Residents living near the iconic Hollywood sign say they fear a wildfire could become deadly as heavy tourist traffic increasingly clogs the roads around their homes.
About 100 people from the affluent Hollywoodland, Lake Hollywood Estates and Hollywood Knolls communities filed a legal complaint against the City of Los Angeles on Monday, calling for officials to address the growing tourist crowds.
The complaint names Mayor Karen Bass and Councilmember Nithya Raman, whose district includes the Hollywood sign and surrounding neighborhoods. Raman is also seeking to unseat Bass.
Residents contend that the city and its officials helped create the problem. They point to a decision by the area’s former councilman to clear brush in 2011 and establish a viewing area for the sign amid narrow residential streets.
Locals say visitor numbers have continued to rise since what they describe as a shortsighted move.
The resulting traffic, they argue, could seriously hamper evacuations and emergency response if a wildfire breaks out.
During the fires that devastated the Palisades in early 2025, some motorists abandoned their vehicles and escaped on foot after traffic jams made the roads difficult or impossible for emergency crews to navigate.
The complaint says residents fear a similar crisis could unfold in their communities. They are particularly concerned about tourists discarding cigarette butts in areas at high risk of fire.
Residents of neighborhoods around the Hollywood Sign say tourist crowds blocking nearby roads have created serious fire-safety concerns
Residents say the City of Los Angeles helped draw crowds into their communities by creating a Hollywood Sign viewing area in the middle of residential neighborhoods
Locals fear abandoned vehicles and pedestrians fleeing a wildfire could block first responders, as happened during the Palisades Fires
Residents filed a legal complaint against Los Angeles, Mayor Karen Bass and Councilmember Nithya Raman, whose district includes the Hollywood Sign
According to the complaint, Lake Hollywood resident Cynthia Comb and her husband “feel trapped in their home” and live with the constant fear that they will die when a fire inevitably reaches the area.
“There are only two narrow, winding roads in and out of the Hollywood Hills Neighborhoods, one on the Hollywoodland side… and one on the Hollywood Knolls side,” the complaint states.
“If a fire breaks out, dozens if not hundreds may die due to their inability to escape via the crowded and narrow streets.”
Residents say the area faces another persistent problem alongside the fire danger: the large amount of waste left behind by visitors.
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They report regularly collecting trash and thousands of cigarette butts, as well as removing used diapers and bottles filled with urine. The area has no public restrooms, they say.
The legal complaint also cites repeated instances of public urination and defecation. “The entire neighborhood has become a public toilet,” it states.
Attorney Ilan Wurman, who represents the residents behind the complaint, told the Los Angeles Times that the residents are not seeking financial damages. Instead, they want an injunction requiring Los Angeles officials to take action.
The complaint does not specify precisely what measures the city should adopt. Wurman said possible solutions could include restricting tourist access near the sign, as Paris does around the Eiffel Tower, or restoring vegetation in the lookout area cleared in 2011.
Residents say tourists smoke and discard cigarette butts in areas with a high risk of fire; tourists in the area are pictured smoking
Locals say they have collected thousands of cigarette butts, including those shown in a Ziploc bag
Residents say visitors leave behind trash, used diapers and bottles filled with urine because the area has no public restroom
The complaint cites frequent public urination and defecation, describing the neighborhood as “a public toilet”
Wurman said the traffic, litter and fire risks were a foreseeable “consequence of packing tens of thousands of people in this neighborhood of narrow and winding streets.”
In a statement to Our News Outlet, Mayor Bass’s office said it had not seen the complaint. However, it noted that the Los Angeles Police Department assigns additional units around the Hollywood Sign during periods of peak traffic to help manage congestion.
The mayor’s office also said police have worked with the city’s transportation department to create a more comprehensive traffic plan for the area.
Raman’s office told the Los Angeles Times that residents “shouldn’t have to absorb the gridlock and safety risks that come with [visitors] on narrow hillside streets.”
The office said: “Every year since taking office, we have funded additional presence from LAPD and LADOT (Los Angeles Department of Transportation), adjusting both staffing levels and deployment locations in response to community feedback.
“Since May, our office has arranged and funded LAPD and LADOT deployments every Friday through Sunday from the Fourth of July through Labor Day, which has increased ticketing and towing in the area.”
Raman’s office also said it had secured funding for a pilot program designed to improve traffic conditions around the Hollywood Sign during peak visitation periods.
Our News Outlet has contacted Raman’s office for additional comment.
