L.A. uses disinfectants, rodent spray in downtown street cleanup

Alexandra Zavis (Los Angeles Times) | June 20, 2012

L.A. began a major cleanup of skid row Tuesday, storing some belongings of homeless people and removing large amounts of trash and dozens of needles.

The operation, requested by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, is expected to last up to three weeks and is focused on the area between 5th and 7th streets and Gladys Avenue and Wall Street.

Notices were posted Monday on neighborhood walls, and officials with the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority canvassed the area for weeks to ask people who sleep on the sidewalks to move their belongings during the cleanup, said Michelle Vargas, a spokeswoman for the Department of Public Works.

When city crews arrived on Gladys Avenue at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, just a handful of people remained. They were given 20 minutes to move their bags and shopping carts before the area was cordoned off and sanitation workers in protective suits and gloves began moving through.

A woman in a wheelchair scrambled to drag a plastic crate filled with blankets and clothes out of the way.

“Why not do it every week?” said the woman, who spoke on condition that she be identified only by her first name, Patricia. “They do it up top every week … on Main, Los Angeles and Broadway. There’s a big difference between their streets and our streets.”

City officials say they were hampered by a federal court injunction issued last year that placed limits on the removal of unattended items. But they say the dangers cited in the public health report required action. The county Department of Public Health inspected a nine-block area and discovered human waste, hypodermic needles, condoms and a rat infestation in violation of state and county health codes.

Neighborhood activists, who have long clashed with the city over tactics used to clean up skid row, say the court order does not prevent city employees from removing items that present a health or safety risk. They accuse the city of deliberately allowing conditions to deteriorate to bolster its case against the injunction — a charge rejected by city officials.

“We are actually quite pleased that streets are being cleaned, but we remain concerned about personal property being taken and destroyed in the process,” said Pete White, co-director of the Los Angeles Community Action Network, which advocates for the poor.

Tags: advocacy for the poor, Department of Public Works, drug needles, homeless, Los Angeles Community Action Network, mayor antonio villaraigosa, public health hazard, rat infestation, skid row cleanup

Posted by Lora on Jun 20 2012. Filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.