Barbed wire fencing has gone up around Councilmember Mike Bonin’s office in Westchester to keep transients out.
Circling the News printed a photo of a homeless person living in the entryway to City Municipal offices in Westchester. The transient makes it impossible for residents to go see their Councilmember Mike Bonin or to use the Westchester Community Room.
But even if residents could access the office, a security guard does not allow any residents into the building, which is paid for by taxpayers.
One resident wrote about the situation, “Words have not been invited to describe my despair and anger.”
Now, there’s an update. Work is being done around the office site, located at Westchester and Sepulveda.
Fencing has now gone up in the parking area behind Bonin’s office, including barbed wire. A worker explained to a resident why it had been put up. “There is an aggressive homeless person” living at the front.
Other security measures being installed include key card access to the front and back doors on the building. There will be an electric motor on the parking gate where city vehicles are parked—including key card access.
There will also be cameras in seven locations around the building. A worker responding to a query from a resident said that the measures are for safety.
But this work does not address the safety of the public, who still must deal with transients near the senior center, in the parking lot, or near the library.
One resident wrote CTN, “when this work is done, Bonin, his staff, and their cars will all be very safe and very secure. Neither Bonin nor his staff will have to be near any homeless person in the park.
CTN has now contacted Bonin’s spokesperson Naomi Goldman on June 19 and June 28 to ask who is paying for the gates, the fence and the cameras. There has been no response. If we receive that information, we’ll update readers. CTN also asked Goldman on June 17 if Bonin was considering discretionary funding for the Pacific Palisades Taskforce on Homelessness, but haven’t received a response to that question either.
The Westchester Library parking lot is a hazard for library goers and senior citizens.
DEFUND Bonin? Had a nice ring to it…
He just does not care about the safety of the general public. His priorities are himself and himself alone. If he addressed the homeless issue he would not need to install fences, barbed wire and security. But he refuses to do so and instead erects barriers to hide behind. Has there ever been a less responsive and tone deaf elected official ? We cannot be free from him soon enough.
It’s irksome knowing how much Mike Bonin & his nonresponsive spokesperson are being paid.