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Venice News Updates

News of Venice, CA and Marina del Rey CA

A drip here and there ends in an empty tank … so cool, so unsanitary

Posted by :reta On : May 11, 2019
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Category: Campers, Homeless, Human Waste, Uncategorized

The film illustrates a big health problem with motor homes parked on the streets of Venice because there is no close, convenient dump station.

The two closest dump stations are Dockweiler RV Park at 12001 Vista del Mar, Playa del Rey and Hyperion Plant at 9660 W. Imperial Hwy, Playa del Rey, Gate B. Dockweiler charges $10 per dump. Hyperion in free and is open M,w,F from 9 to 2 and T,T from 12 to 4.

Not only is that a long distance for a motorhome to travel for a dump but one must consider the maneuverability of the motorhome on the road. Also when a motorhome has to be moved, everything inside has to be stowed or it could be a movable tragedy. When a motorhome person moves, he looses his spot. Spots near the ocean in Venice are precious.

So most do what this one in movie does.

The photo shows two handles used for motorhome dumping. Each handle goes to a tank. One tank is for shower and dishwater water; the other is for the toilet. A long tube in connected to the fitting in the middle, both handles are pulled out and the refuge with water goes to a dump station.

What many do is keep the shower and dishwater valve a little open so it will drip until it is gone. Seldom do they leave it open like the movie. Some will pull up to a sewer and just dump both tanks. Usually this is done late at night or early in the morning. This writer has seen one pull up and dump both tanks in a waste water dump that goes directly to the ocean. Motorhome people have other configurations and probably have a few variations, such as using a bucket to carry waste to the sewer.

A City should consider this fact before mapping out areas of comfort in Venice.

Bonin Questions Effectivity of the Homeless Street Cleanings

Posted by :reta On : May 4, 2019
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Category: Bureau of Sanitation, Cleanup, Homeless, LAPD, Uncategorized

Councilman Mike Bonin in the City Council Homeless and Poverty committee has made a motion to have Bureau of Sanitation, Los Angeles Police Department, and Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority and other agencies to report on the “efficiency of existing clean-up efforts,” detailing key objectives and providing metrics of success or failure. The following questions should be answered:

1. Are we improving public health?
2. Are we helping or hurting efforts to get people out of encampments and into housing and services?
3. What is the appropriate role of law enforcement in clean-ups?
4. What is the appropriate level of oversight and community engagement?

Encampment Update — 3 May 2019

Posted by :reta On : May 3, 2019
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Category: Encampment, Homeless, Uncategorized


It is so nice to see 7th Ave behind Whole Foods with its bollards. This homeless site was directly across from homes.

Reminiscing one remembers the encampments in the median of the 90 Freeway creating a fire hazard, the solicitors at the corners on Washington and Lincoln and the 90 Freeway. Remember the encampment at Lake, the encampment that surrounded Staples and ended up next to Lincoln Hardware before it left. Remember the encampment on Venice Way next to the Post Office annex. This is where the shooter came from that shot someone on Windward. Who could forget the Canal saga. Harrison and Harding had encampments. McDonald’s restaurant use to be surrounded by homeless. Most of these encampments have been handled by Citizens in the neighborhood who purchased planters and plants. Others have been handled by the LAPD.

7th Ave
Sidewalk on 7th Ave behind Whole Foods market is empty. (See photo above.)  The leasing company that leases to Whole Foods found out their property line goes to middle of sidewalk so they have put bollards in the middle of the sidewalk to show their property line.

The people who stayed on 7th were there for a short time. Charlie was there from Colorado and “won’t go back until the weather gets better.” Shogun left for Santa Cruz. Jake worked in construction and could work if he wanted, but he chose the beach lifestyle. Those were just a few this writer got to know. These three would never accept housing. The others changed each week. Noticed that Machado Ave next to 7th has an encampment.

Penmar Park
Penmar Park looks like it lost some tenters. Officers Perez and Lin were there and were asking people to put down their tents or fix them so that they were open on all sides.Perez said the HOPE team had been out many times. No one seemed to want housing or services. Perez said Sanitation was scheduled to return soon, just when he didn’t know. People have been lining the alley again with trash and pushing stuff in the middle of the lot.

Casey is one of the tenters and she was helping another tenter put down his tent because he wasn’t there. Casey said there were about six tents and eleven people living there. Most people were couples but her boyfriend is away for awhile. She has been there since Memorial Day and the 4th is her 30th Birthday. I talked to Casey about calling SHARE which has collaborative housing. She said she and her boyfriend use to have two dogs so people put them on the bottom of the list. Now they don’t have dogs. At SHARE they could share a bedroom when he comes back.  She will wait for her  boyfriend first.





Alley Behind Thai Restaurant
The property behind the Thai restaurant looks like it is gaining in tenters. One fellow said there were 14. There were only 10 before,

Ocean Ave Between North and South Venice Blvd
Ocean Ave between South and North Venice Blvd has not changed much since last week. They are still in violation of Penal Code 601 and the ADA accessibility. North Venice continues to grow and the car is still grounded there attracting vagrants.
Guess enforcement awaits SLO Jennifer Muther who comes back from vacation 12 May.



Fourth south of Sunset
Fourth looks like it is growing. It has been mostly people who stay off the sidewalk but this time it had a couple people who were violating that law.

Westminster Senior Center Park
Westminster park at the senior center had three encampments last week. This week it has one more.

Hampton Drive
Hampton Dr south of Rose only has the one area of encampments. Hampton north of Rose is still the poster child. It has encampments but they leave in morning, place gets cleaned, and the people return.

Third Gets Cleaned Again Today — Fifth in a Row

Posted by :reta On : May 3, 2019
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Category: 3rd Avenue, Cleanup, Homeless, Uncategorized

By Rick Swinger

Friday, May 3rd clean up on 3rd Ave. What a mess today with all the illegal dumping coming from Public Storage! What happened to their “No Dumping” signs?
We can see the benefits of those “Temporary No Parking” signs LADOT finally put up on 3rd. We have had five major cleanings in a row with the full force only these street cleaning trucks can provide when there are no cars parked on 3rd.

I told Watershed Enviromental Protection today of all those rodent nests next to the fence line of Google and the tents. They had a look for themselves today as we are still waiting to hear from the LA County Health Vector Management to get back to us.

Meanwhile, Steve is camped on the other side of Google on Hampton, south of Rose, was cooking up some fried chicken today. I feel sorry for him having to cook and eat on this filthy street next to Google on Hampton.

Signs were up days before the 3rd street cleaning, and of course, no medicine or valuables were taken by Sanitation and no signs of any of those protesters from VCHC and “Services Not Sweeps” were seen today.



Panel Discussion Covered County Role in Mental Health for Homeless

Posted by :reta On : May 3, 2019
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Category: County, Homeless, Uncategorized

From left to right are: an unidentified man who works for Didi Hirsch, Jenna Rodson, who works for Didi Hirsch, Rebecca Watson, Inner City Law Center, Libby Boyce Department of Mental Health and Maria Funk, Department of Mental Health. Chelsea Cevemone was the moderator.

Shiela Kuehl’s office staff assembled a group of five in the mental health fields to talk to residents about the situation in Los Angeles and give  an overview of what each does.  The group met at Beyond Baroque Tuesday evening to a packed audience.

According to Maria Funk 27 to 31 percent of the homeless are mentally ill.  Monies from Measure H will be used by the county to provide help for the mentally ill.  Many of the members explained what they did and that they will be doing even more now that the system is up and running.

Libby Boyce explains the new outreach system established as a result of Measure H to get the homeless into services.

Talk Show Host O’Connor Comes to Mar Vista to Broadcast about the 405 Freeway Homeless

Posted by :reta On : May 1, 2019
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Category: Homeless, LAPD, Uncategorized

Larry O’Connor, radio talk show host on WMAL AM/FM in Washington, DC, talks with Venice activist Barbara Gibson after his broadcast locally on 790 KABC.

Larry O’Connor, radio talk show host on WMAL AM/FM in Washington, DC, broadcast from Mar Vista Tuesday on KABC at Exclusive Motors on Venice Blvd beside the 405 Freeway that has become infamous because of the homeless on one side and nothing on the other. O’Connor also covered the Road Diet.

This is where one side of the street, which is considered Los Angeles, is completely filled with homeless while directly across the street there are no homeless. The clear side of the street is in Culver City jurisdiction.  The contrast is startling and has become the story of Los Angeles and its enforcement policy.  Read story.

The underpass had a recent shooting that was filmed by NBC.  See Story.

While at the Exclusive Motors’ site,  O’Connor was told the story of a person who drove up to the homeless site, a homeless person met the car passenger at the curb and injected him with something in the neck.

O’Connor interviewed many of the locals and also had Dr. Drew on the air with him. Dr. Drew said Los Angeles had become a third world type city because of its lack of sanitation. He predicted that if this continues, an epidemic will occur.

Others interviewed were John Russo, co-founder and director of KeepLAMoving, who is against the road diets and Demetrios Mavrohichalis who closed several businesses including his coffee shop on Venice Blvd at the heart of the Road Diet.

One man’s stuff off North Venice Blvd at Venice Way

Posted by :reta On : April 29, 2019
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Category: Homeless, Uncategorized

One homeless man is consolidating all his stuff in the middle of the island off North Venice Blvd where Venice Way splits. When asked if it was all his, he said yes. He was then asked where it all had been and he said “around.”

He said he is in the process of throwing some of his stuff away.

Where is the city with building for homeless?

Posted by :reta On : April 23, 2019
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Category: City, Homeless, Housing

By Darryl DuFay

Here is an LA Times summary of where the City of LA is at in providing homeless housing. Reality has set in. It shows how involved the process has become. The 10,000 units for $1.2B in the propaganda for “HHH” construction money has become a faded, unrealistic promise. A lot of patching is going on.

The City builds the homeless housing. The County provides the homeless services.

LA Times article.

“Services Not Sweeps” Demands Listed for Venice

Posted by :reta On : April 23, 2019
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Category: 3rd Avenue, Homeless, LAPD

A group demanding “Services Not Sweeps” stood on the corner of 3rd and Rose with bottled water, a bathing station, and a porta-potty. They shouted their demands to those who would listen.  They passed out a list of their demands.

The group is a citywide coalition called Services Not Sweeps. Who is behind it is not known. United Way is mentioned as one group.  Their opening paragraph states:

The City of Los Angeles, in response to community organizing, demands from
unhoused communities, County Public Health reports, and other input, has increased street cleaning and sanitation services in unhoused communities over the past three to five years. Unfortunately, however, the City has done so with an emphasis on criminalization, harassment, and removal of people and their belongings, instead of taking a health-based approach to ensuring safe and clean streets for all.

They are not trying to get rid of street cleaning as was first thought. However, they do want all police removed from the cleaning operation.

They want it to be scheduled within a 2- to 4-hour  time frame and notice to be given 48 to 72 hours prior.  Further it should be established as weekly, bi-weekly, monthly etc.  These notices should be published on the City’s website and other modes to make sure that those effected would be notified.  Posted notices should also include a map.

Before scheduled cleanups, they want dumpsters/trash bins, sharps disposable containers and other “health resources” be available 24 hours before scheduling.

They want all law enforcement officials removed from the street cleaning teams and efforts.

Outreach workers are to be present the day before the cleanup and 30 minutes before cleanup commences.

City is to provide accommodations for residents during extreme weather conditions.

Residents are to be allowed to use the City workers porta-pottys during street cleaning.

For large encampments, they want shower facilities, needle exhange, etc.

Read their complete set of demands below:


Protest on 3rd Against Friday Clean Sweeps; Meanwhile, Greenwood Files Lawsuit Against City for Unclean Streets

Posted by :reta On : April 21, 2019
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Category: 3rd Avenue, Cleanup, Homeless, Uncategorized

By Rick Swinger

A group for “services not sweeps” descended on Rose and 3rd Saturday with banners, posters, and even a porta potty. The only thing missing was the homeless on 3rd! I guess they all went to the beach which is what I should have done. 

There was one homeless that was there for a moment but she told the crowd she works and camps on 3rd and wants the sweeps for they clean up the trash and other debris. 

So here is a group that is protesting for a group of homeless on 3rd who actually like the way LAPD and LA Sanitation do their jobs here on Fridays. Another thing I noticed was that I have never seen anyone from this group at the Friday clean ups that I have been covering for weeks now. That’s Venice!

Addendum added to story … 

Note: Meanwhile Deputy City Attorney Elizabeth Greenwood is suing the City of LA for five million dollars because the Mayor, the City Attorney, and the City Council allowed “garbage and human feces” to accumulate on the streets outside City Hall East, ‘recklessly endangering the public’ by allowing rats and fleas to thrive.

Greenwood is the person who contracted  typhus as a result of debris.  She says. “The rotting trash and raw sewage is the soup that grows typhus.”

Perhaps the neighbors around 3rd should consider a similar lawsuit.  Maybe, they can unite with the homeless.  Rick Swinger has taken enough photos of dead Norwegian rats, has done the E coli tests at the beach, has picked up enough human feces in the vicinity that he has a t-shirt selling about “No Dumping.”

LA Times article.