Homeless encampment cleanups do little to change numbers of people on the street, study finds

Inside Safe workers clean up a homeless camp at 86th Street and Broadway to get people out of the encampment and into hotel and motel rooms June 26, 2024, in Los Angeles. “They just tend to move them around and the numbers tend to return in our relatively small area to previous trends pretty quickly.” Dwight Thomas, 62, right, gathers up his belongings in a tent encampment at 86th Street and Broadway after Inside Safe initiative employees got him a place to stay June 26, 2024, in Los Angeles. Mayor Karen Bass’ office issued a statement pointing out that the annual count conducted by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority found street homelessness down 10% across the entire city while the report covers only three areas. Inside Safe is just one part of a locked-arms approach that has brought together the County, City, State and Federal government partners to bring people off the streets, connect them with comprehensive services and a path toward permanent housing.” While acknowledging that it couldn’t generalize to the entire population, the Rand study found a greater connection in the three communities between substance use and homelessness than other studies.