Homeless search for new housing as LA closes Little Tokyo encampment
Dozens of homeless people have been forced to move after the city of Los Angeles announced Wednesday it will clear an encampment at Little Tokyo's Toriumi Plaza.
"It's very concerning," said Tommy Miller, who is homeless. "It's like they are splitting up our family."
Miller has been homeless since 2012 is one of at least 25 other people who called Toriumi Plaza home. The area is the latest encampment to be cleaned up and fenced off by the city of L.A., joining Echo Park and MacArthur Park.
According to posted signs, the unhoused living in the area must leave and take their belongings with them by 10 p.m. Thursday.
Fences began going up around the encampment in the early morning hours Thursday. Homeless activists planned a protest set to begin at 7 a.m. Thursday.
"So now I have to find another place," said Christopher, who was packing his possessions.
Christopher was not only frustrated that he had to find a new spot on the street but also worried about leaving most of his belongings behind.
"One thing I can assure myself is that at least I have my property," he said.
According to the office of L.A. City Councilman Kevin De Leon, at least 61 people who live at Toriumi Plaza have been relocated through the L.A. Homeless Services Authority, people like Lilliana Melendez.
"LAHSA went there and said we're gonna close it down by the bridge and you're going to go to the hotel room," she said.
As she waits for permanent housing, Melendez enjoys having a quiet bathroom, bed and TV in the hotel she's lived in since November 2021.
"It's a process," Melendez said. "There are a lot of people, so I'm just thankful I'm waiting in a room and not out there.
But she also understands why people like Christopher are reluctant to enter these types of housing programs.
"You have a curfew," Christopher said. "You have to be in by ten and out by seven, no visitors, you can't cook in your room. No, I'd rather be out here on the street where I can do what I want to do when I want to."
Miller, on the other hand, signed up for the program and hopes he will wake up to social workers helping him move into a room. In the meantime, he will remain camped out in Toriumi Plaza until the deadline.