The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About2360 ORDINANCE NO. 2360 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ARCADIA, CALIFORNIA AMENDING CHAPTER 9 OF ARTICLE VII OF THE ARCADIA MUNICIPAL CODE RELATING TO CAMPING AND STORAGE OF PERSONAL PROPERTY ON PUBLIC PROPERTY WHEREAS, the City of Arcadia (the "City") has the authority to regulate to ensure the public's health, safety, and general welfare; and WHEREAS, the City is acting in accordance with a recent decision by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals where the court stated that "[e]ven where shelter is unavailable, an ordinance prohibiting sitting, lying or sleeping outside at particular times or in particular locations might well be constitutionally permissible." (Martin v. City of Boise (Sept. 4, 2018, No. 15-35845.); and WHEREAS, the City is acting in accordance with the Ninth Circuit's holding that "individuals who do have access to adequate temporary shelter, whether because they have the means to pay for it or because it is realistically available to them for free, but who choose not to use it," are not covered by its decision; and WHEREAS, the City encourages the use of open spaces and facilities within the City by all members of the community; and WHEREAS, camping within the City limits creates an unsafe and potentially disorderly environment for the persons engaged in the camping as well as persons coming into contact with the campers; and WHEREAS, camping within the City limits creates unsanitary and unhealthful conditions that may affect both the campers and the general public; and WHEREAS, camping within the City limits tends to degrade or even destroy the property upon which the camping is occurring, particularly in situations where an encampment is large and ongoing; and WHEREAS, camping within the City limits detracts from the use of the property for its intended purposes; and WHEREAS, the City finds that camping prohibitions will best serve the public's health, safety, and general welfare. NOW THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ARCADIA, CALIFORNIA, DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. The recitals set forth above are true and correct and are hereby adopted as findings in support of this Ordinance as if fully set forth herein. SECTION 2. Article VII, Chapter 9 of the Arcadia Municipal Code is amended to read in its entirety as follows: Chapter 9 CAMPING AND STORAGE OF PERSONAL PROPERTY PART 1. PURPOSE AND DEFINITIONS 7910. PURPOSE. This Chapter is intended to protect the public health, welfare, and safety by reserving open spaces and facilities within the City limits for their intended purposes. Public property within the City should be readily accessible and available to residents and the public at large. The use of these areas for camping purposes or storage of personal property interferes with the rights of others to use the areas for their intended purposes and is deleterious to the public peace, health, safety, and welfare. The use of these areas for camping obstructs the intended uses for the public at large, contributes to blight, and can cause damage to public property. This Chapter is intended to avoid unsafe and 2 potentially disorderly conditions, unsanitary and unhealthful conditions, and the degradation or destruction of open spaces and facilities within the City. 7911. DEFINITIONS. The following words and phrases, when used in this Chapter, shall have the meaning ascribed to them by this Part unless it is apparent from the context that another meaning is intended. (a) "Camp" or "Camping" means residing in or using any public property for one or more nights for living accommodation purposes, such as sleeping activities or making preparations to sleep (including the laying down of bedding for the purpose of sleeping), or storing personal belongings (including but not limited to clothing, sleeping bags, bedrolls, blankets, sheets, luggage, backpacks, kitchen utensils, cookware, and similar material), or making any fire or using any tents, or regularly cooking meals. These activities constitute camping when it reasonably appears, in light of all the circumstances, that a person is using public property as a living accommodation for one or more nights, with the intent to camp. (b) "Camp facilities" include, but are not limited to, tents, huts, or temporary shelters. (c) "Camp paraphernalia" includes, but is not limited to, tarpaulins, cots, beds, sleeping bags, hammocks, or non-City designated cooking facilities and similar equipment. (d) "Public property" means any publicly owned property in the City, whether improved or unimproved, including, but not limited to, any of the following: public alleyways; public parking lots; public passageways; public streets; public rights-of-way; publicly owned, maintained, or operated parks; publicly owned, maintained, or operated landscaped areas or greenbelts; publicly owned, maintained, or operated open spaces including, but not limited to, public facilities or buildings of any kind; public sidewalks, curbs, and gutters; public educational institutions; or other government owned, maintained, or operated properties located within the City. (e) "Store" means to put aside or accumulate for use when needed, to put for safekeeping, to place or leave in a location. 3 7912. UNLAWFUL CAMPING. It shall be unlawful for any person to camp, occupy camp facilities, or use camp paraphernalia on any public property within the City, except as otherwise provided herein or mandated by applicable law. 7913. STORAGE OF PERSONAL PROPERTY ON PUBLIC PROPERTY. It shall be unlawful for any person to store personal property, including camp facilities and camp paraphernalia, on any public property within the City, except as otherwise provided herein or mandated by applicable law. 7914. EXEMPTION FOR NECESSITY. The provisions of this Chapter shall not apply to any individual camping by necessity, including, for example, those instances in which every shelter in the local area is at capacity and the individual in question is involuntarily homeless. In order to comply with applicable case law, the City Manager may establish local guidelines to determine whether an individual is camping by necessity. 7915. EXCEPTION. The provisions of the preceding sections in this Chapter shall not apply to any persons participating in organized and supervised recreational activities in parks within the City or the Civic Center area, if approved by the City's Director of Recreation and Community Services or City Manager, nor to camping in public areas legally established and clearly designated for camping purposes, nor to any employee of the City or any public utility or governmental agency who is required to enter or be in said areas in the course of their employment. 4 SECTION 3. Severability. If any section, subsection, subdivision, paragraph, sentence, clause or phrase of this ordinance, or any part thereof is for any reason held to be unconstitutional, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portion of this ordinance or any part thereof. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed each section, subsection, subdivision, paragraph, sentence, clause or phrase thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more section, subsection, subdivision, paragraph, sentence, clause or phrase be declared unconstitutional. If for any reason any portion of this ordinance is found to be invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, the balance of this ordinance shall not be affected. SECTION 4. CEQA. The City Council finds that this Ordinance is not subject to the California Environmental Quality Act ("CEQA") pursuant to Sections 15060(c)(2) (the activity will not result in a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment) and 15060(c)(3) (the activity is not a project as defined in Section 15378) of the CEQA Guidelines, California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Chapter 3, because it has no potential for resulting in physical change to the environment, directly or indirectly. SECTION 5. The City Clerk shall certify to the adoption of this Ordinance and shall cause a copy of same to be published at least once in the official newspaper of the City within fifteen (15) days after its adoption. This Ordinance shall take effect on the thirty- first (31st) day after its adoption. [SIGNATURES ON THE NEXT PAGE] 5 Passed, approved and adopted this 16th day of April , 2019. "'tor of the City of Arcadia ATTEST: C71, Jerk W APPROVED AS TO FORM: Stephen P. Deitsch City Attorney 6 STATE OF CALIFORNIA ) COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES ) SS: CITY OF ARCADIA I, GENE GLASCO, City Clerk of the City of Arcadia, hereby certifies that the foregoing Ordinance No. 2360 was passed and adopted by the City Council of the City of Arcadia, signed by the Mayor and attested to by the City Clerk at a regular meeting of said Council held on the 16th day of April, 2019 and that said Ordinance was adopted by the following vote, to wit: AYES: Amundson, Beck, Chandler, Verlato and Tay NOES: None ABSENT: None i lerk the ity of Arcadia 7