San Francisco has opened its first safe parking lot for homeless residents to park their vehicles.
The so-called “vehicle triage center” near the Balboa Park BART station offers round the clock security, solar charging stations, showers and bathrooms.
Sandra Hughes was one of the first to claim a spot and said she is often harassed by other residents when they see her parking on their street.
“They treat me as if I’m less than human,” said Hughes. “I wish they could understand that I don’t want to live in my RV or have to park there either.”
But yelling is not the only obstacle she faces. “I don’t feel safe living in my RV. It’s been broken into over five times and I’m scared every night when I try to sleep.”
The lot has space for 30 vehicles and their occupants, a drop in the bucket compared to the 700 or more vehicles that the homeless sleep in every night in San Francisco, according to a recent count. That is double the amount of homeless vehicles that were counted just last year.
“I want to be clear because the first thing you hear from folks is ‘well it’s not enough, it’s not enough’ – well it’s better than what it was,” said San Francisco Mayor London Breed.
But not all of the neighbors agree. A restaurant owner in the area says his customers have concerns.
“They’re going to have a homeless shelter right in their backyard. They’re worried that the city is not going to keep their promise in monitoring and keeping that area clean," the owner said.
Breed is more optimistic. “This vehicle triage center is something I think that can be potentially duplicated throughout San Francisco.”
City officials are looking for other locations that can be turned into safe parking lots.
