Still not convinced there's a homeless crisis going on in Downtown Los Angeles? Just talk to some of the people that work in the businesses downtown...
Josh Kaye works at Lunch Money clothing, a store on 15th Street just south of the Fashion District. He says there's a homeless encampment quickly taking over the area, yet city officials are doing absolutely nothing.
"Downtown LA is a hellscape now. And I don't know who's in charge of keeping it clean and nice but they're not doing it. And I think that's pretty shameful," Kaye told NBCLA.
He also mentioned a fire that had started in one of the encampments just weeks earlier.
"Our gate was completely singed — burned," he said. "We had to call the fire department. They came out, opened the gate, saw the carnage, told us you know what, sorry guys, there's nothing we can do — can't touch it, can't clean it up. You should contact 311," he said.
So he called 311. But guess where that got him? Again, nowhere.
Kaye said he has called the Los Angeles 311 line over 15 times in the last few months.
"Been on the phone with them, been on hold with them, been with street services, trash dumping — all that — and I was just bounced around like a pingpong," he said.
For now, he just has to wait and hope nothing else happens. And as you might have guessed, Kaye is still waiting for a comment from Mayor Garcetti's office.
Read more on NBCLA.