Agenda Item Number 10: Adoption of Ordinance 1136 RV Parking Ordinance (021522)
Councilors,
I am writing in support of meeting agenda item #10:
Adoption of Ordinance 1136 Adding Chapter 10.76
Recreational Vehicle Parking Ordinance to the City of
Sebastopol municipal code.
Public comment, both written and spoken by city
residents submitted over the last several months, have
been clear that Chief Kilgore’s ordinance is practical, necessary and supported as written.
Oliver Marks
Downtown Sebastopol
As I travel through town I see many campers and RVs on our city streets — some with residents, some empty.
The ones with residents constitute their own set of problems and I’ll leave it to others to figure out how to deal with those.
My concern is with the campers and RVs that stand empty on neighborhood streets.
We have one on Bately Court which takes up valuable parking space in this high density residential zone. The owner of this outsized vehicle is hip to the 72-hour ordinance and moves the camper by several inches every three days to avoid getting towed.
My landlord, property manager and I have contacted the police several times and there’s nothing they can do as long as the owner is using this strategy.
This isn’t the only outsize recreational vehicle taking up valuable parking space in Sebastopol.
There are many others— always in the same spot, always using Sebastopol streets as their personal garages.
I hope city council passes the ordinance which would ban RV parking on city streets during daylight hours.
Thank you,
~ ~ Susana
Sebastopol
From: Yolanda Mathew
To: Mary Gourley
Cc: Yolanda Mathew
Subject: City Council Hearing- RV Parking Ordinance- Public Comment 2/15 Date: Tuesday, February 15, 2022 4:34:12 PM
Dear City Council,
The Barlow supports the approval of the RV Parking Ordinance as written by Police Chief Kilgore. We look forward to moving forward and seeing progress and order in Sebastopol.
Please include this in public comment for tonight's hearing.
Kind regards,
YOLANDA MATHEW
Operations Director
707.806.9797
www.thebarlow.net
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From: Asya Sorokurs
To: City Council
Subject: Comment for February 15th Meeting: Agenda Item 10 on Consent Calendar RV Parking Ordinance Date: Monday, February 14, 2022 1:14:55 PM
Attachments: Outlook-1z3opzi3.png
Dear City Council Members,
I am the Homelessness Prevention Attorney at Legal Aid of Sonoma County. We assist unhoused individuals with removing legal barriers to housing. This comment is about agenda item 10 on your Consent Calendar: Approval of Second Reading and Adoption of Ordinance 1136, An Ordinance of the City of Sebastopol Adding Chapter 10.76 Recreational Vehicle Parking Ordinance and Amending Chapter 10.36 of the Sebastopol Municipal Code. We ask that you remove the item from the consent calendar for the reasons outlined below.
First, we do not believe that this ordinance conforms to the prevailing legal precedent of Martin v.
Boise or the Eight Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Citing and towing recreational vehicles that unhoused people make their home is criminalization of homelessness. When unhoused individuals are not offered a placement and there is nowhere else for them to go, they cannot be removed from public spaces. The towing of recreational vehicles that serve as homes for the homeless population of Sebastapol would be a forfeiture and an excessive fine under the Eighth Amendment.
The allowance for RV parking at night is not a common sense carve-out since many unhoused individuals live in inoperable vehicles which cannot be moved. This blanket ban on recreational vehicles will not only affect those unhoused individuals you are trying to ban, but those who use recreational vehicles in your city for businesses and leisure recreational activities. With this ordinance you are prohibiting unhoused individuals from existing in the City of Sebastopol during the day, with the hopes that they do not return at night.
Second, this is the wrong time for this ordinance. If homeless people are being moved from where they are living on public property, they should be offered an alternative in the form of safe parking or permanent housing. Currently, the city does not have enough safe parking or permanent housing units to house the homeless population. The RV Village run by SAVS has not yet officially opened and allowed RV owners to move to this location if they are able. Until this is accomplished, it is unclear that there is a need for a blanket ban on all recreational vehicles city-wide. In their February 1st report, the Ad-Hoc Committee on the Unhoused says that they believe once the RV Village is operable the concerns with RVs on Morris Street will be eliminated or reduced. We ask that you do not pass this ordinance that would disproportionally impact the indigent homeless community.
Respectfully,
Asya Sorokurs
Legal Aid of Sonoma County
Ronit Rubinoff, Executive Director
Legal Aid of Sonoma County
Asya Sorokurs, Esq.
Pronouns: she/her
144 South E Street Suite 100
Santa Rosa, CA 95404
https://legalaidsc.org/
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From: Rob Moniz
To: City Council
Subject: Ordinance to prohibit recreational vehicles from parking on Sebastopol city streets Date: Wednesday, February 09, 2022 4:09:07 PM
Hello City Council and Chief Kilgore,
After sending this to Council member Diana Rich, I realized that Chief Kilgore is on vacation until Feb 13th and I’m ignoring the remaining council members.
It would be nice to have Chief Kilgore’s input on my comments and questions before the ordinance is discussed and approved on Feb 15, 2022. I’m not sure if there is any room for alteration at this point, but I would like to understand the inputs to the ordnance, who the ad hoc group members are and how much they are representative of the 8000 people in Sebastopol.
My original email is as follows.
--------
After reviewing the proposed ordinance, and emails I have some questions.
This ordinance seems to be written as a direct response to people moving to Sebastopol and occupying a public street, rather than a residence. The new ordinance applies to all people living in Sebastopol, rather than to those who are living illegally. I assume that is to show an equal application of law to all within the city limits.
The ordinance also lists a wide variety of recreational vehicles. Some of the vehicles match the description of business/commercial vehicles. It’s entirely reasonable for a mobile business to perform certain conversions to a van/vehicle, including solar cells, extended roofs, curtains and air conditioning to improve the working conditions of employees. These same vehicles rely on the advertisement of services on their street parked vehicles, both on the job and in front of the owners home. Will it be up to the officers discretion wether to cite the vehicle or not?
Where will all of these vehicles go? The some may be parked in the owners driveway, but others may have to be stored. Where can one store a recreational vehicle in Sonoma County? Businesses do exist for that purpose, though rent is expensive.
Still other tax paying citizens of Sebastopol have used legally owned, insured, registered and maintained recreational vehicles as office space, because working from home is now a constant and not a maybe.
The emails provided to me are largely from impacted business owners, who are dealing with the issues brought about by the occupation of Morris street and surrounding areas. In writing the ordinance, was an impact analysis performed to determine how many citizens of Sebastopol will be collaterally damaged by the ordinance forcing citizen/home owners/non-Barlow businesses to relocate vehicles? Do you know how many recreational vehicles are registered to addresses within the city limits? How many meet the different vehicle types included in the ordnance, and how many are strictly recreational v.s. a type commonly used for business? I would expect this type of analysis to be done by the city, as the data is publicly available, and could not be a large dataset.
In order to meet the stated goals and general plan actions, I would expect the city to notify registered vehicle owners prior to adoption discussions. Unless the city has the data already, how could it know the true impact of the ordinance?
I think the key point missing from the ordnance is related to vehicles parked in front of the address for which it is registered. These citizens have paid for their vehicle to legally occupy a place on the road. It’s been a history understanding that you can park in front of your house overnight, though you don’t own the road and someone else can take the same location. The assumption is that no one will occupy the location longer than is legally allowed. This ordnance seems to adjust the time limit to zero, making all vehicles not used for business purposes, unable to stand still on the city streets.
In addition to my questions above, I would ask that the council amend the ordnance to allow vehicles to occupy the space within a reasonable distance to the address for which it is registered to.
Kind Regards,
-Rob Moniz
From: Loretta Castleberry
To: City Council
Subject: Parking Ordinance
Date: Friday, February 11, 2022 12:37:35 PM
February 11, 2022
Dear Sebastopol City Council,
As business owners and city of Sebastopol tax paying residents we want to restate our desire for you to approve agenda item #10, Adoption of Ordinance 1136, An Ordinance of the City of Sebastopol Adding Chapter 10.76 Recreational Vehicle Parking Ordinance and Amending Chapter 10.36 of the Sebastopol Municipal Code.
We have had to deal with theft, vandalism, picking up filth and trash, and harassment of our customers and employees for more than five years. It is past time that the City of Sebastopol act on this matter.
Sincerely,
Chip & Loretta Castleberry
Coaches’ Corner
420 Morris Street
From: courtney klein
To: City Council
Cc: [email protected]
Subject: Parking Ordinance Comment
Date: Tuesday, February 15, 2022 5:42:28 PM
Attachments: WCHA Letter to City Council 2 15 2002 Parking Ordinance.docx Dear Sebastopol City Council Members,
I hope you are well today. My name is Courtney and I work in Sebastopol serving the public, which means I interact with unsheltered people daily. I am writing to you tonight to express my opinion on tonight's agenda item concerning the Parking Ordinance.
I am against the parking ordinance. I find it problematic because:
It further dehumanizes unhoused human beings in Sonoma County, and for that matter, the state of California, which has a fragile, complex, and self-defeating social infrastructure
It will contribute to climate warming and negatively affect our local Climate Action committee's work, since people experiencing vehicular homelessness will be forced to move their vehicles more often, thus burning more fossil fuels It will scatter unsheltered individuals, making social workers' jobs exponentially more challenging as they struggle to locate homeless folx, evaluate their needs, earn their trust, and connect them with social services
It subjects homeless individuals to sleep deprivation (not everyone sleeps at the ordained time of 8pm-7:30am)
It will have a negative impact on housed individuals with RVs, especially residents who purchased an RV in preparation for wildfire season and evacuation It will have a negative impact on traveling visitors (as a librarian I have met many grandparents who have traveled here to take care of nuclear families affected by COVID-19, trauma, job losses, etc) or wildfire evacuees It will have a negative impact on our Police Department, who will be burdened by fielding complaints related to the parking ordinance, when we could have a team of mental health experts and social workers dealing with the overarching issue instead In terms of problem solving for solutions, I agree with Arthur George's submitted public comment, which I have attached here.
Thank you for your public service,
Courtney Klein
From: cypoten
To: City Council
Subject: Proposed new Parking Ordinance
Date: Tuesday, February 15, 2022 3:10:59 PM
I'm writing to request a delay in enacting the ordinance that proposes to ban all RVs on residential streets, and prohibit RV parking on all streets during the day until 10 pm. I'm concerned about the impact of this ordinance on 1) people living in RVs and 2) unincorporated areas of the County and state highways. The ban essentially shuttles the problem to County and State officials, raising these questions. Will encampments trigger ongoing sweeps, leaving people with no place to go? If encampments are allowed instead of swept, will the County provide sanitary facilities and water? The need for a coordinated municipal/county/state plan to address the ongoing surge in homelessness is clear. In the meantime, municipalities continue to struggle with how to handle the problem of residential vehicles parked in their streets.
I commend the Council's handling of the Sebastopol's homeless residents to date. You are a model for other municipalities. I believe it will serve the greater good of the community to delay this ordinance with the specific intent of working with County officials to develop a plan that will resolve the city's immediate encampment issues by locating and establishing an appropriate County site.
I've heard that a civil rights lawsuit alleging the ban is discriminatory has been discussed. After all the Council has done to assist Sebastopol's homeless community, efforts that have included legal expenses, I sincerely hope that route is not taken.
Cynthia Poten
From: Gale Brownell
To: Patrick Slayter; Una Glass; Sarah Glade Gurney; Neysa Hinton; Diana Rich Cc: Lawrence McLaughlin; Mary Gourley; Kari Svanstrom
Subject: Proposed parking ordinance
Date: Tuesday, February 15, 2022 4:08:43 PM
Electeds and City staffHaving skimmed through the draft parking ordinance, I feel that it is premature to adopt it tonight. It appears that it will make it difficult for local residents to park near their homes to load or unload their RVs for trips. I believe that it will simply push the parking of RVs being used for permanent housing into the unincorporated areas where the problems of unsanitary practices in regard to washing and toileting will proliferate, where there may be environmental damage to streams and where it will be hard for residents to properly discard of their garbage. In addition, the adoption runs the risk of causing litigation, which can only be costly to the City, even if it prevails in such a lawsuit.
I suggest that additional time be taken to research other options which can address the concerns of all parties. Surely we can find humane and helpful ways to address the concerns of our business people, families, and unhoused residents if we work co-operatively and consider that each set of those involved have valid issues.
Let’s walk in the shoes of the others concerned.
Gale Brownell
From: Ludmilla Bade
To: Mary Gourley
Subject: Proposed RV Parking Restrictions
Date: Tuesday, February 15, 2022 4:30:22 PM
Dear Citizens and Councilmembers,
I understand that some citizens are concerned that some RVs have been parked at street locations for more than 72 hours.
I agree with you that a few RV owners have parked their vehicles in a way, location, or time frame that is not consistent with some residents or business owner's visions for a particular street or vista.
I also notice that some individuals are conflating their fears, stereotypes, "internal stories", and prejudices with the actual in-real-life and sometimes death situations of people living with disabilities, aging, and without the means to afford a brick and mortar home.
I do not in any way agree with anyone taking items (including gas) without the owner's permission, entering or residing on private property without the owner's permission, or touching or entering someone's vehicle without the owner's permission. These actions can and should be cited, investigated, and followed up on with involved individuals.
I also do not agree with individuals or special groups misusing public spaces by disproportionately utilizing them in a way that excludes use by other members of the public.
Campers and RV dwellers should continue to behave and maintain their stuff in ways that safely allow space for others to use parking areas and walkways, etc. And other socioeconomic classes should also behave in ways that allow use of public spaces for other groups, and individuals in other socioeconomic classes to feel safe while utilizing these resources.
I think everyone agrees that we/they/individuals do not want people in RVs to be permanently parked on streets.
The problem here, is that we need to solve the correct problem. A long time ago, I wondered why some wars continue so long. The key in winning a war, is first correctly identify the enemy - if the actual enemy is not addressed, then it's just a continuing mess with relatively innocent people bashing each other around, and casualties/drained resources for the "good" side as well as the "others". In problem solving, if the primary actual problem remains unsolved, then the problem will continue to be a problem.
The current proposed RV ordinance is intended to target unhoused people, in a completely misguided attempt to "motivate" them to magically levitate into some invisible space.
Those of us who have found a brief landing spot on the streets of Sebastopol (as I did, and my son before me when he started working in Sonoma County after graduating from college) are already motivated. I don't know of any RV dwellers (or anyone else for that matter) who grew up telling their family that their life goal was to live in a vehicle on the streets of Sebastopol.
It is an extremely silly investment for the citizens of Sebastopol to spend an estimated $350,000 on "you're not welcome here" signs, additional police enforcement, and ticketing and fining nightmares for every RV or trailer-owning citizen, visitor, or service worker to Sebastopol from here on out.
The proposed ordinance would disproportionately impact citizens who have an extra vehicle, but share housing, with limited driveway space. It would disproportionately favor citizens who occupy relatively spacious single-family property with extra land or driveway space.
The SAVs group with the RV parking (thank you Councilmembers, Citizens, and others for giving space and time and energy to creating and allowing and defending!(yikes) this project ) is already prioritizing the street RVs that have been in Sebastopol the longest.
There is no need to "pile on" and minimize the good effect that SAVs (and other similar efforts in Santa Rosa and elsewhere) are having by adding on administratively violent hate actions to "convince already traumatized people that they are unwanted and unwelcome" or "fining impoverished people so that it is harder to find the resources to maintain a vehicle or pay a security deposit on housing" or "removing and towing a living space so that someone has to return to camping in the surrounding woods" or whatever it is that some NIMBYs think will be sufficient violence to convince people that property ownership is the only "right path" to right living.
The reasons that homeless people have had difficulty being housed vary from individual to individual, and it is often a mistake to paint everyone with the same brush, and even moreso to seek the same solution for every situation. But I can tell you that successfully getting onto social services is more difficult than applying to college. I can tell you that out of 280 federal housing vouchers provided to this county in August 2021, as of January 2022 only about 50 had been found homes despite the efforts of several major agencies and non-profits - the rest are in some kind of limbo waiting for a landlord or a space to open up. I can tell you that the shelters in this county do not have a space nearby for RVs, so if someone has a vehicle they have no safe space to park it, and they may lose all of their possessions and their vehicle may be harmed as well if it's parked offsite. I can tell you that if someone has a family pet, often there is no space that will take them and their furry family as well.
I can also tell you that several public or private efforts have been made to find additional space for homeless people in vehicles, but "neighbors" in other communities have raised so much concern, based on their stereotypes and fears, that numerous options have been shut down or never got started. I can say that millions of dollars go to "facilitating" homeless programs, studies, meetings, conferences, and whatnot, but very little of it benefits the person on the street. Most non-profits will not offer much help with any connections, work options, or other services unless the person gets housing or shelter through them, and those of us who are only moderately traumatized or disabled or aging often do not qualify for their housing or shelter program because we don't score high enough on their "vulnerability" scale. In short, the people who might be able to work part-time, who are capable and able enough to drive, to own a vehicle, and to keep their stuff in some kind of order, are those most left out of the current "homeless resolution" programs, and also (because they have a vehicle) are the most targeted by police, code enforcement, and NIMBY hate-mongers.
I could go on about the connection between connections with people vs addiction. I could go on and on about being excluded and re-excluded, and how much time is lost recovering from each incident. I could mention the different mind/behavior states of stress functioning, vs personal and life development.
I could wax poetic about the possibilities of education and being able to catch one's breath.
Some people are travelling around West County and temporarily landing in Sebastopol because Code Enforcement has been going around (at the insistence of "complainers" ) and aggressively shutting down and punitively fining (to the point of intending that they lose their land) rural property owners who "dare" to provide housing or parking space for low income people - I hear that in the last year alone they've proudly shut down almost 200 land owners' capacity to help arrange shelter and utilities for multiple low income people. 20 people in one that I know of, 9 in another - I believe most of these sites each involved multiple low income people. Some RV owners may be travelling through Sebastopol - but mostly not because they can get "free resources" - I understand they are looking for connection, for community, for work, and for hope.
I agree with many of you that the County could be doing a much better job with handling issues related to homelessness than it is. But I also would encourage more people to be less angry with people who are currently labelled as "homeless", because they often aren't particularly consuming local resources.
I hear the police chief's frustration with enforcement. The current non-enforcement adinfinitum run around is not working, and not a good use of police resources.
Instead of this violence and fear-based urban copycat hypocritically enforced RV parking ban, I suggest and support a much more solid enforcement of the 72 hour rule:
Put a largish notice (preferably green - the orange are kind of scary ) on any problemparked vehicle, the first time it is seen parked somewhere. Proposed Text: The City of Sebastopol has a strictly enforced 72 hour parking rule. This vehicle needs to be moved off of this street at least 2 blocks or ___________(specified distance ) away, by ________date (72 hrs after notice). Please do not park on residential streets. Police phone number _____________/or online site ____________ (so residents can call or register online if it's their vehicle in front of their own house). If vehicle is not moved by the above time, it is subject to citation.
Thank you for considering this relatively simple, inexpensive, and potentially more effective solution. I would love to see you able to invest your valuable funds and energy in art and other projects that will enhance the city instead.
Thank you,
Ludmilla Bade
Try to make at least one person happy every day,
and then in ten years you may have made three thousand, six hundred and fifty persons happy, or brightened a small town by your contribution to the fund of general enjoyment. - Sydney Smith
From: Suzanne lande
To: Mary Gourley
Subject: Public Comment : Sebastopol Ordinance re: :Recreational Vehicles .
Date: Tuesday, February 15, 2022 5:49:46 PM
Mary, please forward this email to Sebastopol City Council for February 5, 2020. My apologies for submitting late.
Thank You,
Suzanne lande
During these times of "Housing Emergency", we have to follow reasonable precautions..Covid19 risk , related loss of employment, and housing shortages remain present and sustained...
As we open Horizon Shine, for a LIMITED NUMBER OF PEOPLE, we have wraparound services...Including "pathway" to modest housing, Job Link, basic health care , mental health care when appropriate... The idea is for people to "graduate' from this, and be able to live a much improved life, making healthier decisions, and leave the RV Village...thus making room for others to come into this or similar programs...
But what about others who can not come into RV Village at this time? What if they have an RV Vehicle, or even a smaller vehicle to sleep in...
OR if they are family or friends of Sebastopol renters or homeowners...
I DO NOT THINK THEY SHOULD BE BANNED FROM SEBASTOPOL !!! I also don't think Oversized Vehicles should be allowed to stay endlessly on residential or other streets...
For both Friends and Families visiting, and for Vehicle Residents of Sebastopol, let's go back to the 72 hour rule..If someone parks on your street, you could request Sebastopol Police implement notification of vehicle owner to move at least a certain distance within 72 hours...If you wished , you could notify the Police the VERY DAY THE VEHICLE ARRIVES ... If notification doesn't happen in a timely way, it's because "you and I " didn't speak up...
For cases such as family visiting to assist Sebastopol families with young children...permission may be available from "the neighborhood " to stay a bit longer ...If unacceptable, the close relatives/ friends may agree to move a certain distance as required..
Thank you for reading and considering my viewpoint.
Suzanne Lande
From: Barbara Renzullo
To: Mary Gourley
Subject: public comment for 2/15/2022, Agenda Item 10,Parking Ordinance Date: Tuesday, February 15, 2022 4:59:47 PM
February 15, 2022
Attention: Mary Gourley, Sebastopol City Clerk
To: Council Members of the City of Sebastopol Re: Agenda Item #10:
Parking Ordinance--02/15/2022
Dear Sebastopol Council Members,
An initial thanks to all of you for the time and support you gave for the creation of the now-in-place RV Village (Horizon Shine) in Sebastopol. It came about through dedicated collaboration. It was heartening to watch you work toward realization of the village with all the others involved. It is vitally needed at this time of so many people without the resources and safety they need.
The parking ordinance under consideration tonight is also related to the needs that brought forth the new village. The no parking ordinance calls for no RV parking between 7:30am and 10pm (with minor exceptions) and applies to residents, visitors, and the unhoused Sebastopol community.
Do look at who will be hurt most by this. Where should those who live in their RVs go? Where ever they go they are not welcome, not provided with basic needs, and not safe.
What to do that doesn't just shuffle people around needs to be seriously undertaken. Deep re-imagining of solutions requiring collaboration, transparency, inclusion of those experiencing homelessness, changing priorities, looking at who is in control of what housing gets built.
Call on county supervisors. There needs to be a step in the right direction towards showing that every one is deserving. Not a step that further discounts those with the least.It is just a question of money but who controls it and who decides. Not easy but possible. Question, look, imagine.
Sincerely,
Barbara Renzullo
From: Joe
To: City Council
Subject: Rethink RV Ordinance
Date: Tuesday, February 15, 2022 3:44:29 PM
Hello,
I am disturbed by the new ordinance regarding RVs on the streets of Sebastopol. While I understand this may prohibit long term encampments, it will really hurts the citizens who have families visiting. We have a small camper (smaller than most cars) that we park in front of our house that we purchased as an emergency evacuation vehicle more than for recreational purposes. This is so important for us to be able to leave during emergencies and also allows us space for family to come visit since we have a small house. This rule, like most, will truly affect the impoverished and needs more consideration.
Our neighbors had a new baby during Covid and their families were able to visit only because they had a camper. As neighbors we were the only ones affected and we thought it was wonderful that these new grandparents could see and help with their grandchild. What a shame if they could not visit or had to go into debt to stay in a costly hotel to see their family.
Please reconsider this ordinance and take more time to see who is really being affected by this.
Thank you!
Joe LeBlanc
From: Eileen Brummal
To: City Council
Subject: Rv restriction Item #10
Date: Tuesday, February 15, 2022 10:52:17 AM
I am a homeowner and 30 year resident of Sebastopol. I am strongly against this new ordinance. The people who do not have homes who stay in their RVs need a place to park… Unless there is a really great available spot for these people to park their RVs they will have nowhere to go. I do not believe that we should make things harder for the homeless and I do not believe that this is a Christian way of treating others.
Every religion emphasizes helping the homeless and the poor "Love your neighbor as yourself". Because none of these individuals can afford to park in an RV park (which tends to cost over $1000 a month), we need to help them.
I do not want this community to lose its compassion… This is the things that separates good people from others. I do believe that places where homeless are parked should be monitored by police regularly, but I do not believe that we should take peoples "homes" away from them when they only have enough money to sleep in their trailer or RV… Please listen to your heart above any political pressures… Thank you so much!
Eileen Brummal-Glomb
Sebastopol, California
From: Kate Haug
To: Mary Gourley
Cc: Kevin Kilgore
Subject: Support Parking Ordinance - Item #10 -Public Comment 2/15/22 Date: Friday, February 11, 2022 9:33:49 AM
Dear Council Members,
I am writing to support agenda item #10, Adoption of Ordinance 1136, An Ordinance of the City of Sebastopol Adding Chapter 10.76 Recreational Vehicle Parking Ordinance and Amending Chapter 10.36 of the Sebastopol Municipal Code.
From public comments submitted by community members over the last 5 months, it is clear that ordinance is necessary and supported by many different constituents within the City of Sebastopol.
I appreciate all the work that Chief Kilgore and the City has put into this ordinance.
Thank you for this work and your responsiveness to our community needs.
Kate Haug
Sebastopol
Dear Council:
Re: Proposed Parking Ordinance: West County Homeless Advocates I am writing to urge restraint in enacting the proposed parking ordinance at this time, and suggest the Council take additional time to reconsider some of its key components. We have all moved quickly in past months under the urgency “to do something” about the continuing situation of Morris Street and environs, but a rush to enact an inherently-problematic ordinance may not be appropriate at this time.
Enforcement and removals have already begun on Morris, and progress continues toward the SAVS RV Village; these are acts in mitigation of Morris Street problems. While parking revisions have been discussed in combination with clearance of Morris, the present ordinance may not present certain legal problems, and negatively affect commerce and residential life in Sebastopol. I respectfully request the Council slow its proceedings in this matter, so that an ordinance may be created to address the issues below.
1. First, banning all RVs from commercial streets during daytime business hours would harm downtown businesses, with commerce already drawn away by the popularity of shops and restaurants of The Barlow district, and would harm The Barlow itself, as its RV patrons could not park on its adjoining commercial streets.
To compel RV visitors unfamiliar with Sebastopol to find our limited pocket parking lots away from the core downtown, or, ludicrously, to suggest they park out of town and return by Uber, is an unfriendly burden on local trade and on Sebastopol as a gateway for coastal, winery, farm trails, and redwood recreation.
2. Second, the complete ban on RVs in residential neighborhoods could be retooled to allow RV parking there only by residents (homeowners and renters) and their temporary guests (e.g., visiting out-of-town relatives and vacationers) parking in front of the related address. An ordinance which creates a “72-hour rule with teeth,” one which requires substantial movement of 10/15/20/50 yards or a block would prevent long-term encroachment or encampment.
I would suggest that few neighborhood residents, who do not closely follow Council meetings, are even yet aware of the proposed prohibition, and the Council will have to revisit this matter when homeowner and renter residents become subject to this prohibition, wake to the increased costs of storing their RVs elsewhere, and protest and petition to the Council for relief, creating a whole new series of hearings and consumption of limited Council time.
As to feared encroachment of the unhoused into the neighborhoods in the absence of a ban, allowance of RV parking only for actual residents (homeowners, renters, and their authorized visitors) would mitigate against any claims by the unhoused of “discrimination.” To allow RV parking as I suggest, RV parking would be akin to a property right appurtenant to the fixed residence, as much as a lawn, to which an encroaching unhoused would have no such right.
3. An attorney with an outside litigation group, California Rural Legal Assistance (“CRLA”), has raised the possibility of litigation, that the proposed ordinance is discriminatory in that it targets the unhoused for removal.
While the ordinance appears “facially neutral,” in that it applies to all RVs, it may be violative of “civil rights” to the extent it may have a disparate impact or effect on the unhoused, particularly as those unhoused may include those with “immutable” (unchangeable) characteristics such as women as a gender or persons with disabilities.
Whether such a claim would succeed is unknown, but it would force the City to defend itself against this claim, with would contain very detailed, highly-nuanced, and thus expensive issues. With the City facing wellacknowledged financial constraints, this is not a time for legal bravado. Negotiation with an intervening outside party, even if perceived as an interloper, may defuse brinksmanship and arrive at a compromise that is more constitutionally acceptable.
Similarly, as counsel for The Barlow has raised the possibility of litigation under Code of Civil Procedure Section 526a (action against government to restrain or prevent waste of or injury to public property, or where entity fails to carry out legal duties) for a “failure” to clear Morris, this would appear to present more easily-resolved factual issues than extended “civil rights” litigation. Again, negotiation and a measured approach may better provide long-term solution and avoid litigation.
4. It has been clearly stated on Council meetings that the purpose of the ordinance is to clear Morris Street and similar environs during daylight business hours, pushing the unhoused out of town onto County or State roadways and adjoining lands during the day. Such stated intentionality may support claims of discrimination.
There appear to be no provisions for sanitation or safety in those outlying areas, particularly as to women.
There appears to be no comprehensive plan from the County or State to deal with this problem, or even the general problem of unhoused in the County. A better approach might be for restraint now, as the Continuum of Care “re-boots” itself, with Councilmember Una Glass as a sitting delegate from the Sebastopol City Council with other governmental representatives. Demand from municipalities for a comprehensive plan, rather than a series of band-aid remedies, such as sequential and expensive hotel purchases removing properties from tax rolls and further impacting tourism and related commerce, that do not address the bulk of the problem, might be more constructive than Sebastopol proceeding on its own to expel RVs in the manner proposed in this ordinance.
As always, thank you for your consideration in these regards, and the significant amount of time the Council has devoted to these difficult issues. In recognition of all that, and with awareness of the Council’s goal to seek some finality, nevertheless restraint is urged at this time.
Arthur George
Chair, West County Homeless Advocates
From: Meadow Eggleston
To: City Council
Subject: We support the Parking Ordinance
Date: Tuesday, February 15, 2022 6:03:41 PM
City Council,
I'm writing in support of the parking ordinance on this evening's city council agenda.
PLEASE pass the ordinance without delay.
You have supported and accommodated more than Sebastopol's fair share of the homeless problem. It is not by coincidence, that the homeless population living in RV's in Sebastopol has grown significantly since Thanksgiving. It is because of your lenience, and it will continue to grow until you take action.
Despite major concerns by Sebastopol citizens, you have given the people living on Morris their "Safe" RV village.
Please...give Sebastopol's tax paying, law abiding citizens our "safe" Clahan park back. Please give us our "safe" Morris street back.
Please, pass the parking ordinance, and let Chief Kilgore enforce it.
Thank you for your time,
Meadow Eggleston
From: Jill McLewis
To: Mary Gourley
Cc: Brian Flath
Subject: We support the RV parking ordinance
Date: Tuesday, February 15, 2022 5:11:45 PM
Hi Mary,
We’re submitting this email to be forwarded to city council members regarding the RV ordinance on the agenda tonight.
We’re writing to express our support for the RV
ordinance to restrict RV parking. This is long
overdue. We urge the city council to pass this
unanimously. We’ve noticed an increase of RVs on
residential streets over the last month. We have been
dealing with this issue on Morris Street and the
surrounding streets for over five years.We
appreciate the work Chief Kilgore and the city has
done to develop this much needed ordinance. Thank
you for passing it tonight.
Jill M.
Brian F