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Residents urge Bell City Council to halt mobile-home relocations amid ICE raids
Summary
At the Jan. 28 council meeting residents and community organizers urged the City of Bell to stop plans that could displace mobile-home park residents, linking recent ICE activity and a lack of city outreach to fears of eviction and family separation. Speakers called for alternatives and for the council to prioritize residents over profit.
Residents, advocates and at least one city commissioner pressed the City of Bell on Jan. 28 to halt moves they say would displace mobile-home park residents and to do more to protect tenants amid recent immigration-enforcement activity.
"We're not trash like you think we are," said Brianna, a resident who addressed the council during the meeting's public-comment period, describing fear after Jan. 23 enforcement activity. "You guys care about more about this super dumb project than your city."
Multiple speakers framed the dispute as both a housing and public-health issue. Beatrice Gonzalez, a registered nurse and member of SEIU 721, urged council members to "reconsider displacing the Florence and Bell Mobile Home Park residents," saying eviction and displacement "disrupt medical care and medication adherence" and can produce worse health outcomes for vulnerable residents.
Argo Zuniga, a member of the city—ommunity Services Commission, said remarks by city staff made at a prior meeting (he identified the city attorney by name in public comment) were "jokes" about "kicking people out of their homes," and he asked elected officials to "vote no on the mobile home relocation plan." Zuniga said commissioners must "speak for the people" and stood "in solidarity with all the folks from the mobile home parks."
Other residents reported difficulty accessing assistance. Alfredo Mesa said his parents have lived in the Bell mobile-home parks for 19 years and alleged that residents seeking to pay late fees were told to wait for a new management company and that promised translation materials were not delivered. "You guys are not standing with your people," he said.
Advocates from community organizations urged the council to pursue alternatives to displacement. Jasmine Gonzalez, a community stability organizer with East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice, said the mobile-home park is "one of the last truly affordable spaces for residents in Southeast LA" and described outreach she has offered to help the city develop renter-protection measures and funding strategies.
Speakers also linked the relocation debate to enforcement actions by federal immigration authorities. Several callers said ICE activity on Jan. 23 has deepened fear among undocumented residents and argued the council should take immediate steps to protect tenants and require verification of federal agents' authority when they operate in the city.
City staff and elected officials repeatedly denied that local law enforcement is cooperating with ICE. The mayor and city manager said state law (SB 54) prohibits local assistance to federal immigration enforcement and emphasized the city's "Know Your Rights" outreach, weekly meals to approximately 100 families, and workshops. The city manager also told attendees that the city has "not issued any letters to take or sell anybody's homes" and said additional community engagement is planned.
No formal action on mobile-home relocation was taken at the meeting. Two agenda items tied to the parks were pulled for continuation; council members instead approved several unrelated agenda items including the annual CDBG appropriation and the ARPA status report. Speakers at the meeting urged the council to delay any displacement plans and to pursue alternatives that preserve affordable housing.
The council adjourned after approving the posted agenda items and scheduling further public hearings; supporters of the mobile-home residents signaled continued organizing and legal and advocacy follow-up.
