LA Repeals 12 Homeless Anti-Camping Zones in Soto-Martínez District

“Don’t let communists run your city, folks.”

Los Angeles just removed a dozen anti-camping zones across Hollywood, Silver Lake and Echo Park, rolling back restrictions designed to keep homeless encampments from returning to specified public spaces after they were cleared.

The City Council voted 10-3 Tuesday to rescind 12 location-specific enforcement zones under Los Angeles Municipal Code Section 41.18 at the request of Democratic Socialists of America-backed Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martínez.

The change affects parks and other public areas across his District 13, including Barnsdall Art Park and the Hollywood Recreation Center, as well as locations near senior facilities, roadways and freeway crossings.

It does not eliminate 41.18 citywide. Restrictions near schools and day-care centers remain in place.

The repealed zones had been established under Soto-Martínez’s predecessor, Mitch O’Farrell, who lost to the progressive councilman in 2022.

Soto-Martínez argued the restrictions merely pushed unhoused residents from one block to another while making it harder for outreach workers to connect them with housing and services.

“Displacing our neighbors from block to block, or in many cases from district to district, doesn’t help them find housing,” Soto-Martínez said. “In most cases, it makes it much harder for us to help them because they lose their belongings, they get fined, and many times they are arrested. To me, that is a policy that does not work.”

The reversal followed months of pressure from homeless advocates.

More than 50 organizations signed a letter earlier this year demanding Soto-Martínez remove the zones. In May, roughly 30 activists staged a mock sanitation “sweep” outside his East Hollywood apartment building to protest his failure to move faster.

Soto-Martínez, who won reelection in June, introduced the repeal motion in August after his office said staff and volunteers knocked on more than 2,500 doors and sent 10,000 mailers seeking community feedback.

Three councilwomen — Traci Park, Imelda Padilla, and Monica Rodriguez — cast the only votes against the rollback.

Park argued 41.18 can serve as a tool to prevent encampments from immediately reappearing after the city has spent money and resources moving people indoors.

“We do outreach. We offer beds and services, and we get people off the streets,” Park said. “But after we do that work, we expect that after all that time and money and resources went into an operation, that the area remains safe and clean and accessible.”

She added: “I can’t support the removal of common sense measures to keep kids and families safe.”

Padilla accused Soto-Martínez of asking colleagues to respect his wishes in District 13 despite routinely voting against similar anti-camping designations sought by other council members.

“Is this a matter of supporting you because this is what you want, or should I just treat you the way you’ve been treating us?” Padilla asked.

Soto-Martínez has consistently opposed 41.18 and campaigned on repealing the policy, arguing Los Angeles should focus on getting homeless residents indoors rather than repeatedly moving encampments.

For 12 locations in his district, he now has his repeal.

The next test is whether removing the restrictions gets more people housed — or simply brings the tents back.

🚨 HOLY CRAP. The Los Angeles City Council has just voted to ALLOW mass homeless encampments across 12 locations in Hollywood

The City Council has voted 10-3 to bring back homeless camps flooded with drugs and filth 🤯

SPENCER PRATT: “Don’t let communists run your city, folks.”… pic.twitter.com/RgP2yDIxZM

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) August 19, 2026