A homeless encampment that neighbors said had been growing at Dockweiler State Beach in Playa del Rey was dismantled Thursday, city officials said.
The camp occupied a large portion of the four-mile stretch of beach next to Los Angeles International Airport, nearby residents said, and had been ignored by state and local government officials even as its problems became more visible in recent weeks.
The cleanup comes more than a month after Gov. Gavin Newsom threatened to cut off state funding from counties that fail to show improvement in combating the homeless crisis.
Dockweiler State Beach lies under the LAX flight path and is in an unusual jurisdictional position: It is part of the California State Parks system, its custodial maintenance and lifeguard services are managed by Los Angeles County, and through an agreement with the county, policing and code enforcement are handled by the city of Los Angeles, according to a county spokesperson.
This has proven to be a sensitive issue for Playa del Rey residents, who say that none of the local agencies have taken the initiative to address the camp.
“It's a little confusing, but everyone is pointing fingers,” Lucy Hun, a resident and founder of the nonprofit Friends of the Jungle, told KABC-TV of beach management.
Police ask Tyler Eyre, 30, to pick up his belongings during a beach cleanup of a homeless encampment at Dockweiler State Beach in Playa del Rey on Thursday.
(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
Trash, campfires, hypodermic needles and feces litter the beach, Hun said.
There was no information available on how many people were living at the Dockweiler State Beach encampment or what kind of services were offered to those displaced by the cleanup. Los Angeles City Councilwoman Traci Park, whose office organized the cleanup, said Thursday’s operation was conducted with the Coastal CARE+ team, which is part of the comprehensive, rapid engagement cleanup program implemented for encampment cleanups.
“However, we cannot do this alone, which is why I have asked the State and County to do their part to address this crisis,” Park’s office said in a statement.
California State Parks said Newsom's executive order complements the agency's existing policies on camping in state parks, but directed any questions about the Dockweiler camp to the county.
While neighbors said the growing encampment posed health and safety risks to those seeking to use the beach, Los Angeles’ Westside saw a nearly 20% decline in the number of homeless people, according to the latest data from the Los Angeles County Homeless Services Authority.
Still, the problem of homelessness persists as housing prices rise and not enough new homes are built.
In June, a Supreme Court ruling clarified how cities and local governments can enforce laws banning people from sleeping or camping in public spaces. The court’s decision said it was not “cruel and unusual” punishment to prohibit a person from sleeping on the streets or in parks, even if there was no adequate shelter space available.
This ruling has led to a more proactive approach by local governments.
In Long Beach, city staff are working to identify encampments that pose a public threat or block access to public services. They are in the process of identifying encampments where people have repeatedly refused to accept city services.
