Judge orders tenants to vacate Sylmar property that housed dozens of RVs

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge on Wednesday ordered all residents to leave a Sylmar property where RV dwellers have rented space and drawn complaints from neighbors.

Judge Alicia Y. Blanco ordered everyone living at the property to leave by Sunday, said Ivor Pine, a spokesperson for Los Angeles City Atty. Hydee Feldstein Soto.

At the request of the Fire Department, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power shut off electric service at the site this week “due to hazardous conditions at the premises that posed a public safety risk,” a spokesperson for the utility said.

The news was first reported by KCAL 9 News.

The court action follows alarm from neighbors over conditions at the site on Hubbard Street in the northern San Fernando Valley.

The property, which straddles the cities of Los Angeles and San Fernando, has attracted dozens of RVers, with residents telling The Times that they pay a woman on the site $500 per month to live in the vehicles.

The Los Angeles city attorney’s office last year charged Cruz Florian Godoy, owner of the lot, with two misdemeanors for unlawfully erecting a structure at the Sylmar property without applying for and securing all permits and licenses required, according to the criminal complaint.

Godoy, who has pleaded not guilty, is also accused of failing to maintain the building in a safe and sanitary condition.

Los Angeles City Councilmember Monica Rodriguez, whose district includes Sylmar, said Wednesday that her office was working with those living in the RVs to help them find shelter. She said that the media attention — which has focused on the squalid conditions at the site — had made that more difficult.

“We’re trying to work with a lot of discretion,” Rodriguez said. “The more cameras there are out there, the less willing [residents] are to come forward and get help.”

As attorneys wrangled in court Wednesday morning over conditions at the site, Manny Femat, who works on the lot, stood outside the house on Hubbard Street, sipping a Budweiser “tall boy.” Femat, who used to live in one of the RVs, said shutting off the power would only make matter worse.

“Everybody’s food is going to go bad,” he said. “If neighbors complained about smells, now it’s going to get worse.”

Residents mingled and chatted among the RVs. The sounds of squawks and meows could be heard as chickens and stray cats roamed among the vehicles.

On Tuesday night, residents said that they couldn’t sleep because their RVs got so hot.

Mosquitoes got in and nipped at their ankles and wrists, some said. “I’m having panic attacks. I’m bad. I’m depressed. It’s so hot, oh, my goodness,” said Jasmyn Alcala, 60, who has lived in an RV on the property with her husband for three years.

Alcala cried as she spoke about losing power Tuesday. “I don’t know where, but we need to go. It’s embarrassing.”

Residents who live nearby have complained about conditions at the site, including alleged dumping of human waste.

Those who live in the RVs on the lot previously told The Times that they couldn’t afford to rent a home elsewhere.

José Castillo, who identified himself as a resident who maintains the property, told The Times earlier this month that Godoy was working with city inspectors to address their concerns. He also said Godoy was providing a service for dozens of people by offering them a place to park their RV and live.

Times staff writers Brennon Dixson and Rachel Uranga contributed to this report.