A San Jose safe parking site for homeless people living in their vehicles is at capacity one month after opening — and two people have already moved into permanent housing.
The safe parking site at 1300 Berryessa Road offers 86 spaces for individuals and families to live without fear of getting swept or towed. It’s the city’s second and largest site, with nonprofit WeHope providing food, sanitation services and case management to help people move into permanent housing. The site will include classes in financial literacy, problem solving, resume building and a 12-step recovery program.
“This is a great start, and the impact has already been very relevant to people’s lives,” WeHope founder Paul Bains told San José Spotlight.
@sanjosespotlight San Jose’s second safe parking site on Berryessa Road is making a difference in people’s lives since opening last month. It can house up to 86 lived-in vehicles, and two have already moved onto permanent housing. Read more at SanJoseSpotlight.com. #sanjose #bayarea #southbay #siliconvalley #homelessness #housing #safeparking
Frank Pacheco, 57, moved to the site a couple weeks ago. He said he can already feel the difference it has made.
“I don’t have to worry about the police bothering me for (not having vehicle) registration, which I can’t afford,” Pacheco told San José Spotlight.
He said he’s gotten tickets for having expired tags and lost three other mobile homes because they got towed away while he was at work. Before staying at the safe parking site, he said he’s had to move his RV every week this year because where he parked kept getting swept. The city has increased its street sweeps and enacted temporary RV bans under a pilot program that began earlier this year.
Pacheco said he can focus on finding a job and housing now that he doesn’t have to worry about being swept or towed.
Councilmember David Cohen, whose District 4 includes the Berryessa site, said the goal is to help people become stable so they can rebuild their lives.
“We know that over 60% of the folks who live here now have jobs, and they’re leaving the site, going to their jobs and coming back,” Cohen said at the site’s grand opening Thursday. “People are stabilizing their lives, getting back on their feet and are getting the services they need to make sure that they have a better life.”
The city spent $9.7 million to build the site, and agreed to lease the property from a private owner for $1.7 million annually for at least 10 years. Operating costs will be about $2.8 million a year.
San Jose is planning to add 1,000 beds or spaces for homeless residents this year, including tiny home villages like Via del Oro and Cherry Avenue, and the city’s first sanctioned sleeping site. But San Jose’s ability to scale its temporary housing solutions also depends on being able to fund operational costs. The city already spends $220 million each year, or 3.5% of its general fund, overseeing the hotels that have been converted into shelter, the seven other tiny homes or modular sites, and other temporary housing sites.
Mayor Matt Mahan is backing a state bill that, if approved, would require counties to cover half the operating costs for city shelters.
“If we can get the county to take on half the operating costs onsite, we can build twice as many of these,” Mahan said Thursday.
Contact Joyce Chu at [email protected] or @joyce_speaks on X.
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