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Palo Alto council approves phased plan to address oversized vehicles, pairs enforcement with services
Summary
Council adopted a multi‑phase approach that combines stepped up enforcement, outreach, expanded safe‑parking outreach and pilot service programs to address the growing number of oversized vehicles and people living in them.
Palo Alto’s City Council on Monday approved a multi‑phase plan to address the rise in oversized vehicles (OSVs) — primarily RVs, vans and trailers — parked on city streets, directing staff to combine stepped up enforcement with additional services and expanded safe‑parking options.
The Policy & Services committee had recommended a phased program after months of public testimony and a staff analysis showing a sharp increase in people living in vehicles. Assistant City Manager Melissa McDonough summarized the committee motion and staff’s recommended sequence: Phase 1 emphasizes urgent sanitation, targeted cleanups, an ordinance to prohibit detached/inoperable trailers and van‑lording, and near‑term expansion of safe‑parking options; later phases would design enhanced on‑site services, evaluate a permit program limited to specified streets, and implement a larger safe‑parking expansion if pilots prove effective.
Council directed staff to begin the Phase 1 items immediately and to return with results and cost updates. The motion the council adopted calls for increased enforcement resources, development of ordinances to address detached/inoperable trailers and van‑lording, street‑level cleanups and targeted towing where allowable, and active outreach to faith and private property owners to recruit safe‑parking sites. The adopted motion also asked staff to come back within four months with recommended details for a Phase 2 evaluation (including the feasibility of a permit program and candidate streets) and initial budget amendments to fund the Phase 1 actions.
City staff said the 2025 point‑in‑time count recorded 168 vehicles citywide and 120 RVs specifically; staff noted the methodology for the point‑in‑time count changed in 2025 and that the number is one indicator among several. City Manager Ed Shikada and Police Department leaders said enforcement options are constrained by state and federal law and by tow‑company availability; Deputy Chief James Reifsner said Palo Alto has issued roughly 200 nuisance citations associated with vehicles in 2025 and that tow capacity and towing vendor availability remain limiting factors.
Speakers at the public hearing included a range of residents, business owners and service providers. Business owners on Embarcadero Way and Corporation Way described blocked driveways, missed deliveries and public‑health concerns from sewage and trash. Residents in Ventura and Midtown urged stronger enforcement and faster removal of long‑term inoperable vehicles. Outreach providers, health‑care workers and faith‑based leaders urged solutions that preserve dignity and maintain continuity of services for people living in vehicles while increasing public‑health protections.
The council vote was unanimous. Staff will prepare the required ordinance language, begin targeted sanitation and enforcement actions, continue outreach to potential safe‑parking hosts and develop budget amendments to fund near‑term implementation. The council also directed staff to organize a cross‑departmental effort, and to return with an update within four months on Phase 2 feasibility and stakeholder outreach.
Ending: The council’s action aims to pair enforcement with expanded services and safe parking; the details — including which streets would permit OSV parking under a limited permit program and how many permits would be issued — will be defined after the ad hoc/staff evaluation and a four‑month report back.
