LA homeless encampment sweep is under way — causing protestors to clash with police. Should ‘tent cities' be left alone?

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2 days ago

Los Angeles city workers and police officers began clearing out a major homeless encampment near the 405 Freeway on July 31, removing trash, tents and an estimated 50–75 unhoused residents from a patch of Van Nuys sidewalk that had become known as "Tent City" or 'The Compound.'
'This is a notorious encampment,' Mayor Karen Bass told reporters at the scene. 'This is such a dangerous location. I saw propane canisters all over the place. This is dangerous.'
The move was met with non-violent resistance from protestors who padlocked the gates to the encampment and protested with signs as the work unfolded.
The operation was part of the city's Inside Safe initiative — a voluntary program aimed at relocating people from the street into motel rooms, and eventually, permanent housing. Officials emphasized that the event was not a sweep, but a housing-led outreach push.
'We try to take people together so that we don't break up the community,' Bass said, noting that community-based organizations take over once individuals are housed in motels, providing food, security and social workers.
But the event — and the program itself — has reignited debate over whether the city's resources are being used effectively in the fight against homelessness.
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What is Inside Safe?
Launched in late 2022, Inside Safe is the cornerstone of Mayor Bass's homelessness response. The program aims to clear encampments by offering motel rooms and services as a bridge to permanent housing. As of spring 2024:
2,482 people were brought inside from the streets.
Only 440 transitioned to permanent housing.
The program's costs ballooned to over $300 million, with some estimates placing per-person spending at $96,000
Despite high costs, Mayor Bass has defended the program as a humane alternative to letting Angelenos 'live in dangerous squalor.'
"But here's the choice. Do you pay for them to be in motels? Or do you allow them to beat in squalor, endanger themselves and endanger everybody else while you work to build a house?" she told Fox LA. We are looking for more cost-effective ways than motels. We have reduced the price this year, and we hope to reduce it even further moving forward. But one thing that I will not tolerate is Angeleno's living in dangerous squalor conditions."
Is it working?
The city has seen some progress. According to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA):
Homelessness in L.A. County declined 4% in 2025, to 72,308 people.
Unsheltered homelessness in the city fell 7.9%.
Chronic homelessness dropped 22%.
The Van Nuys site was one of the largest cleared in the San Fernando Valley, and LAHSA officials called it a 'major milestone.'
But critics argue the city is simply shuffling people from encampment to motel — without building long-term solutions fast enough.
Human Rights Watch called the program unsustainable, and said many people return to the streets because of limited services, poor planning, and a lack of permanent housing supply.
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What's working in other cities?
While Los Angeles grapples with the mounting cost and complexity of its homelessness response, other U.S. cities are charting alternative paths — some with striking success.
In cities like Houston, Austin, and New York, the most effective responses share a common philosophy: prioritize permanent housing over temporary shelter, and align public and nonprofit agencies under a unified strategy.
Houston, for example, has drawn national attention for reducing its homeless population by nearly 60% since 2011. The city's 'housing first' approach hinges on robust coordination between local governments, housing authorities, and nonprofits — allowing them to pool resources and streamline placements.
In Austin, tiny home communities like Community First! Village offer another model — providing affordable, dignified shelter and wraparound services in one location. With philanthropic support, the community is expanding to house over 2,000 people.
And while New York City has faced ongoing challenges, it has leaned heavily into hotel conversions, rental assistance programs, and legal protections for unhoused tenants. Though far from a solved problem, the city has set a precedent for large-scale shelter expansion in a dense urban environment.
What's next?
Coinciding with the Van Nuys clearance, Councilmember Adrin Nazarian broke ground on the district's fourth tiny home village, which will provide 100 new beds for unhoused residents. It's scheduled to open in Spring 2026, with an estimated cost of $4 million, ABC 7 reports.
Meanwhile, the city plans to fence off the cleared area to prevent future encampments from forming — a temporary fix in a city where affordable housing remains scarce and more than 45,000 people are still unsheltered.
Clearing encampments and offering motel rooms can offer short-term relief, but experts agree: the only real solution is more permanent, deeply affordable housing — and the political will to fund and build it at scale.
Without that, even the most well-funded programs risk becoming costly cycles of displacement, not recovery.
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