Residents of a Koreatown neighborhood in central Los Angeles told local news outlets that a sprawling homeless encampment on an empty lot by Manhattan Place has been tapping into nearby power and creating public-safety hazards.
Neighbors described the site as a makeshift "tiny city" with a tennis court, barbecue pit and garden, and said tents and debris now occupy the lot. Several residents told ABC7 and KTLA in recent days that extension cords run across the street and that people at the encampment ripped out a streetlight, put a surge protector inside it and attached an extension cord to siphon electricity. "Thank God it hasn't rained in a while," resident Sangmin Lee said. "It's a fire hazard... then they run the cable across the street, and it's a trip hazard for everyone."
Residents and business owners described additional concerns including open-air drug use, litter, vandalism and theft. "It's a city in there. It's crazy. It's crazy," nearby resident Max Smith told ABC7. Another local, who identified herself as Sasha, said people at the site had set cars on fire and that drug activity had escalated from an initially "clean tent area." A reporter visiting the camp said they were threatened, and some residents told reporters they have become afraid to walk alone or take their pets out.
City officials said outreach teams from Mayor Karen Bass' office have visited the encampment. In a statement posted to local media, Bass said: "It is entirely unacceptable for private property owners to allow their lots to become a nuisance and a danger to the community." Los Angeles City Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky told KTLA that enforcement has been complicated because the lot is private property and that the process for action is "over-bureaucratic. It's the city at its worst, sort of not being able to get out of its own way."
Public records show the property is registered to a limited liability company incorporated in Delaware. City officials said the company has been working with the city and that no-trespassing signs will be posted shortly; once the signs are in place, police will have grounds to move to clear the site. The city's Public Works Department also said it will install anti-vandal wraps around the affected streetlight to prevent further tampering and theft of electricity.
Local law enforcement and municipal departments often face jurisdictional and legal limits in addressing encampments on private land. Under city policy, outreach and social services are typically offered before removal actions, and property owners may be required to follow legal notice procedures if they seek law enforcement intervention. Officials in Los Angeles have in recent years balanced enforcement with homelessness services and shelter placement efforts, a dynamic referenced by councilmembers and activists in coverage of similar sites.
Neighbors said they had notified the city about the encampment but felt the response had been slow. Outreach teams and the property owner's cooperation, city officials said, are intended to both address immediate safety concerns and connect unhoused people with services. The Los Angeles mayor's office and the property owner's representatives did not provide additional detail on timelines for clearing the lot beyond the announced steps to post no-trespassing signs and secure the streetlight.
The city measures come amid broader efforts across Los Angeles to reduce fire and health hazards associated with encampments and to expand shelter and support services for people experiencing homelessness. Officials and service providers continue to face challenges in balancing public-safety concerns, property rights and the needs of unhoused residents.
Reports about the Koreatown encampment were published Sept. 13, 2025, by local outlets including ABC7 and KTLA, which first documented residents' complaints and the city's planned interventions.