BEND — Families displaced by the state’s wildfires will temporarily be able to legally live on someone’s property in an RV or trailer in Bend.

On Wednesday, Sept. 7, the Bend City Council unanimously approved an emergency declaration from City Manager Eric King that states the city will not enforce a section of its code that prohibits someone from living in a motor home, RV or travel trailer on private property. The change takes effect immediately.

“This is such a hard time I know for these people who have lost their homes and are rebuilding them,” Mayor Sally Russell said in the meeting. “This is a great interim solution. I think it’s so perfect for our town to do something like this.”

The idea behind the emergency declaration is to help people who are rebuilding homes that were destroyed by wildfires in towns like Talent and Phoenix, which already had low vacancy rates before the fires, according to the order. Thousands of Oregonians have been displaced from multiple wildfires that devastated large swaths of the state in September.

“This particular Order is not intended for anyone who wants to leave Oregon or who doesn’t want to rebuild for whatever reason — i.e., it doesn’t allow permanent or even general emergency housing,” city attorney Mary Winters said in an email.

The emergency order is modeled after similar ones done in Medford and Talent, she said.

Those interested in temporarily staying in Bend will need to provide documentation to the city to prove they are registered with the Red Cross, according to the order.

There will be an application process to allow a displaced family to live on someone’s property, Winters said, though the application does not exist yet. Both the property owner and the displaced family would have to agree to public health and safety conditions.

This situation, which the city is calling “Temporary Emergency Accommodation” will be allowed specifically for someone staying in an RV, motor home, travel trailer, truck camper or camping trailer that is “self-contained with potable water and sewage tanks and is designed for temporary human habitation,” according to the order.

One vehicle will be allowed per property. The order will remain in effect until Sept. 10, 2021.