San Jose set to take action on lived-in RVs on city streets

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With home ownership and rental prices out of reach, people in neighborhoods across the bay move into RVs and other oversized vehicles to give them some way to stay.

In San Jose, encampments forming around those RVs are a source of growing frustration. Mayor Matt Mahan said the city is taking stock of hundreds of oversized vehicles parked around San Jose, before taking the next steps to crack down.

“People in our residential neighborhoods, people running small businesses should not have to deal with permanent encampments with trash, fires, noise and other challenges for months, and sometimes years on end,” Mahan said Thursday.

“In some cases were going to have to clear and tow areas and prevent re-encampment,” the mayor went on to say. “In other areas, we just need to enforce basic rules around sanitation and keeping areas neat. My goal is much better job of managing the encampments and reducing the impacts on neighbors.”

Mahan’s pilot program to address oversized vehicles on city streets is getting mixed reviews. Many in RVs are worried about where they will park, while some residents are saying it’s about time the city took action.

Danny, who did not want to give his last name, has found a peaceful neighborhood in San Jose to call home. Ideally, he would like a private lot to park on but that comes with a price tag that he can’t afford.

“It’s impossible,” said Danny. “It’s impossible. I mean we can try to get on Section 8. It’s me and my wife but then we’re taking from, I’ve never taken welfare.”

So he lives in his RV, moving from spot to spot, trying to be invisible.

“I do run the generator but it’s a quiet generator and I move it all the time,” he told CBS News Bay Area.

Mahan’s plan to better monitor and enforce parking rules will focus on areas that are deeply impacted by RVs such as Columbus Park. Trailers, RVs and oversized cars line the streets, creating safety concerns and become overwhelmed with trash.

Danny says he’s always made sure he’s a good neighbor.

“I don’t leave a mess,” he said. “There’s a lot of people that live in trailers and they pretty much, they think they own the street. They leave it all the time, they leave a mess, stuff all around it.”

AJ Bal has seen the RV communities sprout up in his neighborhood. He’s noticed some issues and not only worries about his safety but for those on the streets.

“There are so many things like people are living behind the trailers,” said Bal. “That’s another concern for me. You don’t know who’s living behind the trailer and for how long. So that’s another thing I would think of.”

The city says it’s working to expand its safe parking sites but it’s also working to provide an alternative to living on the streets.

Danny though loves his RV and can’t imagine being packed in a lot with dozens of other people.

“That kind of scares me because that kind of thing brings its own thing,” he said. “I’d rather be out here by myself on the street than somewhere where they might have crime and things might happen to it.”

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