Fresno, Clovis lift RV parking restrictions for workers to self-isolate during pandemic
The cities of Fresno and Clovis are easing restrictions over on-street parking of recreational vehicles to allow workers in essential functions to isolate themselves from their families during the coronavirus pandemic.
Both cities issued the emergency orders Thursday. Luke Serpa, director of emergency services for Clovis, issued the emergency order for Clovis, while Fresno City Manager Wilma Quan signed off on Fresno’s order.
“Some citizens who are classified as essential workers could be exposed to COVID-19, or their family members or other occupants of their homes may have been exposed to COVID-19,” Serpa’s order states. “As a result, those essential workers may choose to isolate themselves from family members and other occupants of their homes to protect themselves or their family from possible exposure.”
“A recreational vehicle that is parked at a residence could provide a useful means for individuals to isolate themselves from their families and the other occupants of their homes,” Serpa added. “It is in the best interest of both the essential workers and their families, and other individuals ordered to isolate at home, to maintain a safe and clean environment in which they can isolate to prevent further exposure of COVID-19.”
Fresno’s order similarly states that essential workers will be allowed to park an RV “on the street in front of their residence, in the driveway, or an improved surface of their property for the purposes of self-isolation.”
Clovis Assistant City Manager John Holt said that under ordinary circumstances, the limitation on RV parking in front of a home is 24 hours before the owner is asked to move it. In the summer, enforcement is relaxed to 72 hours because motorhomes and travel trailers tend to be more heavily used by their owners.
“Usually the enforcement is complaint driven,” Holt added. “A neighbor complains and then we go out and talk to the owner.” Most of the time, he said, the owner will move the vehicle right away. RVs that are left on the street for more than 24 hours may be impounded.
The waivers for essential workers — people whose jobs require them to continue to come to work during the COVID-19 emergency — in both cities will last for the duration of the coronavirus emergency declarations.
As of Wednesday evening, a total of 66 coronavirus cases were reported to be in the Fresno-Clovis metropolitan area, according to the Fresno County Department of Public Health.
Both cities are requiring workers who opt to self-isolate in their RV, if a police officer stops to check on their vehicle, to provide a letter from their employer indicating that they work in an essential field, or a note from a doctor or health-care professional ordering them to self-isolate away from other people in their home..
The regular parking restrictions on RVs will still apply to other people in both cities.
