Venice Beach residents voiced mounting frustration at a neighborhood meeting this week, telling city officials they are increasingly alarmed by violent fights, public disorder and reports of “dead bodies” in the area.
More than 100 people attended the Monday gathering, pressing local leaders to respond to what they described as a sharp decline in public safety across the community.
Residents pointed to a series of frightening incidents, including knife-related confrontations and violent brawls, saying the problems appear to be escalating. Several described the Lincoln Boulevard corridor as a central trouble spot.
“It feels like a lot of lip service and not a lot of action,” one fed-up local shouted.
“We’re finding dead bodies as we’re doing our daily s—t and p—s cleanup every morning. And trash,” another resident added.
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Some attendees blamed the Journey Apartments and the Safe Place for Youth headquarters for contributing to the increase in disorder. Both locations are connected to services and housing support for homeless individuals and people from extremely low-income backgrounds.
“I don’t feel safe sending my teenage kids out to walk the dog on their own, and that’s ridiculous,” one frustrated parent said during the meeting.
Councilwoman Traci Park said she would work to address the concerns and push for action on the safety issues raised by residents.
“We are going to continue to fix this and hold these people responsible for providing their own security, for ensuring that the neighborhood around these facilities remains safe,” she told Fox 11.
And if all the efforts are unsuccessful, locals leaders would opt for a different route, Park added.
“Then we will start talking about walking back their future funding,” she said.
