In Portland, Sunderland RV Safe Park offers "slice of heaven
The Salvation Army manages Sunderland, aiming to get RV dwellers into permanent housing.
“It was a slice of heaven when I moved here,” said Gary Main, who relocated his Outback RV to The Salvation Army Sunderland Safe Park in Portland, Oregon, about a month ago.
Main currently lives in the RV with his dog. He said he was at his wit’s end after a period of parking his RV along the road.
“It’s meant as a stepping stone to get you back on your feet and not be out on the road where you can’t get two hours sleep a night because with every little noise you hear you think someone’s doing something to your vehicle or robbing you,” he said. “It’s very draining.”
Sunderland opened in July 2023 as a joint project of Multnomah County and the City of Portland under its Safe Rest Villages Program, with the goal of transitioning people from living on the streets to finding permanent housing. While The Salvation Army manages the park, referrals come through the Joint Office of Homeless Services. The park can accommodate adults aged 18 and up, and pets are allowed.
“It was a slice of heaven when I moved here.”
Gary Main, Sunderland RV Safe Park resident
“The idea for us would be that people would have a safe place to park without fear of the barriers of theft, of having to be very vigilant and stay in their RV all the time,” Sunderland Site Manager Philip Emery said. “When they’re out on the street, they’re not able to go and seek case management or access services. If you spend time here, you hear people say, ‘Well, here I feel safe because there’s a gate.’”
The gated park can hold 55 RVs of varying sizes and accommodate up to 110 people. It boasts six full bathrooms with showers, a clothing closet and a laundry room. A hot meal is served daily, with individual food restrictions observed. Additionally, a 24/7 food pantry is stocked daily with non-perishable food and beverages, and dog and cat food is available thanks to community donations.
The site is staffed 24/7 and on-site case managers work with the residents.
“We’re not working on rehab to the motor home itself; our efforts go toward finding housing, so they’re not living in their RV,” Emery said.
In August 2023, after nine years of homelessness, Michelle Vraspir moved into Sunderland with her husband and dog. She said when news about the Safe Park first hit, there were many misconceptions. She talked with one of the women in charge of Portland’s homeless outreach, who told her what to expect.
A resident of the Sunderland RV Safe Park. Courtesy Jessica Zielinski.
“We decided to give it a chance because it’s better than being out there,” Vraspir said.
Vraspir said they no longer worry about having their home stolen when they’re away from it, and having access to food has been life-changing.
Now that she feels secure, she said she’s reconnected with her children.
“Since coming here, I’ve been able to speak with my children for the first time in 10 years,” Vraspir said. “I got to see my daughter on Christmas Eve.”
Sunderland Executive Director Justin Moshkowski said the mental shift from street survival mode to feeling safe can take some time.
“It can take a month, maybe two, for people to settle in and start to reset,” Moshkowski said. “They have to adapt from a survival mindset, because it’s not safe out there, to realizing that food is always accessible and their stuff is safe.”
He also mentioned the access to laundry and showers.
“All of these kinds of human dignity standards can come back in,” Moshkowski said. “And when you’re not staying up to keep your stuff safe…you can sleep all night.”
Feeling safe and getting rest has restored Main, who said his life-force energy had decreased to about 20 percent of what it once was.
“I was so tired,” he said.
In the last month, since being at Sunderland, things have changed.
“I just think it’s great,” Main said. “They do everything they can to help us out in any way they can. In fact, we’re going to make a sign that says ‘Thank you, Salvation Army. Thank you, all the staff that work so hard around here to offer this to us as a stepping stone to get us back on our way.”
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