RV owners living in San Francisco neighborhood to be forced out
RV dwellers on SF Bernal Hill told by city to move along
People living in RVs on San Franciscos Bernal Hill are being forced to move on. The mayors office says the RVs are a safety concern and health hazard. The city gave a March 28 moving deadline, but did not provide details on a possible relocation site.
SAN FRANCISCO - A vintage RV parked near the top of a hill on Bernal Heights Boulevard in San Francisco is home sweet home for Armando Martinez.
"I didn’t plan on living here," Martinez told KTVU. "I just lost my job about a year and a half ago, and I couldn’t find a place that I could afford."
Martinez has parked his RV on the same street since October, and he is not alone.
A KTVU crew counted six RVs parked on the street on Thursday.
The city wants them to leave.
Noe Coto has been parked there for three years.
"We are good people, you know. I work every day," said Coto, who works as a plumber, and drives a car to and from his RV to go to work.
San Francisco Mayor London Breed’s office told KTVU the city is giving RV owners until March 28 to remove their vehicles.
The city’s transportation code prevents any vehicle from being parked on a street for more than 72 hours.
"It’s a great spot," said Bruce Levin, who lives nearby. "I can understand why they’re here, but it’s limited parking."
The mayor’s office said parking large vehicles along the winding narrow road is a safety concern, and illegal dumping, including raw sewage, is a health hazard.
"We’ve all been coming out and picking up all the trash every morning," another neighbor told KTVU, who did not want to share her name because she claimed she felt threatened by the RV occupants. "There’s drug dealing going on in the back of the one. There’s the dogs left all day long."
Several dogs were spotted in one of the RVs.
Other neighbors don’t have a problem with the RVs being there.
"Heartsick to see it happening on all the levels," said Anne Donjacour, who regularly walks her dog on the street where the RVs are parked. "RVs, the tent cities, and there’s just nowhere for people to go."
The coalition on homelessness says the RV’s are a low-cost alternative to the rising cost of rent, and allow people to avoid living on the streets.
"Let us stay here for a little while longer, so we can figure out what we’re doing," Martinez said.
The mayor’s office said the no-parking restriction applies to all vehicles, not just RVs.
The city’s transportation code allows for vehicles to be towed away.
The RV owners do not know where they might end up next.
The city did not provide details on a possible relocation site.