Tenants and advocates urge enforcement, anti-harassment action and oversight for Skid Row hotels

A steady stream of public comments at the Los Angeles City Council’s May 28 meeting focused on living conditions in Skid Row hotels and recent sales of formerly publicly held buildings to private developers, with residents and advocacy groups pressing the council for enforcement and policy changes.

Speakers representing tenant groups, the Keep LA House coalition and residents from District 14 said buildings sold by the city or trustees were being transferred to private owners who have not addressed serious habitability problems. Speakers described ongoing infestations of rats and cockroaches, nonworking elevators, broken plumbing and inadequate security in multiple properties that formerly housed long-term tenants.

Several commenters asked the council to increase enforcement of the recently updated anti-harassment ordinance, to speed implementation of tenant protections in buildings the city sold, and to change rent-stabilization formulas. Joseph Cypressina Poyer of Keep LA House called for a formula update, saying the current approach has not been revised in decades and that a one-bedroom in Los Angeles now requires a much higher income to afford.

Other speakers detailed specific buildings and said some properties were sold for roughly $8,000 per unit to developers who had not made repairs. Corey Paterson, who said he is a survivor of a fiduciary transfer affecting Skid Row, described 18 months of unresolved pest and safety problems after the ownership change and said residents were left to advocate for themselves.

Advocates asked the council to consider stricter requirements on buyers of formerly public or trustee-held buildings, stronger enforcement mechanisms for habitability standards, and to prioritize funds or processes that direct remediation to tenants rather than administrative overhead. One commenter questioned how donations collected for fire relief were spent and urged more direct distribution to affected residents.

Why it matters: Multiple speakers framed these issues as part of the city’s broader homelessness and housing affordability crisis and urged the council to enforce existing laws and use its authority when it sells or transfers buildings to private parties.

Council response and action: The public-comment period concluded with the clerk reminding speakers that additional written comments can be submitted via the city’s online comment portal. The transcript records no immediate council action or vote during the public-comment segment; several speakers asked the council to take follow-up steps and enforcement action, which would require staff reports or subsequent agenda items.