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Fairfax 'trash house': One year later
More than a year after city crews hauled away seven tons of debris from a Fairfax District property dubbed the neighborhood "trash house," neighbors say little has changed.
LOS ANGELES - More than a year after city crews cleared seven tons of debris from a Fairfax District property, neighbors report that piles of garbage have returned.
A friend of the homeowner has now offered a new perspective, stating that the man is a recycler, not a hoarder, and that the materials are his source of income.
‘His source of income’
What they're saying:
A friend of the homeowner, Tonya Lee Jaynes, is speaking on behalf of a 71-year-old man she calls "Ray."
"He’s not a hoarder — he’s a recycler," Jaynes said. "Every single bag is completely, meticulously filled with exactly what they expect because he has a relationship with four different recycle places. He knows it like a science."
Jaynes said the bags that neighbors see as garbage are full of recyclables that ray depends on for income.
"On the news it looks like bags and bags and bags of garbage, because they’re garbage bags, but they were full of recyclables," she said. "They tried to say that that was unsafe. There isn’t anything unsafe about recyclables."
She also said that the weeds on the property are there intentionally because a certain gray butterfly nests in them.
"He loves animals more than anything. He feeds the crows every morning - they come here and expect him to feed them."
Jaynes questioned whether the city considered the man’s age and livelihood before removing the debris in 2024.
"He’s 71 years old, a senior citizen. Now when they came did they even consider for one second that there was a senior citizen, that his job was recycling, and that they were taking his income?" she said.
Property cleared last year
The backstory:
In April 2024, city crews intervened and cleared the property, citing safety and sanitation concerns.
Jaynes claimed developers have tried to buy the property for years and suggested that recent complaints might be an effort to pressure him to sell or move.
"If this house was in another part of the city, would anybody have said anything?" she said.
The other side:
Mayor Karen Bass released the following statement in response:
"It is really disappointing that the owners of this private property have again allowed the conditions of the site to disintegrate. The City expended significant public resources last year to address this health and safety hazard including removing tons of non-hazardous waste and there is an open and ongoing criminal case against the property owner. This is a challenge that impacts neighborhoods all over the city, and the Mayor is working with the City Attorney, Councilmember and County on long term solutions for this and other nuisance properties."
FOX 11 also reached out to LA city Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky for comment but has not heard back.
The Source: This story is based on direct testimony from a friend and representative of the homeowner, who provided detailed insight into his perspective and livelihood. It also includes context from previous FOX 11 reporting on the property's history and outreach to local city officials for their response.