There are 12 parking lots across Santa Barbara that have been set up to accommodate the growing middle-class homelessness. These lots are believed to be part of the first program of its kind in the United States, according to organizers.

The lots open at 7 p.m. and close at 7 a.m. and are run by a homeless outreach organization.

It is illegal for people in California to sleep in their cars on streets. The parking lots are designed to be safe places for the homeless to sleep in their vehicles without being harassed by people on the streets or ticketed by police.

[Read](http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/wayoflife/05/19/homeless.mom/index.html “Read the Article”) (CNN)