murder in the death of a reporter from Kansas City who was in New Orleans to cover the Super Bowl. The Kenner Police Department said it obtained an arrest warrant for Rickey White and charged him with Adan Manzano's death. White has been in custody at the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center since he was arrested at a La Quinta Inn in Hollywood, Florida, on March 14 by U.S. Marshals and the Hollywood Police Department. White was previously charged with simple robbery, access device fraud, illegal transmission of monetary funds, bank fraud and computer fraud. Danette Colbert was arrested after she was seen on video at the Kenner Comfort Suites hotel with Manzano at around 5 a.m. the day of his death on Feb. 5 and was seen leaving the room alone later in the morning. Authorities charged her with second-degree murder in March. Manzano died from the combined toxic effects of Xanax and alcohol intoxication, along with positional asphyxia, and the manner of death is still undetermined. He was found face down on a pillow, and his blood alcohol level was .232, almost three times the legal amount in the state of Louisiana. Manzano's cellphone and credit card were found during a search of Colbert's residence in Slidell, and the credit card was used fraudulently at several New Orleans area stores. Colbert also faces a state felony charge of possession of a stolen firearm that was also found during that search, but authorities have said they didn't think it relates to Manzano's case. Authorities said no further comments will be made in the case.
CBS News
21-03-2025
- CBS News
Mother charged with murder for allegedly killing 11-year-old son in Santa Ana hotel
A 48-year-old woman accused of killing her 11-year-old son in a Santa Ana hotel room has been charged with murder, prosecutors said Friday. Saritha Ramaraju, who lived out of state after divorcing the boy's father in 2018, was staying with her son at the La Quinta Inn for a custody visit when she allegedly killed him Wednesday morning . Police said they responded to a 911 call at the hotel around 9:15 a.m., made by Ramaraju, stating that she murdered her son, Yatin Ramaraju. Sgt. Natalie Garcia said at the time, it appeared the boy was stabbed with a knife, which was recovered by police at the scene. Ramaraju also told police she had taken pills, so she was taken into custody and transported to a hospital. Prosecutors said Ramaraju had bought three-day Disneyland passes during her custody visit. The boy was scheduled to be returned to his father that day but "was instead found by police that morning dead on the motel room's bed among Disneyland souvenirs." The boy's father and Ramaraju had been in a custody battle since last year. She had been living in Virginia and was granted visitation with her son during spring break from Friday through Wednesday at 6 p.m. Ramaraju has been charged with one felony count of murder and one felony enhancement of personal use of a weapon, a knife. She faces a maximum sentence of 26 years to life if convicted on all charges. "The life of a child should not hang in the balance between two parents whose anger for each other outweighs their love for their child," said Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer.
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Yahoo
Mother arrested in fatal stabbing of 11-year-old son in Santa Ana
Santa Ana police arrested a 48-year-old woman they believe stabbed to death her preteen son inside a local motel Wednesday morning. The mother was taken into custody at a La Quinta Inn without incident shortly after she called police at 9:25 a.m. to report that she had killed her son, according to Natalie Garcia, a Santa Ana police public information officer. The woman, whose identity was not released, was initially taken into custody in a hallway outside a room where she and her son were staying, according to police. However, the mother told police she had ingested a large amount of an unknown substance, according to police. She was instead transported to a local hospital where she remains in custody in stable condition. Read more: O.C. sheriff's deputy is stabbed as she performs homeless outreach; suspect arrested The 11-year-old boy was pronounced dead. Garcia said police recovered a knife at the scene. Police believe the event 'was an isolated incident' and no other suspects are involved, Garcia said. The hotel was still cordoned off by police as of 2 p.m. as they searched the room. Anyone with information is asked to call Santa Ana police at (714) 245-8000 or Orange County Crime Stoppers at (855) TIP-OCCS. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
