City officials will start talks with Boulder County for permission for a portion of the fairgrounds in Longmont to be used as a temporary spot for people who live in their RVs, campers and motorhomes to park their vehicles.
The proposal would give RV users three to six months to find a more permanent housing solution in advance of passage for a proposed ordinance that would ban RVs and other sleeper vehicles from parking long-term on Longmont streets, city council members said Tuesday night.
Council voted unanimously to bring the ordinance back in the coming weeks for a formal vote. City staff has asked that the ordinance, if approved, not be enforced until Jan. 1.
Boulder County has indicated that if RV dwellers are allowed to temporarily use the fairgrounds as a “safe lot,” owners must agree to work with Homeless Solutions for Boulder County to find more permanent housing, said Karen Roney, the city’s Community Services director.
Council members, during their Tuesday work session, said more options need to be explored to help people who, primarily for economic reasons, live full time in their RVs. They also said the practice of RVs being left behind and in disrepair in local neighborhoods must be stopped.
Mayor Pro Tem Aren Rodriguez said the city should find a spot for RV dwellers to park their vehicles that could be partially subsidized.
“I hope we continue to further explore and have dialogue for people who are not necessarily looking for traditional housing,” Rodriguez said.
Boulder County is willing to sell vouchers to the city for RV dwellers to access the fairgrounds dump station to dispose of their grey and black water, Roney said. Among the chief complaints among Longmont residents about RV dwellers parking and living on city streets is their disposal of wastewater and sewage.
At an August work session, council members were told police and code enforcement officers are dealing with an increased number of RV users who dump their vehicles’ waste on city streets. Several RVs also are abandoned on city streets, forcing Longmont to pay the cost of towing and disposing of the vehicles, according to city staff.
The proposed ordinance would ban recreational vehicles, camper coaches, camper trailers and motorhomes from parking on city streets, alleys or on other public rights of way. It also would eliminate a provision in existing code that allows RVs and other sleeper vehicles to be parked on streets for 48 hours, as long as they are moved 600 feet from their previous location.
