Sunnyvale leaders want to lower the anxiety levels of residents living in their vehicles through a widely supported solution: giving them a safe place to park.
The Sunnyvale City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved a policy to allow safe vehicle parking sites in the city, with Councilmembers Alysa Cisneros and Omar Din absent. Safe parking sites are locations where homeless residents living in vehicles can park, receive supportive services and access amenities, like bathrooms and water. Of Sunnyvale’s roughly 471 homeless residents, about 147 or more than 30% live in their vehicles.
The policy outlines two types of safe parking sites — “small sites” for between two and 10 vehicles, and “large sites” for up to 75. Large sites will need to be approved by the city Planning Commission and can be appealed to the city council. Small sites can be approved by the city’s director of community development and don’t need council approval.
The city sought feedback from residents over the summer, including 10 who live in their vehicles. Sunnyvale Homeless Services Manager Amanda Sztoltz spoke with the people living in their vehicles and said their priorities for a safe parking site include 24/7 hours, shade and being pet friendly.
Of the 10 people she spoke with, all but one said they would consider staying in a safe parking site. Five said they would stay in one regardless of the rules.
“Many people live in their cars, it’s a place of last resort,” Sztoltz said at the meeting. “To be able to get them the services (needed) to be able to get back on their feet is really powerful.”
Sztoltz said the city will look for locations for a possible city-owned safe parking site. Funding will need to be identified, as well as a nonprofit to operate the site. She estimated the process will take about nine months.
Cost estimates vary depending on size. A site with nine spaces might cost $518,000 between staffing and operating costs, while a site with 30 spaces might cost $640,000 annually.
Councilmembers largely supported the policy, heralding it as a cost-effective, impactful way to support the city’s homeless residents, as well as address issues residents have raised about parked vehicles.
“I think that a really good program is one that has wide community support, that staff has researched (and) gone the extra, extra step, and it is seen in the thoughtfulness and thoroughness of this,” Councilmember Linda Sell said. “I support this wholeheartedly and I can’t wait to see it open.”
More than a dozen residents, nonprofit leaders and advocates spoke in support of the policy. Helping Hands Silicon Valley co-founders Alpana Agarwal and Pratima Gupta said it would have a big impact on the city’s homeless residents, especially those with jobs.
“It will lower their anxiety so they can focus better,” Agarwal told San José Spotlight. “Once they can calm down, they can work toward a better job or other aspects. It’s going to be a big impact in Sunnyvale.”
The Rev. Brian Leong, co-founder of MOVE Mountain View, which operates seven safe parking sites across Mountain View and Palo Alto, said Sunnyvale’s plans are “compassionate and comprehensive.”
As part of the same policy, councilmembers approved a potential grant for groups that want to offer safe parking to cover one-time startup costs like installing showers or bathrooms. Leong said the pandemic halted MOVE Mountain View’s own plans to start a similar grant program.
“To see it resurrected here was amazing to me, because nobody else has been able to do it,” Leong told San José Spotlight.
Contact B. Sakura Cannestra at [email protected] or @SakuCannestra on X, formerly known as Twitter.
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