An L.A. neighborhood draws a hard line over this RV park

John Montagna is ready to move into a new RV park in the Green Meadows West section of Harbor City, near his job as a longshoreman.

- BY NOAH GOLDBERG

CHRISTINA HOUSE Los Angeles Times DANA GOLLER is a security guard in the only RV in a Harbor City RV park lot.

But he is still making a two-hour commute from Bakersfield, after opposition from neighbors helped stall the opening of the park.

"Save Green Meadows West" signs have popped up on many lawns as residents express fears about crime and declining property values, while people such as Montagna say the park, called Ocean's 11, offers an affordable option amid the area’s sky-high rents.

“There's people that live nice in RVs,” said Montagna, who plans to pay $1,250 a month to live at the park in his 2021 Tiffin Allegro Bus. “Anybody who moves into any neighborhood can be a safety issue. You can't be stereotyping just 'cause it’s an RV park.”

Nicole Paulsen, who lives on President Avenue about a block from the proposed RV park, worries about a “Breaking Bad” scenario of drugs and violence, noting issues with RVs illegally parked nearby on Western Avenue. She said the RV park's developer has not adequately included neighbors in the planning process.

“It’s not going to be our neighborhood anymore,” said Paulsen, who grew up in San Pedro and moved to Green Meadows West in 2019 after having her second child.

Still, Paulsen acknowledged that many of the people who eventually move in will probably be law-abiding. She stressed that some of her opposition comes out of fear that the RV park's residents, who she said will be "packed in like sardines," won't be safe themselves.

Jerry Long, who has lived across from the property for 13 years, said he would prefer a residential development over an RV park, which he said will be too high-density.

"It doesn't fit the character of the neighborhood," he said. "This was zoned for single-family."