A street in Pacoima was long overrun with filth. That encampment, once dubbed the 'Skid Row of the Valley,' has now been cleared, and locals say it happened after they reached out to ABC7.
Tuesday, May 19, 2026 12:06AMA stretch of Montague Street in Pacoima that locals say had been overrun for years by trailers, sewage, trash and barking dogs has been cleared after area business owners contacted ABC7'sthe line of trailers outside their buildings was driving customers away .
After ABC7 visited the street to document the conditions, city crews removed the trailers and cleaned the area. Israel Gamburd, who owns a business on the stretch of street that was cleaned, thanked 7 On Your Side and Investigative Reporter Kevin Ozebek after seeing the cleanup.
"Oh my god, Kevin, thank you so much. I mean, it took ABC7 to come out here and do a story on this," he said. Another business owner, Andres Rauda, said he believes the cleanup happened only because of the attention from Eyewitness News. When asked why he thought the street was finally cleared, he said, "Because of you, because of you, because of Channel 7, 100% because of Channel 7.
" The part of Montague Street cleaned up sits inside Council District 7, which is represented by Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez. "In our continued efforts to remove RV encampments with my RV-to-Home program, we removed an additional five trailers and three RVs along Montague Street in partnership with City departments and West Valley Homes Yes, amounting in a total of 373 individuals housed and 172 vehicles removed," Councilmember Rodriguez said in a statement sent to ABC7.
Even with the improvements in front of these businesses, dozens of rundown trailers remain elsewhere in the area, many close to homes. So of course, 7 On Your Side will continue monitoring conditions in the area. ABC7 learned about the situation after business owners reached out with concerns. Viewers with tips or issues they want investigated can
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