San Luis Obispo plans pilot program for housing transition support
The program would offer rotating overnight safe parking sites.
City proposing safe parking program for vehicle residents
– The San Luis Obispo Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on Jan. 22 at 6 p.m. at City Hall to review a proposed pilot program aimed at helping residents living in vehicles transition into permanent housing. The program, developed in partnership with Community Action Partnership of San Luis Obispo County (CAPSLO), would offer rotating overnight safe parking sites.
As of December 2024, 232 households were on the waitlist for CAPSLO’s existing 40 Prado Safe Parking Program, highlighting the need for additional resources. “We know there are hundreds of people living in vehicles right now in our community and they have very few options,” said Daisy Wiberg, the city’s homelessness response manager. “We as a community must do something to address this. That’s why we’re working with CAPSLO on the design of a pilot program based on successful programs in other communities.”
The proposed Rotating Overnight Safe Parking Pilot Program would initially provide up to 12 parking spaces, rotating monthly between five locations within the city and one site outside city limits. Participants would be allowed to park overnight but must vacate the site during the day. The program would include quiet hours, staffed check-ins and check-outs, and limits on the number of users to minimize impacts on nearby residences and businesses.
Participants would receive support to transition into permanent housing, and as they succeed, new participants would fill the available spaces. The program’s goal is to reduce vehicular homelessness over time.
The Planning Commission hearing is the first step before the program can become operational. Funding sources have not yet been identified. If funded, CAPSLO would manage the program.
“We need the community’s support to make this pilot program a success like we’ve seen in other cities,” Wiberg said. “The program will offer a safe place to park and sleep overnight, in a different location each month, with the goal of moving individuals into permanent housing. We are so grateful to the faith-based organizations and community partners who have all stepped up to offer their property as a safe haven.”
Similar programs in Santa Barbara County, Los Angeles County, and other communities have demonstrated success in helping residents move into housing. CAPSLO’s existing program at the 40 Prado Homeless Services Center connected 30 participants to housing or family reunification between September 2023 and September 2024.
A prior safe parking program at Railroad Square, funded by the city and managed by CAPSLO, helped 36 individuals secure permanent housing, reunified nine with family, and assisted five in finding employment before it ended in 2023.
CAPSLO hosted a community meeting this week to inform residents and businesses near the proposed sites and answer questions about the program.
