Skip to Content

Seaside approves homeless overnight parking plan

UPDATE: 11:00 P.M. In a unanimous decision, the Seaside City Council approved the Bethel Missionary Baptist Church’s permit to use its parking lot to host homeless individuals in their cars overnight.

ORIGINAL STORY:

Seaside City Council will be voting to approve a church’s permit to use its parking lot to host homeless individuals in their cars.

In September, the city council adopted a “safe parking” ordinance. It allows certain spots in the city to be used for homeless people and their families to park their cars and sleep at night.

“Wherever I can. Sometimes we get lucky and get a spot, someone will give it to us temporarily,” said one Seaside homeless man who wanted to remain anonymous.

But the Bethel Missionary Baptist Church still needs a permit to partake in the program. The church is partnering with an organization called One Starfish to screen the people who come each night to stay in the lot. There would also be security.

“The main thing is is to help to make an impact to help those that are in need in our community, society and larger scale, the world,” said Rev. Harold H. Lusk Sr., the pastor of Bethel Missionary Baptist Church. “There will be 24-hour security of course. We’ll have cameras, but there will be two security officers that will be there that will basically we’ll have two different security checks.”

But some neighbors expressed that there might be some other effects on their properties that have nothing to do with safety. One neighboring employee explained that the business he works for already has a problem with the homeless population filling its trash bins.

“It’s something that we pay for and that’s supposed to be our trash only,” Skip’s Machine Shop employee James Norman said. “And then when they fill it up, you know, we’re stuck with all our trash.”

But the church sees the “safe parking” program as a meaningful response to an apparent shortage of affordable housing in the area.

“”Have a sense of understanding and compassion for others in our world society and just have a humane heart,” Rev. H.H. Lusk, a Bethel Missionary Baptist Church pastor, said. “And, it would be, do unto someone as you would want them to do unto you.”

The program isn’t just offering people a place to park and sleep, however. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, the church will be working with some volunteers to offer help with job searches and resumes. They want to take the program a step further to help get people off the street.

As of right now, the program will be running from 7:45pm to 8:15am and there will be 13 parking spaces available. Twelve of them will be occupied on a night-by-night basis. But one spot will be open for larger vehicles or longer-term parking.

Article Topic Follows: Monterey County

Jump to comments ↓

KION546 News Team

BE PART OF THE CONVERSATION

KION 46 is committed to providing a forum for civil and constructive conversation.

Please keep your comments respectful and relevant. You can review our Community Guidelines by clicking here

If you would like to share a story idea, please submit it here.

Skip to content