PHOENIX — It's hard to miss, even in a sea of tents and trash: a gaping hole along the side of a warehouse building near 9th Avenue and Jackson Street in downtown Phoenix.
The property sits on the edge of the city's largest homeless encampment, known as "The Zone," just blocks away from the state capitol.
The gaping hole came after a car slammed into the building Monday night. Security footage shows the vehicle moving west on Jackson and abruptly slamming into the building, narrowly missing a tent with people inside.
A few moments after the crash, people sleeping in tents on the street in front of the property start poking their heads out to see what happened. The footage also appears to show multiple people getting out of the vehicle and leaving the scene. In the video, you can hear one neighbor ask if they're okay before they left the scene.
Police say no one was injured in the crash and the people involved are still outstanding. The vehicle involved was reported as stolen, according to an email from police.
On Tuesday morning, other tents along Jackson Street next to the property were cordoned off by yellow tape.
A spokesperson for the City of Phoenix's Office of Homeless Solutions said the taped-off tents indicated that the person or people inside them had been placed in a shelter.
The spokesperson said nine people from this block were recently placed in a new shelter hotel funded by some of the City's federal COVID-19 relief dollars.
The hotel opened as a shelter in November 2022. The spokesperson said it's at about 30% capacity and people sleeping on the streets near "The Zone" are prioritized for this shelter option.
Shelter space on the Human Services campus around the encampment is regularly full and colder weather overnight has led to increased concerns with fires in the encampment.
12News learned that someone is currently trying to buy the building damaged by the car. That potential buyer said he's dealt with break-ins and squatters on and around the property before. Other property owners in "The Zone" have faced similar issues.
The potential buyer said he's also planning for construction at the property, which adds another layer of urgency to shelter people on that block. The city confirmed there is a permit for work at the property and tents will have to be moved before construction equipment can move in.
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