South Bay : Park Gazebos Fenced Off and Roofs Removed in Bid to Keep Out Homeless

The two gazebos looked like little houses, with their wood shingle roofs and open windows overlooking the sea.

So the homeless of San Pedro moved in, much to the consternation of Los Angeles officials who did not fancy using the gazebos of Plaza Park as ersatz homeless shelters.

“They were never intended to be a home. They were intended to be respites,” said Barry Glickman, chief of staff for Los Angeles City Councilman Rudy Svorinich Jr.

Finally, the officials took action: They beheaded the gazebos.

Workers removed the roofs from the structures last month and encircled them with a wire mesh fence in hopes of keeping the homeless away.

Officials defend the move, saying the homeless had endangered public safety by using roof shingles as firewood and treating the gazebos’ interiors as bedrooms and toilets. The Los Angeles Homeless Service Authority, a county agency, placed a handful of residents in hospitals, substance abuse programs and temporary shelters.

“The people who could take advantage of the services were very relieved,” said authority spokeswoman Marlene Singer.

But others remain on the street. And Mary Gimenez, director of the Harbor Interfaith Shelter in San Pedro, is not sure if chasing the homeless away will solve the problem.

“The people who were living in the gazebos are from this area,” Gimenez said. “Whoever was living there will probably just move somewhere else around here.”