A sprawling homeless encampment stretching across 12 blocks on Manhattan’s West Side continues to grow, with residents and workers warning that theft, drug activity, and prostitution have become commonplace in the area as city officials appear unable—or unwilling—to stop its expansion, the New York Post reports.

The makeshift settlement now runs along 11th Avenue from West 34th Street to West 46th Street. Dozens of tents and improvised shelters line the sidewalks, creating an increasingly troubling scene for neighborhood residents, employees, and the many tourists visiting the nearby Intrepid Museum. Despite the encampment’s growth, critics say City Hall has failed to intervene, while police vehicles routinely pass through the area without taking action.

“We cant get rid of them,” one city parks enforcement officer said Sunday. “These ones here are stealing everything. They stole our key for the hose. They stole our ladder. They take what they can. And there are escorts in there too. Prostitutes. I see them, they’re right there.

“Definitely getting worse,” she said. “People stopped parking here. People are scared to park here.”

According to local workers, some of those living in the encampment have furnished their makeshift homes with stolen couches and expensive electronics. They also claim stolen property—including Broadway theater lighting equipment and high-end telescopes—is openly displayed, while narcotics are reportedly sold to sex workers operating within the camp or inside nearby public restrooms.

Neighbors said one particular tent has become a regular gathering place where prostitutes frequently stop throughout the day, either to meet customers, purchase drugs, or both.

“This is crazy,” said one supervisor at the nearby Jacob Javits Center. “The cops and the sanitation guys and the outreach guys, they clean up one spot and after that day, the next day they’re over here. Then they’re over there. They’re kind of just spreading around.

“The scariest parts are on 36th and 37th right now,” he said. “It’s just heroin addicts.”

“It stinks,” a Javits maintenance worker added. “They were setting up in the park at 3 this morning and it’s just too much. It’s getting bad again, very bad.

“We kicked them out, now they’re over here,” he said. “One thing is for sure though, there are more today than there were last month, that’s for sure.”

The New York Post first highlighted the growing encampment in a report published Friday, drawing renewed attention to conditions that residents say have steadily deteriorated.

One man living in the encampment even praised Mayor Zohran Mamdani, calling him “awesome” for allowing the settlement to remain and for ending the police sweeps that had previously dismantled similar homeless camps.

On Sunday, NYPD patrol cars continued to drive through the neighborhood without stopping. City Hall did not immediately respond to requests seeking comment about the situation.

Public complaints, however, have continued to mount. City records show that calls to the city’s 311 hotline regarding homeless-related issues in the area have risen to 48 so far this year, compared to 40 during all of 2025.

Of the 48 complaints logged this year, 28 involved homeless individuals in need of assistance, while the remaining 20 specifically focused on the expanding encampment. Thirty of those calls were placed during the past month alone, with another eight already recorded this month.

By comparison, last year saw 40 total 311 calls from the neighborhood, including 36 requests for assistance involving homeless individuals and only four complaints directly related to the encampment itself.

Business and civic leaders also expressed concern that the growing settlement is damaging both the city’s image and public safety.

“Most people would agree that leaving people on the street indefinitely isn’t compassion, it’s neglect,” said Steve Fulp, CEO for the nonprofit Partnership for the City of New York. “We’ve seen in cities like Los Angeles and San Francisco that letting encampments grow unchecked fails the homeless and erodes quality of life for everyone else.

“The right approach for the city pairs real services with the timely actual removal of encampments that pose safety risks,” Fulp said. “We aren’t seeing that here and these encampments can grow quickly if a balanced policy isn’t pursued which is the concern here.”

Cristyne Nicholas, chair of the New York State Tourism Advisory Council and a gubernatorial appointee of Gov. Kathy Hochul, said the deteriorating conditions near one of the city’s premier attractions are harming New York’s reputation with visitors.

“The Intrepid Museum is one of New York’s greatest tourist attractions, drawing millions of visitors each year,” she said. “Tourists are forced to walk around squalor and stench. I hope the mayor focuses on this, as he’s promoted tourism during the World Cup. He understands tourism.

“Maybe there’s a disconnect here” added Nicholas, the former head of the city’s tourism agency. “We want visitors to feel safe and welcome.”

Photo by Luiz C. Ribeiro for the NY Post.

{Matzav.com}