Closure of San Francisco's safe parking center is putting residents in distress
Dozens of people who live at the Bayview Vehicle Triage Center will need to find somewhere else to call home by Monday.
In early December, the city informed residents that they would have to accept an offer of alternate housing or vacate the safe parking center by Monday, March 3.
VTC resident Aaron Wilson says his life has been turned upside down.
"One hundred percent," said Wilson when asked if the situation has been distressing. "I mean, totally. Like an earthquake."
Wilson has lived at the safe parking site since March 2024. In December, the city announced the closure.
It was shortly after officials finally managed to connect reliable power, nearly three years after opening.
A 2023 budget analyst report estimates the cost per vehicle at the site to be about $140,000 per year.
Emily Cohen with the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing explained to Bay City News why they're shutting down the facility.
She cited costly infrastructure issues, lease renewal issues and difficulties understanding the best way to serve people living in their vehicles.
"I think that that's what government is supposed to do," said Cohen. "If something's not working, you're supposed to end it and move on. Like, we don't want to just keep doing something that is demonstrating that it's not working."
The people living in their vehicles have been offered housing and not all of them have accepted it, but Wilson did. Now, he doesn't know what to do with his RV.
"I asked for a tow and they denied it to me," said Wilson. "Bayview Hunter Park Foundation. This is the so-called case workers, they said, 'No we're not giving it to you. You have to figure it out yourself.'"
If he doesn't, it may be towed to an impound lot.
When he moved into the triage center nearly a year ago, he was told that the HSH would provide services to fix his vehicle and get him back on his feet, but he claims they never did what they promised.
He says many of the other vehicles at the site are in similar states of disrepair and can't be moved on their own. Wilson has started an online fundraiser to try and get his vehicle moved and fixed so he can potentially sell it.
"I'm going to have to find a place for the vehicle in the interim," said Wilson. "I have to get it registered and then I can have it for sale, right? And in that time I have to hope it doesn't get broken into. That's why they call this safe parking, break-ins to RVs is very common in San Francisco, it's almost assured. If you leave and they've been watching it you open yourself up."
Everything he owns is inside of his RV, and the same is true for many of the others.
He also has several cats, and he won't be able to bring them all to his new housing, he hopes to find a way to keep them safe too.
"I don't want to lose any of them," said Wilson
From what people who live in VTC currently understand, if they don't get their vehicles out by Monday, they may be towed on Tuesday.
CBS Bay Area reached out to the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing to see if there's an update on the situation and if people will be able to get assistance moving broken-down vehicles. We have not heard back yet.
