Monterey County parks exchange place to stay for community service

Monterey County allows people to move into campgrounds at its local parks. But there's one caveat: You have to volunteer there, according to The Californian.

People can stay inside tents or RVs at any county park for one year in exchange for 20 hours of volunteer service, The Californian reported. If the parks aren't at capacity, the county may offer an extension.

During the county's 2018-2019 fiscal year, live-on volunteers provided 15,398 hours of work, said Jim Rodems, director of county parks. Most were retirees seeking a more affordable way to travel across the country.

"It's an option for them. For us, it's great," he said. "We probably would not be able to operate our parks without those types of volunteers."

Two-thirds of the 46 sites currently aren't occupied, so the park is looking for more volunteers with experience in customer service and handling cash.

Volunteers can rate their preferred park, but the county chooses where they're assigned.

For more information, visit Monterey County Resource Management Agency's website here.