Amid a proliferation of recreational vehicles on the streets of Los Angeles, local and state officials are working together to create additional space to store the large motor homes.
On Monday, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 2525, allowing the city of Los Angeles to rent space from Caltrans for $1 per month, in which officials plan to store RVs.
The bill, authored by Assemblyman Rick Chavez Zbur (D-Hollywood), was sponsored by Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, whom Zbur thanked in a press release announcing the bill’s signature.
“With thousands of people experiencing homelessness living in RVs, the need for safe storage as we transition Angelenos into housing is urgent,” Zbur said. “… AB 2525 will authorize the State to better partner with the City of Los Angeles to provide real solutions for community members experiencing homelessness.”
As the Los Angeles times detailed, the bill gives the city access to 25 parcels underneath and near freeways.
Residents will “see the difference in more RV encampments being cleared,” Clara Karger, a spokeswoman for Bass, told the Times in an emailed statement.
It won’t be immediate — only one parcel is currently available — but as more spaces become open, they’ll augment the city’s current stock of only 325 parking spaces for RVs, of which 95% were occupied early this year, the Times reports.