Bay Area Churches to offer safe parking for RV dwellers

[Travelmonkey]

https://www.mv-voice.com/news/2018/03/16/churches-offer-safe-parking-for-rv-dwellers

This is another article from the Mt. View Voice, a small city/neighborhood newspaper, on churches planning to offer parking for RV dwellers.  It sounds like it will be very structured and target helping the homeless living RVs.  It is also starting very small with just a few spots at a few churches.  It sounds like a start, though.  I hope other towns follow this approach if it is successful. 

One interesting fact mentioned there are people renting out their RV to the homeless.  The article referred to them as "carlords".  They park the RV and take the keys so the tenant can't move it.  I see the argument the carlord could make as it is better than sleeping on the streets, but it sure seems ripe for exploiting the vulnerable...

 

[Headache]

I was a guest of a church parking program and for the most part it was a positive experience. I'm not Christian and it didn't matter to them and even though I was living in their parking lot they treated me no different than anyone else. Because of that program others sprung up and though not as well rounded as this one each has benefits that the others may not have so they all share. It was a unique and humanizing experience.

No RVs are allowed in any of them and vehicles have to show the guests name on the registration so that would make it difficult for nefarious renting.

 

[Wanderer]

That's one issue which will have complaints all day long from the "NIMBY's" (Not In My Backyard)

In Portland, OR some churches wanted to try that, but neighborhoods and even the city forbade it. But when you have people who won't follow the rules, what can you do but make them move and take their problems to another area.

 

[GeorgiePorgie]

There is a program like this in Santa Barbara, but it takes months to get in. They passed a law a short time ago banning RVs from parking on the street at all.

 

[Travelmonkey]

There is a program like this in Santa Barbara, but it takes months to get in. They passed a law a short time ago banning RVs from parking on the street at all.

The Santa Barbara program is the model for Mt. View.  There is a companion article by the same writer in the same issue of newspaper.  I think for this to really be successful in a dense area like the Bay Area, other cities must try similar programs.  Otherwise, Mt. View program fills up by attracting all the regional homeless and gets overwhelmed...