A new rule that requires cars parked in unincorporated Marin to be moved at least 500 feet every 72 hours could have an outsized impact on coastal villages where homeless people live in their vehicles with relative stability.
Next week, county supervisors will decide whether to amend the parking code to clarify that vehicles can’t be moved merely a few inches every three days. The county says the amendment aims to encourage higher turnover in urban corridors and recreational areas like Bolinas, where surfers and visitors can hog parking spots for days, weeks or even months at a time.
But advocates for the homeless say the change could impact that population’s ability to live without harassment and interruption. In the past, the Marin County Sheriff’s Office has referenced a ninth circuit court ruling called Martin V. Boise, which blocked municipalities from enforcing laws like anti-camping ordinances that criminalize homelessness unless they have enough shelter beds for their entire homeless population. Marin does not have adequate shelter beds, and for years deputies have told the Light that they would not enforce parking rules on the homeless.
But this week, Lt. Heather Rock said people living in their vehicles could be subject to both tickets and tows.
“Because there are so many other places available for one to situate their vehicle, I don’t think this criminalizes them living in a vehicle,” she said. “It just means that you can’t stay in one spot beyond 72 hours, but you’re certainly welcome to continue to live out of your vehicle after moving a distance of 500 feet.”
In West Marin’s tiny towns, that distance means a lot. The Bolinas Museum and the Bolinas Library are roughly 500 feet apart, as are the Palace Market and the Old Western Saloon in Point Reyes Station.
Lt. Rock said deputies would continue to use discretion, but she did not say what exactly that would mean for longtime homeless residents who wouldn’t or couldn’t move their vehicles.
“We have space for nuance in there and for working with people that have exceptional needs, but this will be an ordinance that we’ll be enforcing,” she said.
The sheriff’s office said the ordinance does not discriminate against homeless people, yet neither it nor the Department of Public Works have consulted with Marin’s homeless union about the impacts the change could have on residents whose vehicles double as homes.
Jason Sarris, the president of the Marin Homeless Union and a former homeless person himself, expressed concern over the proposed amendment.
“My main concern, and it’s a big concern, is for the people living in their vehicles who cannot move their vehicles 500 feet for whatever reason,” he wrote in an email to the Light. “My fear is they would then be subjected to the dreaded ‘poverty tow,’ which would be catastrophic for someone who would not only lose their vehicle which they use to live in, but would also not be able to pay the amount of money it would take to get their vehicle out of impound. My hope is the county won’t use this ordinance as a tool to punish the poor.”
The Board of Supervisors last set the fines for parking citations in 2013 at $180. State law mandates that a vehicle may be towed after accruing five or more unpaid parking citations—a practice considered a “poverty tow” when it impacts low-income people. According to Adam Schermerhorn, a spokesman for the Marin County Sheriff’s Office, tows of any kind are “exceedingly rare” in Marin. He added that he has “used that authority maybe twice in 15 years, and those would have been well over 10 years ago.”
But Mr. Sarris disagrees, saying such tows are still prevalent. While he was homeless in Novato from 2011 to 2022, he saw countless homeless people get their cars towed, leaving them on the streets, and he still sees such activity through his advocacy work.
Michael Donnell and his dog made their way to West Marin in 2015. Looking for a place to camp his van for a few days, he passed Bolinas, not seeing a sign. At Limantour Beach, he asked a local where he could camp under the radar for a few days. He was directed to Bolinas.
Mr. Donnell parked himself at the corner of Brighton and Park Avenues by a patch of grass he has since dubbed “Driftwood Park” with a sign he made from an old surfboard. He collects driftwood and builds furniture and art from it; his latest work is a T-rex the size of a large dog, complete with scales. Moving his van every three days is not an option, he said.
Diabetes has hampered his vision—he is blind in his right eye and sees a meshy web of dots in his left—and in 2020, he suffered a heart attack. Last month, the smog certificate on his van expired.
In his nine years living on the streets of Bolinas, he said, both deputies and residents have been amicable and understanding of his situation, taking the time to get to know him and the other homeless residents on a personal basis.
“And as a group, we watch out for each other and watch out for troublemakers that come into town every once in a while,” he said. “The neighbors, they come out and say ‘Hey, you’re an asset to the community, I’m glad you’re here.’ That’s pretty good for a poor boy in a truck. When we’re talking about homeless people, we all get painted with the same brush—guys with drug and alcohol issues, screamers. But I’ve never found a place as tolerant in Bolinas.”
Mr. Donnell is not alone on the downtown streets. Last Saturday, over a dozen vans and R.V.s peppered Brighton Avenue and Wharf Road. Some had been parked in their places for weeks, others for over a year. Some have rotated between downtown and the Big Mesa to remain lowkey.
Aside from the proposed 72-hour rule amendment, Brighton and Wharf will soon be subject to additional parking rules that are being finalized after years of input and negotiations with downtown residents, county officials and the California Coastal Commission. In addition to needing a permit to park on the residential side of Brighton Avenue from 2 to 5 a.m., vehicles longer than 22 feet will be prohibited from parking on the other side of Brighton from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m., or on Wharf Road from the Bolinas Museum to the beach.
The local rules are designed to free up space for residents and beachgoers, but their combined effects with the new 72-hour amendment could significantly change the picture for some—if deputies start enforcing them.
Mr. Donnell said that whatever happens, he will find a way to stay in Bolinas, a place he considers heaven on earth. “I have no say in the matter,” he said. “If it happens, okay, and if it doesn’t, I’ll find something else [in town]. I know this can’t last forever. They’ll say, ‘Hey you got to go somewhere.’ Where that’ll be I don’t know yet.”