Americans living in their cars are finding refuge in ‘safe parking lots’

Municipalities and non-profits are establishing secure lots to address the rising number of people who live in cars or RVs

Starting in October 2021, about 40 motorhomes or recreational vehicles (RVs) parked in a lot on Grayson Street in Berkeley, California, as part of the city's first attempt at a safe parking lot".

According to Google Maps photos, the space had been mostly unused since 2008. But a local non-profit, the Dorothy Day House, created the Safe Parking and Respite Kickstart (Spark) program to help alleviate the crisis of unsheltered and encampment homeless" in one of the nation's most expensive housing markets.