ENCINO — A Thursday night Zoom meeting meant to address rising crime in Encino quickly turned into a heated debate over a $10 million plan to convert the Oak Tree Inn Motel on Ventura Boulevard into interim housing for homeless youth.
More than 700 residents logged on to hear from Mayor Karen Bass, state Sen. Henry Stern and District Four Councilwoman Nithya Raman. Within minutes, the conversation zeroed in on a single flashpoint: proposed “amnesty lockers” outside the building — storage that residents feared could be used for drugs and weapons.
While residents raised safety concerns, Raman voiced full support for the project and its operators, Hope the Mission and Village Family Services…