SF moves closer to banning RVs from parking for more than 2 hours on city streets
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- A month ago, San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie announced a plan that would eliminate RVs from city streets regardless of the time of day. On Wednesday, the city's Budget and Finance Committee voted to move this plan forward.
For nearly four hours, RV residents and community advocates waited to present their case, their future in the hands of three San Francisco supervisors leading the city's Budget and Finance Committee.
RELATED: SF mayor's proposal would stop RVs from parking on city streets for more than 2 hours per day
Lucy was among the group hoping the panel would reject the mayor's plan to implement a two-hour parking limit for RVs.
"I call my home my tiny beautiful home. We are not hurting anybody. We are not costing the city anything," said Lucy.
In May, the city identified 437 RVs with people living in them, many of them housing people who lost their jobs during the pandemic and couldn't afford rent anymore. Their RVs were the only roof they would have over their heads.
ABC7 News introduced you to Jose Rivas earlier this year on "Home Lost." The ABC7 documentary focused on San Francisco's homeless crisis.
VIDEO: ABC7 Originals documentary 'Home Lost'
"It is difficult. It is too narrow. I'm still in the RV," said Rivas.
Now, Rivas has a 22-month-old daughter and is not only concerned for his safety but now his entire family.
When asked where he would go, Rivas responded, "I don't know. I don't know."
"The proliferation of large vehicles has led to blocked sidewalks, compromised traffic circulation and health hazards that impact our neighborhoods. These are real challenges that residents and businesses experience daily," said Kunal Modi, chief of health at the Homelessness and Family Services Department.
MORE: RV owners plead for help after SF tows vehicles from safe parking site near Candlestick Point
The city's plan includes giving RV residents a permit to park on the streets for up to six months while they go through the housing process.
"We are deploying a dedicate peer-based outreach team comprised of people with lived experiences of vehicular homelessness. The role will be to engage people living in large vehicles, assess their needs, determine their homelessness status and connect them with housing resources," said Emily Cohen with the SF Homelessness and Supportive Housing Department.
The Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing has confirmed in the past that they don't have enough housing for everyone in an RV.
"I'm very disappointed to see on page 44 the listing that says the proposed 65 rapid rehousing slots may not be sufficient to provide housing for all eligible large vehicles dwellers," said Lukas Illa with the SF Coalition on Homelessness. "Will not, will not. Then they list the up to 50 existing rapid rehousing and the rest of those in that list. That is all through coordinated entry. None of the people here today in vehicles qualify through coordinated entry because they are already enrolled in coordinated entry. They have been waiting years for a housing slot."
Supervisors voted to move this plan forward, which also includes a proposed investment of $13 million over two fiscal years to offer options like housing vouchers, outreach services and continue investing in hotel vouchers.
"We are going to keep fighting and bringing up the voices of folks who in RVs. A lot of the people have been trying to get out of RVs," said Jennifer Friedenbach, executive director of the SF Coalition on Homelessness.
This change will be implemented citywide. For now, the legislation has one more step before it becomes effective. It now moves to the full board of supervisors for a final vote.
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