Despite more oversize-vehicle citations, coastal residents see no changes

SAN DIEGO Following a long delay the San Diego Police Department is now stepping up enforcement on people living in cars and RVs parking overnight in beach areas including Mission Bay Between July - SDPD issued oversize-vehicle citations and parking tickets San Diego has had ordinances on the books restricting van habitation particularly overnight Sleeping in a car on inhabitants streets is prohibited between p m and a m Additionally long-term conveyance habitation including in RVs on private property is often restricted with a typical -hour limit for camping Up-to-date legal challenges and settlements however have changed enforcement requiring police to now offer alternative shelter options before citing individuals for bicycle habitation There are at present four ongoing Safe Parking sites across the city two of which are open hours Times of San Diego reached out through emails and social media to ask coastal area residents if they have seen a difference with the increased enforcement of RVs and oversized vehicles Here s what they had to say Bill Zent of Pacific Beach hasn t noticed any appreciable difference I belong to Mission Bay Boat and Ski Club at the end of the road that goes to Mission Bay Golf Discipline and I have seen no change he disclosed I was there the other day and particular RV had been there over a month The RVs parked on both sides of the road present a real hazard You have people on bikes walking kids and families Only one car can pass through this on the entry road to the module Six years ago attorney Ann Menasche filed a lawsuit against the city on behalf of homeless people to challenge city ordinances against living in vehicles and parking oversized vehicles such as RVs on city streets between a m and a m She was not pleased by the news of the up-to-date SDPD crackdown We find this extremely disturbing Menasche commented It is not in the interests of either our class members people whose only shelter is their vehicles or the city for people to have their RVs impounded for unpaid tickets and end up without shelter on the streets Class members need to understand their rights regarding enforcement of the Oversized Motorcycle Ordinance People with RVs or other oversized vehicles are only obligated to accept a safe lot placement such as at H Barracks in Point Loma if it is reasonably available to them Because the lot is only open at night one factor for certain RV dwellers may be the cost of daily journey to and from the lot to where they park during the day Menasche commented Following are comments from other coastal residents about the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of SDPD s newest stepped-up enforcement of bus dwellers Presently we are utilizing the water balloon enforcement model for the RVs where you squeeze it here and it pops out over there declared John Volanski of PB Pacifica Viewed at the overall system level there is no appreciable change I biked through Mission Bay Drive this past Sunday morning still loads of RVs yellow school buses with people living in them especially the northwestern section of the road disclosed Fan Dong who lives near Kate Sessions Park in PB Patsy K of PB North Shore Highlands South revealed RVs are increasing at Ski Beach in Crown Point Not only do they have bayfront parking at no cost but I in the past few days witnessed a complimentary trash pickup utility she revealed Another complete failure on the part of our mayor and our City Council members Cathy Ives of Mission Beach commented she s frustrated I had to document a large truck with a trailer that took up nine parking spaces This was in a no overnight camping lot The first change was that they detached the truck from the trailer now taking up six spaces Two weeks later still there No ticket Nothing Diana Bui of northwest Ocean Beach revealed the status quo remains unchanged I haven t seen any improvements or a difference she explained We had two big RVs parked on my street here in OB last week and it impinges our view when trying to pull out onto the street with traffic Our landlord had to remove any electrical outlets and water faucets on the outside of our building due to people coming and plugging in for free electricity and filling up their RVs with our water We are a sanctuary city for people living in RVs and other vehicles declared Lisa B of PB North I counted at a usually empty parking lot near SeaWorld and Paradise Point Likewise at Dana Point No reason to stay at Campland a safe parking lot or other facilities when you can park anywhere on the bay for free with no standards or penalties Jill Sorge of Mission Beach also hasn t seen much of a change since enforcement was beefed up There are still quite a scarce RVs at Mission Point Park in the bayside lot across the channel from OB she stated It s sad because they take up all the parking that San Diego families need for a day at the beach or bay which is one of the minimal free things to do in our very expensive city Randy Edmunds of PB Pacifica announced he s noticed several improvement from increased RV enforcement I went to the Mission Bay Golf Class last Saturday a little before a m and the roadsides were pretty full with parked RVs he stated But when I left about two hours later there weren t any RVs So I m guessing that there is enforcement during certain hours I have not noticed a difference reported Terry Kraszewski of La Jolla Shores I ve had one parked in front of my house for four days Sunset Cliffs area between Coronado Street and Bermuda Street is their new go-to spot for their oversized Sprinter Vans taking two parking spots blocking views of intersections and enjoying the beach life rent-free stated Ric K of Ocean Beach