LOS ANGELES – Mayor Karen Bass helped two dozen unhoused Angelenos transition from the streets to safe, stable housing during a successful Inside Safe operation in Pico-Union. Conducted in coordination with Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez, the operation connected residents of the encampment near the intersection of W. Olympic Blvd. and Menlo Ave. to interim housing and supportive services before crews cleared tents and debris from the sidewalk along a densely populated residential and commercial corridor.
“Our work today in Pico-Union will make a life-changing difference for the 24 people who, tonight, will sleep in safe, stable housing instead of on the street,” said Mayor Bass. “And it also matters for the dozens of nearby businesses—restaurants, coffee shops, and corner stores—and for all the residents who’ve been living with the impact of this encampment right outside their doors. That’s what Inside Safe is all about. We’re saving lives and helping return public spaces to the communities they belong to.”
“Today, more unhoused neighbors in Pico-Union moved indoors and were connected to the supportive services they need to begin rebuilding their lives,” said Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez. “I’m grateful to Mayor Karen Bass for our continued partnership as we expand care-first solutions that address homelessness, improve public health and safety, and create lasting pathways to housing.”
The Pico-Union operation—the 134th since the launch of the Inside Safe program three years ago—builds on Mayor Bass’s record of bringing tens of thousands of Angelenos indoors and achieving Los Angeles’s first consecutive two-year decline in homelessness. That progress includes a nearly 18% reduction in street homelessness in the nation’s second-largest city, even as homelessness continues to rise in most other major cities across the country.
In addition to today’s Inside Safe operation, Mayor Bass also marked a major milestone earlier this week in her broader efforts to drive down homelessness across the city. On Wednesday, she announced that her House Our Vets initiative has secured permanent housing for more than 1,000 formerly unhoused Angelenos who served in the military. To commemorate the milestone, the Mayor visited the home of Kevina Mitchell, who experienced years of housing instability following a medical discharge from the Army. Now the mother of seven-month-old Daize, Kevina joined the Mayor in signing her lease before receiving the keys to her new home. The visit was featured in an exclusive segment on NBC 4.
Beyond moving people off the streets, Mayor Bass is also working to prevent individuals and families from becoming unhoused in the first place. Here’s how her administration is tackling every stage in the fight to end homelessness and build more housing:
- Cutting red tape to speed up construction of affordable housing, with more than 46,000 units currently in the pipeline.
- Signing into law the first update to Los Angeles’ Rent Stabilization Ordinance in 40 years.
- Implementing a research-proven eviction and homelessness prevention program through the Mayor’s Fund.
- Advancing the Citywide Housing Incentive Program to expand housing opportunities along major corridors, near transit, and in neighborhoods where people already live and work, with nearly 29,000 units proposed.
- Expanding the Adaptive Reuse Ordinance citywide to convert vacant offices and parking lots into housing, with estimates of more than 43,000 potential new homes.
- Promoting innovative housing through LA4LA and increasing opportunities for affordable housing on City-owned land.
