In July 2020, the Oakland City Council introduced a pilot program to allow folks living in RV’s to park and live on a vacant residential lot. The program created a special occupancy permit that allows RV’s to park in areas zoned for residential use.
In exchange for getting this permit, vacant property owners are excempt from Oakland’s Vacant Properties Tax. This tax can cost vacant property owners anywhere from $3,000 to $6,000 a year depending on the location and development of the property.
There are more 4,000 vacant lots in the city of Oakland, according to parcel data from Alameda County. The vast majority of these lots are zoned for residential use and eligible for the pilot program.
This is a map showing the distribution of vacant lots zoned for residential throughout the city.
The perimeter of the city of Oakland is outlined in burnt orange. AC transit bus routes are highlighted in purple. Safe RV Parking sites are marked with a "P" symbol. BART stops in Oakland are marked with the BART logo.
There are more than 700 people living in their RVs in Oakland — that’s 45 percent of the people in Oakland who don’t have a permanent, indoor place to sleep.
Without a special occupancy permit, vehichle dwellers are considerred “blight” by the City of Oakland. The city’s blight laws mean that it’s illegal for vehichle dwellers to park their homes on the streets unless it’s in one of three city-designated safe RV sites — or now, if they can find a vacant property owner willing to host them on their lot.
This is a map showing the distribution of calls made to 311 for "blight" relating to people living in their vehichles.
The perimeter of the city of Oakland is outlined in burnt dark green. AC transit bus routes are highlighted in purple. Safe RV Parking sites are marked with a "P" symbol. BART stops in Oakland are marked with the BART logo.
It would seem that a program giving property owners a tax break for letting an RV park on their lot would be a "win-win". But, more than a year after the pilot program was announced, the city has only granted 3 permits, according to Policy Director for Housing Security Darin Ranelletti.
In November 2021, the Oakland City Council passed the Construction Innovation And Expanded Housing Options Ordianance. The ordinance will replace the need for RV owners to secure a special occupation permit through the pilot program by updating the city’s zoning and blight restrictions barring RV’s from permanently parking in areas zoned for residential use. The new ordinance will go into effect in January.