Homeless encampments line South Venice Boulevard in Venice. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)
Surprisingly (or perhaps not surprisingly) the Los Angeles City Council’s proposed ban on homeless encampments within 500 feet of schools and daycare centers has become another wedge in the ongoing discussion on homelessness in L.A. According to the Los Angeles Times, the council voted 13-2 to draft legal language that would expand its anticamping law to educational facilities. However CD 4’s Councilmember Nithya Raman and CD 11 Councilmember Mike Bonin voted against the motion. Concerned parents and Alberto M. Carvalho, superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District, testified about incidents involving homeless people outside campuses. Councilmembers noted that enforcement would include social workers, mental health specialists and others who would offer the unhoused shelter and services.