Mayor Karen Bass promises Angelenos will see more RV encampments cleared and people housed after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill that opens up more than two dozen properties near L.A.
freeways to store towed RVs, feed homeless individuals and provide emergency shelter. The legislation carried by Assemblyman Rick Chavez Zbur, who represents Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Hollywood Hills and other Westside communities, gives Los Angeles access to 25 Caltrans parcels under or near freeways for $1 a month. The bill sponsored by Bass aims to solve the logistical problem that has vexed city officials for years — where to store towed RVs.
Angelenos will “see the difference in more RV encampments being cleared,” said Clara Karger, a spokeswoman for Bass in an emailed statement. But it might take a while. At the moment, only one of the California Department of Transportation’s 64 so-called airspace properties is available.
“As other properties become available, Caltrans will contact the city,” said Matt Rocco, the agency’s spokesperson in an email. City officials have struggled for years with a shortage of vehicles that can tow the hulking campers that now line communities from Van Nuys to South Los Angeles. Even when tow trucks are available, there often isn’t a city yard where these recreational vehicles can be held, some of which are legally required to be held for up to 120 days before being destroyed, claimed or auctioned.
There are only 325 spaces for RVs in city l.
