To address the growing problem of recreational vehicles (RV’s) used as homes around the city, the Los Angeles City Council took significant action on Wednesday. A motion to evaluate the effectiveness of the city’s current Oversized Vehicle Ordinance and to collect data on the overall impact of RVs in limited areas was presented by Councilmembers Eunisses Hernandez, Katy Yaroslavslvsky, and Hugo Soto-Martinez. The council accepted the proposal in a unanimous vote.
Los Angeles City Council Takes Action on RV Housing Crisis
This endeavor attempts to identify areas where RV’s need to be forbidden and investigates possible parking spots where these big vehicles may be permitted. In addition, the city is thinking about enforcing laws against “van-lords,” establishing rehousing pilot projects, as well as assessing the viability and cost of garbage pumping services.
Councilmember Hernandez emphasized the need for a different approach to addressing the RV housing crisis, criticizing the city’s repeated reliance on reactive measures. “We keep doing the same things over and over again and expecting different results,” Hernandez stated during the council session. “We keep responding to harm after it happens. We keep responding to abuse after it happens. This will help us get more information.”
Hernandez had made an amendment effort to move her motion forward, suggesting forming a task team to facilitate a “holistic conversation” and find answers to RV encampments. Key stakeholders, including citizens and health specialists, would have been part of the task team. Nevertheless, the council rejected her amendment 4-10, with Hugo Soto-Martinez, Marqueece Harris-Dawson, and Heather Hutt voting in favor of the motion. Nithya Raman, a councilwoman, did not participate in the voting.
Proposals and Perspectives on RV Parking Regulations
On the other hand, a different motion sponsored by Councilwoman Traci Park was well greeted and passed with no discussion. In his motion, Park requests a citywide program that forbids RV parking in residential neighborhoods, business corridors, and other sensitive places. Reports on the scheme will specify spots in each council district where significant vehicle dwellings can park outside of residential and commercial zones and anticipated from several municipal agencies.
Park highlighted the urgency of addressing the RV crisis, arguing that the city cannot afford to delay action. “The crisis in front of us today is urgent,” Park asserted. “The last thing we need is another committee, another commission, or another task force over multiple years to tell us what we already know — that these RVs are unsafe, unsanitary, and causing irreparable harm in our communities.”
She further warned of a looming crisis, referencing recent legal and governmental regulations developments. “We are six weeks post-Grants Pass, and we haven’t adjusted a single policy in the city of Los Angeles to account for what other communities in California and beyond are doing in response … or what’s being done in response to the governor’s recent order,” Park said.
In June, the US Supreme Court said that towns had the right to control camping on public land and issue fines. A month later, Governor Gavin Newsom directed state agencies to destroy homeless encampments; nevertheless, individual communities have the last say over the encampment disposal.
Park’s proposal, supported by Bob Blumenfield, Yaroslavsky, Imelda Padilla, and Council President Paul Krekorian, calls on the city to take several necessary steps. Among these are the free permit requirements for the RV parking program and the offering of shower and bathroom facilities akin to the city’s current Mobile Pit/Shower Stop program.
The motion also asks for wrap-around services, safety precautions, and regular sanitation services, such as garbage collection and waste disposal. The motion also asks to identify and implement any required modifications to the city’s Municipal Code.
