Staggering footage shows a homeless city along an LA freeway where residents have built front doors, electricity and even hammocks.
Soaring numbers of rough sleepers have led to dozens congregating along theArroyo Seco next to the busy 110 freeway, video shows.
The footage emerged asDemocratic Mayor Karen Bass asked the city's rich and famous to fund 'affordable' long term housing for its 46,000 homeless people.
The mayor urged the 'most fortunate' to step up during herState of the City address on Monday.Her campaign, called LA4LA, would see wealthy residents help 'speed up' efforts to purchase homes.
'Right now, we're working to move past nightly rentals,' Bass said. 'We are asking the most fortunate Angelinos to participate in this effort, with personal, private sector and philanthropic funds – to help us acquire more properties, lower the cost of capital and speed up housing.'
Among the 46,000 people in Los Angeles experiencing homelessness, there are dozens living along the Arroyo Seco next to the 110 Freeway near Highland Park (pictured)
Residents of the freeway city have front doors, working power and even hammocks for relaxing in
The footage emerged as Los Angeles ' Democratic Mayor Karen Bass asked the city's rich and famous to fork out to help tackle the homelessness crisis by funding 'affordable' homes
Along the busy freeway, structures include on with a stone wall, front door and even electric lighting powered by stolen electricity, according to locals interviewed by KLTA5.
One resident has even strung up a hammock for relaxing despite the roar of traffic. Disgruntled neighbors believe the encampment should be swept away.
'This doesn't belong here. This is public property,' Neighbor Mike Ancheta told the outlet. 'But this is not what it's supposed to be used for. This is dangerous. As you can see, someone is cooking out there, an open fire. They are stealing electricity. I mean, come on.'
Instead of focusing on cleaning up the shelters Bass announced LA4LA,the latest initiative asking the rich to manage the city's spiralinghomelessnessepidemic.
It follows the controversial mansion tax, whichintroduced a four percent levy on all homes over $5 million in a bid to generate funds for homelessness prevention.
The tax has been widely deridedafter sales of luxury homes plummetedas the wealthy skirted around the policy, generating around $700 million less than forecast.
On top of the four percent tax on properties over $5 million, for mega mansions that break the $ 10million threshold, homeowners lose 5.5 percent of their sale price if they decide to cash in on their estate.
The result has been a 70 percent dip in sales of high end homes, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Neighbors next to the freeway city claimed residents are stealing electricity to power their shelters and questioned why they have not been moved on
Bass has instead urged the 'most fortunate' to help deal with the crisis as part of the LA4LA scheme, her latest homelessness prevention initiative
The policy comes after the hated mansion tax which added a four percent levy to homes over $5 million. Pictured: High end homes are now clustered outside the taxed metro area
One breathtaking mansion within a gated estate in the affluent LA suburb of Tarzana has dropped $2.9 million, from $17.9 million in July 2023 to its current price of $15 million according to listings
Another stunning sun-soaked property, located in the coveted neighborhood of Encino, was devalued by almost $1 million from $12.9 million in July 2023 to just over $11.9 million today
On Monday, Bass insisted again that it was up to the rich to help solve the city's homeless problem, which she described as a 'disaster'.
'We must prevail on the humanity and generosity of the private sector,' she said.
'LA4LA can be a sea change for Los Angles, an unprecedented partnership to confront this emergency, an example of disrupting the status quo to build a new system to save lives.'
Her comments echo those made about the several other homelessness initiatives launched in the region to the tune of billions of dollars.
Bass touted herInside Safe program as evidence of the success of her policies.
The initiative moved over 21,000 homeless people into temporary shelters, according to The Associated Press.
However, the scheme cost $67 million in its first year and saw just 255 people placed in permanent housing, NBCreports.
On her first day Bass declared a state of emergency over the swelling homeless population.
Homelessness in LA surged by 10% compared to last year despite billions of investment in the area
The Mayor also warned that homelessness could spike even further due to the end of Covid-19 related assistance for low income families and evictions.
But despite her numerous initiatives, the numbers have only continued to soar, rising by around 10 percent in the last year.
The Mayor also warned that homelessness could spike even further due to the end of Covid-19 related assistance for low income families and evictions.
The city council has now agreed to pay an external firm $2.2 millionto audit its homelessness programs after a request by a federal judge.
Beleaguered Bass also faces a legal challenge from disgruntled business owners who claim she reneged on a2020 settlement agreement that promised to cleanup homeless encampments.
