Trailers for the Homeless OKd Despite Protests
Two trailers for the homeless may be placed on the grounds of a Sepulveda church because the need for them outweighs neighborhood opposition, a city board ruled Tuesday.
“When you cut through it all, I recognize there are people who are concerned about providing homes for the homeless as long as it’s not in their neighborhood,” said John W. Mack, a member of the Los Angeles Board of Zoning Appeals. “We need to enjoy our homes in our neighborhoods. But the homeless need housing too.”
The board sought to ensure that the trailers will be there for two years at the most and that the homeless people will be adequately supervised.
The trailers are part of a city program that gives six months of housing to homeless families. The San Fernando Valley has eight trailers for the homeless, all in a public housing project in Pacoima.
Neighbors of the church where two more trailers are to go, the Sepulveda Unitarian Universalist Church, 9550 Haskell Ave., said they will appeal to the City Council.
“This time we’re coming with our lawyers,” said Cindy Calczynski, one of three appellants who joined other neighbors in testifying Tuesday.
Calczynski said she objected to putting trailers there because the church has been sloppy about maintaining its property, causing it to attract litter and transients.
‘It’s Very Frightening’
“We’ve got a problem, and we don’t want to add to it,” Calczynski said. “People urinate out there; they vomit out there. I’ve woken them up, and I can’t tell if they’re women or men. It’s very frightening.”
Other witnesses charged that the trailers would drag down the values of their homes, destroy the flavor of their neighborhood and make them fear for their children’s safety.
“We buy our homes so we can have a family-type atmosphere, not people coming and going every six months--a transient atmosphere,” Marilyn Vasquez said.
Vasquez pointed out that problems with the trailers in Pacoima, at the San Fernando Gardens apartments, do not instill confidence in the program. For several months last year, four of the trailers were vacant because of problems with homeless tenants. All had been vandalized and defaced with graffiti.
The minister and several church members defended the trailers, which the congregation approved more than a year ago.
“It will make our back lot an asset to ourselves and our neighbors,” said Charlotte Shivvers, minister of the Sepulveda Unitarian Universalist Society.
Among the conditions imposed by the zoning board are a review of the program after a year, a 24-hour on-site supervisor and proof that none of the families admitted has a history of crime or drug activities.
