Venice Beach residents hire private security to manage homelessness

Residents and business owners in the Venice Beach neighborhood of California have hired a private security firm, Ghost Town Consultants, to address a worsening homelessness crisis. The group, which includes approximately 250 local payers, utilizes a team of roughly 12 individuals, including former MS-13 gang members, to patrol the area and monitor properties.

Local residents, such as apartment owner Rick Swinger, reported that the neighborhood had become a “war zone” due to large, sprawling tent cities along Rose Avenue, which some locals nicknamed “Skid Rose.” Residents expressed frustration with municipal and county officials, claiming that previous calls for help went unanswered and that conditions had become increasingly dangerous and disorderly.

Ghost Town Consultants, led by founders Bobby Luna and Ricky Myers, provides services such as property checks and photographic documentation of conditions. Monthly fees for these private security patrols start at approximately $300.