Joey Morales’ Ford SUV stopped along a quiet residential street in South L.A., its headlights shining on what would be a perfect parking spot if not for the three orange cones blocking it.

Cones in this part of town carry weight — they’re used not just by public works and construction crews but by locals as de facto gatekeepers blocking vehicles from crossing. With a friend filming him for his growing TikTok following as the “Cone King,” Morales, 31, exited his vehicle in a yellow reflective vest, grabbed the cones and tossed them into his SUV.

His next step would be giving the cones away to construction crews, or if labeled as L.A. property, returning them to the city.

In Los Angeles, the battle for public parking spaces has been likened to a blood sport. Be it cones, trash cans, fake

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