Project / 04
Housing access
Safe Parking Program Development
Over 16,000 Angelenos were living in their vehicles — facing ticketing, towing, violence, and no safe place to sleep. I came to this work not as an outsider. I entered the Safe Parking program as a participant before becoming staff.
(Impact at a glance)
A program shaped by lived experience grew into a citywide response.14+
sites operating
1,500+
Angelenos served annually
50%+
exit rate into permanent housing
The context
People living in vehicles had no coordinated, safe option. Existing responses were punitive — fines, tows, citations — without connecting anyone to housing. There was no model in LA that combined security, dignity, and systematic housing navigation.
The approach
I developed the program's policies, intake forms, and monitoring tools. The model combined security, lighting, and sanitation with a welcoming intake process designed to reduce stigma. Case management and housing navigation were linked directly to the Coordinated Entry System. Temporary financial assistance — vehicle repairs, rental deposits — removed the practical barriers that kept people stuck.
The outcome
A program shaped by lived experience grew into a citywide response.
The program expanded to 14 lots by 2021, serving 1,500+ Angelenos annually. More than 50% exited into permanent housing. Safe Parking LA became institutionalized as a core part of LA's homelessness response system. I was featured in a CBS News documentary on the program.
(04 / Selected process)
The work behind the work.
