A plan by Los Angeles city Councilman Bill Rosendahl to create special overnight parking lots for people who live in their RVs in Venice and other Westside communities in his district is moving forward this summer, but not without criticism on both sides of the homeless issue.

The “Safe Parking program” would identify and eventually use lots from roughly sundown to sunup for RV dwellers who have licenses, registration and insurance. Some homeless advocates fear the lots would be used to shift those who live in the rigs from Venice to other communities, including the parking-lot rich LAX area.

Some who aren't happy with people living in RVs in their neighborhoods — they claim the folks who dwell in them dump septic tanks in the nearby gutters and sometimes use and deal drugs — feel the lots should be as far away from residential areas as possible.

Rosendahl appears to be trying to walk through the middle ground on the issue. The program is scheduled to be put before nonprofit organizations at the end of this month: They can bid to run the program. Rosendahl has set aside $750,000 of his discretionary funds to run the program for three years, although he has said he hopes the county will match his cash.

Read a more detailed take on Venice's RV situation in today's LA Weekly story “Gentry Against Funky in Venice.“

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