‘We’re not trash.’ Rancho Cordova family with infant seeks help after RV is towed
A homeless family living in Rancho Cordova said their RV was towed the week before Thanksgiving, leaving the family – including an infant – living in hotels and a sport utility vehicle that barely runs.
A city of Rancho Cordova spokeswoman said the RV was being used as storage, not as shelter. But Geri Wells said the family was living in the vehicle and had $200 worth of groceries, three packages of diapers, clothing and birth certificates inside.
“Just in time for Thanksgiving, just in time for Christmas we got nothing,” said Wells, 36. “You’re taking things from us we need. We’re not trash. We’re people too.”
Maria Chacon Kniestedt, a Rancho Cordova spokeswoman, said the city towed an inoperable RV that the family was using for storage, not the one they were living in. But Wells said the family only has one RV and that the family sought shelter in her brother’s RV for the first time during the towing.
As winter approaches and the nights grow colder, the towing of RVs and other vehicles used by the homeless has gained attention in the Sacramento area.
Earlier this month, the city of Sacramento issued 160 notices to vehicles in the Commerce Circle/Lathrop Way area of North Sacramento, ordering them to be moved or be towed.
On Monday, the city towed 18 vehicles from the area. On Tuesday and Wednesday, the city’s Code Compliance Department issued notices to 101 vehicles that had been parked in the same spot for over 72 hours, said Kelli Trapani, a city spokeswoman. That number does not include similar notices from the police department, which issued at least four notices Wednesday in North Sacramento.
Mayor Darrell Steinberg placed an item on the agenda for Tuesday’s City Council meeting to consider an ordinance to stop the city from towing homeless vehicles unless they are offered shelter or housing, along with transportation to get there.
But the ordinance would not apply to areas outside the city of Sacramento’s boundaries, such as Rancho Cordova.
Wells’ family was offered food vouchers, a hotel voucher, workforce development opportunities and long-term housing opportunities, Chacon Kniestedt said.
Wells said they were not given those resources, although they have been provided with at least two weeks of hotel stays from a state program and the city of Sacramento. A homeless navigator contacted her the day after the RV was towed, but it was a navigator from a different county, so they were unable to help with housing, she said.
On Thursday morning, Wells held Orion, a 3-month-old baby, in a blanket, while her son Gabriel, 9, rode a scooter at the Mather Regional Skate Park behind her. Her partner, Alfredo Gonzales, zipped up an oversized blue jacket for their daughter Gracie, 2, trying to keep her warm on the chilly morning.
Rancho Cordova code enforcement crews did not give the family a notice to warn them they’d be taking the RV and did not say where they were taking it or how to get it back, Wells said.
‘Make this go viral’
On Nov. 18, Wells posted a video to Facebook of crews hooking up the beige RV up to a tow truck on Systems Drive, begging for help.
“Make this go viral,” she said.
After Rancho Cordova towed the RV, she went to a Department of Human Assistance office and the state’s CalWORKS Housing Support Program paid for a motel for the family for a week. The family used their welfare check to pay for another week — money they were going to use for Christmas gifts. For several nights last week, the family slept in a Ford Expedition on a Rancho Cordova street. They call it Frankenstein because of the loud sound it makes. The front bumper is crunched in from a collision. They worry it won’t run for much longer.
Gonzales recently got a job at Amazon, but if the car breaks down, he won’t be able to get there, Wells said.
Gonzales slept upright in the driver’s seat, while Wells slept in the backseat with the children.
“I don’t get much sleep in the car,” Gonzales said. “When we’re in the car I’m always watching out.”
In the RV, the family could shower, use the bathroom, cook and stay warm. They had been staying in the RV on the same street for three months — since Orion was born.
Because they lost all their food, the family only has $12 to use to eat until their food stamps are refilled later this month, Wells said. They plan to go to food banks, but often that food requires cooking.
On Friday, the city of Sacramento got the family into a longer-term homeless motel for at least a week, Wells said. They’re still worried they will have to go back to the car eventually and doubt they’ll be able to find housing.
Both Wells and Gonzales grew up in Sacramento — Gonzales in the foster care system. They’ve seen housing prices increase drastically and now housing feels more out of reach than ever.
The average apartment rent in the Sacramento region is now $1,760 a month — higher than Washington, DC, New York City and Seattle.
“You have to have three times the normal amount and a deposit and background checks,” Wells said. “It would take us three lifetimes to save up and get a place.”
The family is accepting donations through their GoFundMe account.
This story was originally published December 13, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
