L.A.'s Homeless Camps Are Growing

A man carries his belongings while walking past homeless people sitting amid their belongings on a street in downtown Los Angeles, California, on January 8, 2014.

FREDERIC J. BROWN—AFP/Getty Images

By Helen Regan

January 25, 2015 9:51 PM EST

Homeless camps in downtown Los Angeles are growing past their original boundaries and spilling over into other areas of the city.

Because of redevelopment of the downtown area, soaring rents, funding cutbacks and the closure of shelters, residents from neighborhoods such as Highland Park and Boyle Heights are being forced into the streets, the Los Angeles Times reports.

In an effort to find out where these people came from, and why, 6,000 volunteers will hit the streets on Tuesday and Thursday to ask the city’s homeless people questions about domestic violence, military service, gender identity and prison history.

The city’s mayor, Eric Garcetti, has pledged to get the 3,400 homeless veterans off the streets by the end of 2015.

L.A.'s Homeless Camps Are Growing as More People Are Forced Onto the Streets