Modesto considers trying safe parking program for people who live in their cars
Modesto may establish a safe parking program in which people who live in their cars, motor homes and other vehicles could sleep at night. The site would have security, portable toilets, drinking water and other basics.
City officials discussed the proposal for a pilot program of 25 parking spaces at the City Council’s Safety and Communities Committee meeting Monday evening. Officials still are working on the proposal, but brought it to the committee to determine whether there was interest in bringing back a fully developed plan.
The proposal drew strong support from Mayor Sue Zwahlen and council members Chris Ricci and Jenny Kenoyer, who serve on the committee, and who asked officials to bring back a complete plan.
“It’s a really good idea,” Kenoyer said. “I’m really pleased with it.”
City Manager Joe Lopez said officials could not yet say when they will bring the proposal back because they need to nail down such details as the location, engaging a service provider, the proposal’s cost and how the city would pay for it. He said the city has identified an ideal site but did not want to say more until the logistics are worked out.
Modesto is looking at sites whose zoning — or land-use regulations — are for commercial or industrial use. Potential sites include the Stanislaus County Housing & Homeless Access Center parking lot and city-owned property at Ninth and D streets, according to a PowerPoint presentation at the meeting.
According to the presentation:
The safe parking site would have fencing, security, cameras, portable toilets and garbage receptacles. The people using it could park overnight and would have to leave during the day. The vehicles would need to be registered and the drivers would need valid licenses and insurance.
The service provider would ensure that only the vehicles in the program use the site and provide case management services to the people who use the site to connect them to housing and other services.
The rules for the safe parking site include no visitors, no open flames such as barbecues, no outdoor storage and tents, no generators and no vehicle repairs.
Parents and children living in cars
Zwahlen asked whether requiring vehicles to be registered and drivers licensed and insured could keep parents with children from using the site. Zwahlen — who was elected mayor in February — served on the Modesto City Schools board from 2009-17. She said her children had friends at school who lived in cars with their families.
Community Development Manager Jessica Hill said city officials don’t have all of the answers now, and while they are developing Modesto’s program based on what other communities have done — including requiring vehicle registration, licenses and insurance — they understand council members’ concerns and are open to their feedback.
Police Chief Brandon Gillespie attended the committee meeting and said he supports the proposal if the details can be worked out.
He could not provide an estimate on how many people are sleeping in their vehicles but said the Police Department receives at least several calls a week about people parked illegally or living in their vehicles.
‘It spans the whole gamut’
He said people living in their cars can be found in business and retail parking lots with lighting, hidden away in industrial areas at night and even in residential neighborhoods. “It spans the whole gamut,” he said.
When asked by text message after the meeting about how large the program could become if the city moves forward with the pilot program and it is a success, Gillespie wrote:
“At this early stage, I wouldn’t want to speculate on how big it might get. That is what we hope the pilot program would help us evaluate. But just like our shelters, the goal would be to help these individuals navigate towards more permanent housing and not see these locations as permanent places to live.”
Deputy City Manager Caluha Barnes said in a text after the meeting that city officials would seek the full City Council’s approval before starting the program. City officials often bring proposals to one of the council’s committees for an initial vetting before seeking council approval.
