Chatsworth Encampment Targeted For Inside Safe Operation

LOS ANGELES, CA — More than 40 people suffering from homelessness near the Chatsworth Metro Station were given shelter as part of the mayor's Inside Safe program, city officials announced Wednesday. The unusual multi-agency effort targeted an encampment that has become a source of friction among residents and local businesses, who link the encampment with crime in the area.

This year, the Los Angeles Police Department responded two apparently unrelated reports of machete attacks outside the Metro Station, and last week, Devonshire Division officers warned businesses of a string of smash-and-grab burglaries.

SEE ALSO: Chatsworth Machete Attack Survivor Has Warning For Neighbors

Authorities hope the Inside Safe program will provide services to people experiencing homelessness while helping to improve the quality of life for nearby residents.

Bass, Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath and Councilman John Lee, launched the operation Tuesday. More than 40 people were brought inside to nearby motels.

The effort was months in the making, according to Lee.

“This Inside Safe operation is the result of months of careful planning and coordination between the City and County of Los Angeles and our partners,” he said. “I am grateful to Mayor Bass and Supervisor Horvath for their partnership to bring people into housing and address the community’s concerns about this location. It is critical that we continue working together to identify solutions to this crisis.”

Among several Inside Safe operations conducted this year, this one was unique because it involved city and county properties.

“Partnership - including a lot of coordination and lessons learned - has been the key to safely and successfully bringing people inside in Chatsworth, including support from the surrounding Chatsworth neighborhoods,” said Supervisor Lindsey P. Horvath. “Strengthening the City-County partnership through cross-jurisdictional leadership, action, and public investment will change lives by scaling up outreach, wraparound services, and housing. I’m grateful to Mayor Karen Bass, Councilmember John Lee, their teams as well as every outreach, sanitation, law enforcement, and mental health worker who made this possible, and for the continued efforts it will take to sustain success in Chatsworth and throughout LA County.”

Bass described the project as an ongoing effort.

"We must continue doing everything we can to bring as many Angelenos inside as possible throughout our city," Bass said. "We will not be able to fully confront this crisis unless we take a regional approach and that's exactly what is happening in this operation."

Since Bass took office, the city has conducted 20 Inside Safe operations, housing more than 1,300 people, according to the mayor's office. The project has been the mayor's signature campaign to fulfill her campaign promise to tackle the homelessness crisis.