LOS ANGELES – A long-standing homeless encampment near the Harbor (110) Freeway in South Los Angeles has been cleared, with housing provided for its 40 residents, officials announced Tuesday.
All the people in the encampment accepted shelter and support, according to a statement from Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office.
No one should live in a dangerous or unsanitary encampment, and we will continue our ongoing work to ensure that everyone has a safe place to call home. We stand strongest when we stand together — today, we are proud to work with our partners in Los Angeles to pair urgency with dignity and get people the help they need and deserve. California has built a strong system to address homelessness, and it is helping us turn this nationwide crisis around.
Gov. Gavin Newsom
Caltrans personnel conducted a formal cleanup operation at the site on Tuesday, which included clearing debris and hazardous waste, as well as collecting and storing personal belongings. A planned mitigation measure will include landscaping and fencing to prevent the area from being repopulated, as it is unsafe for human habitation, according to Newsom’s office.
The operation targeted a persistent encampment off the 110 freeway in Los Angeles. The encampment, situated adjacent to the freeway on state right-of-way, was blocking traffic and located across the street from a residential neighborhood.
Notice and outreach began on Friday, Sept. 19 and the city and county of LA began delivering social services to the 40 people experiencing homelessness on the site on Monday, Sept. 23. With the close coordination between the Governor’s SAFE Task Force and the Mayor’s Inside Safe Program, all of the people in the encampment accepted shelter and support.
We are seeing real results in LA – with street homelessness declining two years in a row – and partnerships like this only continue that momentum. Together, we will end this humanitarian crisis.
Mayor Karen Bass
Caltrans conducted cleanup of the site, including the clearing of debris, hazardous waste, and the collection and storage of personal belongings, on Tuesday. Caltrans will also install mitigation measures, including landscaping and fencing to prevent repopulation of the area, which is not safe for human habitation.
Between 2014 and 2019 — before Governor Newsom took office — unsheltered homelessness in California rose by approximately 37,000 people. Since then, under this Administration, California has significantly slowed that growth, even as many other states have seen worsening trends.
In 2024, while homelessness increased nationally by over 18%, California limited its overall increase to just 3% — a lower rate than in 40 other states. The state also held the growth of unsheltered homelessness to just 0.45%, compared to a national increase of nearly 7%. States like Florida, Texas, New York, and Illinois saw larger increases both in percentage and absolute numbers. California also achieved the nation’s largest reduction in veteran homelessness and made meaningful progress in reducing youth homelessness.
Caltrans will also install mitigation measures, including landscaping and fencing to prevent repopulation of the area, which is not safe for human habitation.
Just over a year after the Governor issued an executive order directing encampment cleanups and months after providing a new draft ordinance for local governments, the Governor advanced Californians’ statewide strategy to address the homelessness crisis with a new statewide task force to prioritize and remove encampments and bring services and shelter to individuals experiencing homelessness along state rights-of-way in California’s ten largest cities.
