Three months ago, with the building owner's permission, we placed two homeless individuals at a vacant property at 14400 S Figueroa Street. Our aim was to provide medical care for these individuals while they awaited housing availability. We organized weekly visits from the St. John's Medical Street Team to the site. Additionally, homeless outreach teams also visited them weekly. This was our first attempt to try a different approach to prevent these individuals from getting lost in the system.
On a positive note, we managed to transport four dogs from this location to the Carson Animal Shelter for medical treatment and basic care. The dogs will stay at the shelter for two weeks while the individuals are linked to housing.
On the downside, there was an excessive amount of waste. A boat mysteriously appeared in late November. Unwanted items from the streets were collected from the neighborhoods and brought to the site. Despite weekly cleanups in December, we still filled three dumpsters with waste.
The Figueroa corridor is now more complex than ever. The west side of Figueroa is under LAPD Southeast jurisdiction. The east side of Figueroa is under LAPD Southeast for the parking lot areas and sidewalks. The buildings fall under the jurisdiction of Compton and/or Century Sheriff. All northbound traffic issues along Figueroa are managed by CHP.
Resolving the issues affecting the Harbor Gateway community and the Unincorporated LA County areas of Rosewood, West Rancho Dominguez, and East Gardena is not straightforward. Resources are scarce or unavailable. Most of the progress in the business areas has been self-initiated. The partnerships I have developed have introduced resources that were previously absent. Homeless outreach is conducted on Thursdays with assistance from the WLCAC in Watts. By collaborating with their teams, we've been able to link individuals to housing resources, helping them get off the streets more quickly than before.
As a reminder, if you need to request outreach for someone experiencing homelessness, please visit www.LA-HOP.org
For locations in the City of Los Angeles, for non-violent homeless-related issues, call 877ASKLAPD. Once connected, request the Exodus Street Team for all areas within Harbor Gateway North. A team will arrive at the location within 20 minutes.
For areas within Harbor Gateway South, Harbor City, Wilmington, & San Pedro, call 877ASKLAPD. Once connected, ask for the Circle Team. They will also arrive at the location within 20 minutes.
Regrettably, there are no additional service providers for the unincorporated areas of LA County.
We appreciate the support from several local businesses that came out during the cleanup. What puzzled us was that four businesses approached us during the cleanup, requesting that we not relocate the individuals at the site, as their main concern was the litter. One business expressed their dissatisfaction with the situation verbally. By the end of the day, we managed to save two individuals from dying on the street and rescued four dogs.
We apologize to anyone who was offended by the mess or the decision to place individuals at this location.
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