Some Hollywood residents are fed up with the lack of housing in their area and may end up changing their votes in local elections.
The Los Angeles Times reported Sunday on growing problems with homeless encampments around Cahuenga Boulevard, Wilcox Avenue, Franklin and other parts of the city.
“There have been at least four fires in homeless encampments in that area over the past three months. Although no injuries have been reported, some people in the area are nervous. Residents say that, in recent years, too.” “We have had to deal with screaming in the middle of the night, human waste on sidewalks and doorways, open-air drug use, and at times threats of violence,” the report reads.
The article notes that some residents have been “disappointed” in Democratic Mayor Karen Bass and are considering voting against Councilwoman Nithya Raman.
Los Angeles residents have frequently expressed their problems with homeless encampments forming in their neighborhoods. (Hans Gutknecht/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images)
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“People are afraid for their safety,” said LAPD Community Policing Advisory Board Co-Chair Alexa Iles Skarpelos. “That next fire could cause devastating death, not just property damage.”
Skarpelos told the LA Times that he will vote for deputy city attorney. Ethan Weaver as city councilman in the upcoming local elections on March 5.
Resident Jeanie Griffin, who moved in 2017 to be closer to her family, stated that she regrets voting for Raman and also hopes Weaver wins. As an addiction therapist, Griffin noted that many local homeless residents “have shown signs of serious methamphetamine use” and “have acted in frightening ways: confronting passersby, yelling at cars, or masturbating in public.”
Some residents are considering voting against Councilman Nithya Raman because of the homeless issue. ((Hans Gutknecht/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images)/(Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images))
“They’re agitated. They’re combative. They’re talking to themselves,” Griffin said.
Debra Gainor, who owns two rental units in the area, also told the LA Times that she will vote for Weaver.
“We’re exhausted from dealing with this,” Gainor said.
While Weaver stated that he is open to designating more areas as no-camping zones in the city, Raman rejected the idea saying it would push homeless people “deeper into residential and commercial areas.”
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“I’m really trying to find a path forward that really gets people off the streets for good,” Raman said.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Councilmember Raman and Los Angeles Mayor Bass for comment.
Fox News Digital reached out to Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass for comment. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel)
In 2023, authorities reported that more than 75,500 people were homeless on a given night in Los Angeles County, a 9% increase from the previous year, and about 46,200 within the city of Los Angeles.
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Fox News’ Bailee Hill contributed to this report.