Ted Ancona and his wife, Valerie Matthews, drove their 24-foot RV on summer trips to the eastern Sierra Nevada and Albuquerque, where Ancona was born. For a couple who lost their Altadena home in the Eaton Fire, their RV is now giving them a lifeline.
“This is our home,” Ancona, 73, said, sitting at a wooden picnic table outside his RV at a campground in San Dimas. “This is the home we have left.”
Mr Ancona and Mr Matthews, 71, escaped the fire with a photo they had picked up from a wall and their 14-year-old mixed tabby cat Callie. Mr. Ancona left in his truck and Mr. Matthews took the wheel of the RV.
After spending a few nights in the Rose Bowl parking lot, Ancona and Matthews found a spot at Bonelli Bluffs RV Resort and Campground in the county park. They are grateful to have escaped the tough housing market in Los Angeles, where thousands of families were displaced by the Eaton and Palisades fires. price gouging, bidding war and Lack of available housing.
But after spending almost three weeks at the campsite, the couple has a Wednesday deadline to leave. Long-term stays are prohibited at our resort.
“As I was trying to figure out where to go, panic started to set in,” Matthews said.
Ancona and Matthews’ experience is a breeding ground for restrictions that can prevent displaced families from finding a place to live while awaiting rebuilding or from seeking permanent residence elsewhere. It’s highlighted. The rationale for regulations established before the fires, such as allowing more people to access recreational areas, is now less influential.
Rob Saginario, general manager of the RV park’s private operator, said his hands are tied because of deadlines written into his contract with the county. He said several wildfire victims were staying at the park.
Los Angeles County leaders said they are aware of the issue and plan to take action before Ancona and Matthews’ departure date. On Tuesday, county supervisors are expected to vote on a measure that would lift occupancy restrictions at two RV parks on county-owned land at Bonelli Bluffs and Dockweiler State Beach during the state of emergency. The latter is closed this month for annual maintenance, but will reopen in February.
Supervisor Lindsay Horvath, who represents surrounding communities including Pacific Palisades and Dockweiler, said: “We are taking extreme caution and caution wherever residents are now and during the recovery from these devastating fires. I will do my best to meet them with support.” Horvath co-authored a bill with Supervisor Kathryn Berger, who represents Altadena and San Dimas, to lift time limits for the two parks.
Ted Ancona holds a pottery he and his wife found in the rubble of their home of 40 years, which was destroyed in the Eaton Fire.
(Gina Ferrazzi/Los Angeles Times)
But the county’s action does not extend to more private RV parks, some of which have similar limits on how long people can stay. Daniel Wisefield owns Off the Grid, a 108-lot RV park in Hughes Lake, but his county’s permit limit is no more than three weeks. Wisefield said he asked county officials to waive the rule, but was denied.
“I don’t see any good reason not to have people stay in our parks,” Wisefield said. “We have spaces set aside for people who have lost their homes, and the county is literally telling us no.”
Susan Teh, assistant director of the county’s Regional Planning Department, said Off the Grid is located in an extremely high fire risk area and that RV parks in the area have regulations limiting the length of stay. said.
“We continue to explore different ways to support those affected by the fires,” Teh said. “However, these must be balanced against ensuring the long-term public health and safety of all county residents.”
Berger, whose district includes Lake Hughes, said he may consider crafting a separate proposal that would also lift time limits on private RV parks, taking into account the housing needs of evacuated residents.
“I want to look at all solutions, and I want to bring together the expertise of Los Angeles County department leaders to determine what we can do to provide as many possibilities as possible.” Berger said.
Ancona and Matthews hope to get a reprieve. For now, San Dimas is the best place they can think of. It’s close to their old home and near Matthews’ brother, who lives in Brea, so Matthews can make a pre-scheduled physical therapy appointment in Pasadena to repair his broken right arm.
The couple plans to rebuild in Altadena. The home has been in the family since 1957, when Matthews was 4 years old. Five weddings of friends and family were held in the front garden. They left behind a collection of 10 cars, photo albums, and heirlooms that have been passed down through the family.
Ancona and Matthews plan to drive to San Francisco with their daughter, who is expecting their fourth grandchild, while they wait for the debris to be cleared.
But they believe spending a few more weeks at the campsite first will help them recover.
“I haven’t canceled all my utility bills yet,” Matthews said. “I don’t have much time. When I answer the phone, I’m left on hold for hours. By 5 p.m., I can’t think of anything else.”
