The recent fire death of Woody Akiedis could have been avoided.
Over $2 million in funding to housing the people living at the RV encampment on Jefferson Boulevard, where Akiedis resided until his death in February, was diverted away from being voted on in November. The funding motion had cleared committee and was set for final approval when then-Councilmember-elect Traci Park intervened.
At Park’s direction, Councilmember Monica Rodriguez had the motion referred back to committee, apparently in order to kill it, according to multiple sources familiar with discussions surrounding the motion. While that committee has since met several times, the item has not been revisited. Additionally, Councilmember Park’s homelessness and housing director, Juan Fregoso, recently told a neighborhood council meeting that he was unaware of any proposed funding for the site.
