Now, the LA Times has released an article showing how the City Council is hell-bent on taking the tiny homes from all the homeless who have since received them, and then destroying the property (which the councilmen declare does not actually belong to the homeless, whether expressly donated to them or not).
The Council’s arguments are specious. Homeless people are not allowed to have tiny houses because it hurts the “appearance” of the neighborhood. Really? So a down-and-out person in a torn up sleeping bag is better looking for the city, is it? And appearances are what we should all be focused on, here, right?
Another claim is that public safety is an issue because the houses don’t have running water or light reflective markings. But, I suppose the homeless are all equipped with light reflective vests and enjoy running water on an otherwise regular basis?
In an effort to facilitate the removal of the homes, the City Council decreased the warning time from72 hours to 24 hours for people to evacuate their tiny houses, which would then be confiscated and become the property of the city. And thus does the City Council once again renders people homeless. They claim that they are saving people from a fire hazard. Basically, they are throwing a bunch of shitty excuses against the wall to see which one sticks.
Yes! Magazine has reported on successful tiny-house villages for low- and no-income folks in cities like Austin, TX and Olympia, WA. So what the hell is LA’s problem? The Daily Breeze reported how the District Attorney said that the buildings are not “up to code,” as if the homeless really give three shits about that. The article further discusses how the city claims they are doing everything they can to help the homeless, including offer them other shelter, which they supposedly refuse.
So, either the homeless are not actually offered other shelter options, or the other options are far more deplorable than the tiny houses that a councilman has called “doghouses.” Dignity is one of the main things stolen from people who find themselves destitute. These tiny houses provide a bit of that dignity back. The homeless don’t want to live with rats in tenements provided by the city? Huh, I wonder why not. The homeless would rather have their own little corner of the world rather than sleep in cots jammed in spaces like jail cells? Another head scratcher, there.
It seems that the LA City Council is just perturbed because they can’t charge property tax. And in America, if the rich don’t get paid for something, they have to destroy it.
http://www.latimes.com/local/cityhall/la-me-0825-homeless-tiny-houses-20150825-story.html
http://www.yesmagazine.org/new-economy/tiny-house-villages-for-the-homeless-an-affordable-solution-catches-on
http://www.dailybreeze.com/social-affairs/20150824/los-angeles-city-attorney-says-tiny-houses-for-homeless-are-illegal
image: http://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/smokie-elvis-hug-tiny-house-LA-homeless-submitted.jpg