Residents of Los Angeles are furious at City Council member Mike Bonin over his plan to move homeless people to “temporary” shelters at local beaches.
Signs demanding Bonin’s recall have begun popping up on lampposts and laws in the 11th district, which Bonin represents.
As Breitbart News reported this week, the City Council’s Homeless and Poverty Committee voted 4-1 to approve a feasibility study for Bonin’s plan, which he defends as temporary measure that will restore public space for residents in the long run.
Breitbart News described the plan in April:
Touting what he calls an “everything in” approach to homelessness, Bonin posted his plan last week, which includes a motion to study a “temporary site for single-occupancy tiny homes or safe camping at the county-owned parking lot at Will Rogers State Beach” in Pacific Palisades; similar sites at Dockweiler Beach in Playa Del Rey and Fisheran’s Village in Marina Del Rey; and a “temporary site specifically for RV safe parking at the county-owned parking lot” at Dockweiler.
Bonin includes suggestions for several additional sites on the west side of Los Angeles. His motion does not address the environmental impact of homeless encampments on public beaches, including sewage, drug use, crime, or other problems.
The county’s beaches have been one of the few refuges for local residents during the coronavirus pandemic, when other recreation sites were closed or restricted. The city council used public recreation centers as temporary homeless shelters.
Many local residents were furious.
Despite the City Council committee’s vote, many of Bonin’s own constituents are strongly opposed to the plan. Several local community councils have passed resolutions against the plan. The Venice Current reported earlier this week:
More than 19,000 opponents of the motion have signed a change.org petition against the creation of camping sites and tiny home sites in westside beaches and parks.
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The Brentwood Community Council (BCC) also weighed in with a vote to oppose Bonin’s plan [unless amended], pointing out that public recreational spaces are a benefit and resource for the entire community of Los Angeles and should stay that way. It also says that California beaches hold a unique and valued place in the hearts and minds of residents and visitors from throughout the world.
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The Venice Neighborhood Council voted last August to approve a resolution of no confidence in LA Metro, Mayor Eric Garcetti, Councilmember Mike Bonin, and service providers PATH and SPY holding them accountable for lack of management and leadership when it comes to the ABH [a temporary homeless housing project].
The UK Daily Mail added: “Residents of Venice Beach in Los Angeles say soaring crime rates and the exploding homeless population have made life in the elite beachside community unbearable.” Many locals blame Bonin for his role.
There is also growing concern about the fire risk of homeless encampments. The Los Angeles reported this week that fires at homeless encampments are becoming a “growing crisis,” noting: “In the first quarter of 2021, they occurred at a rate of 24 a day, making up 54% of all fires the [local] department responded to.”
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the new e-book, We Told You So!: The First 100 Days of Joe Biden’s Radical Presidency. His recent book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
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