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Home My WebLink AboutItem 11b - Amending Anti-Camping Ordinance DATE: October 5, 2021 TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council FROM: Dominic Lazzaretto, City Manager By: Michael Bruckner, Deputy City Manager SUBJECT: ORDINANCE NO. 2381 AMENDING SECTION 7915 OF CHAPTER 9 OF ARTICLE VII OF THE ARCADIA MUNICIPAL CODE RELATING TO CAMPING AND STORAGE OF PERSONAL PROPERTY ON PUBLIC PROPERTY AND DETERMINING THE ORDINANCE IS CATEGORICALLY EXEMPT UNDER THE CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT (“CEQA”) Recommendation: Adopt SUMMARY At its regular meeting on September 21, 2021, the City Council, by a vote of 5-0, introduced Ordinance No. 2381 amending Section 7915 of Chapter 9 of Article VII of the City of Arcadia Municipal Code relating to camping and storage of personal property on public property. At the meeting, the City Council amended the first sentence of Section 7915 with following phrase in italics to read as follows: The provisions of this Chapter shall not apply, except as stated below, to any individual camping by necessity, including, for example, those instances in which every shelter in the local area is at capacity. The purpose of this agenda item is to give second reading and adoption of the Ordinance. Attached is a copy of Ordinance No. 2381, and the September 21, 2021, City Council staff report. RECOMMENDATION It is recommended that the City Council adopt Ordinance No. 2381 amending Section 7915 of Chapter 9 of Article VII of the City of Arcadia Municipal Code relating to camping and storage of personal property on public property. Attachments: Ordinance No. 2381 September 21, 2021, City Council Staff Report DATE: September 21, 2021 TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council FROM: Dominic Lazzaretto, City Manager By: Michael Bruckner, Deputy City Manager SUBJECT: ORDINANCE NO. 2381 AMENDING SECTION 7915 OF CHAPTER 9 OF ARTICLE VII OF THE ARCADIA MUNICIPAL CODE RELATING TO CAMPING AND STORAGE OF PERSONAL PROPERTY ON PUBLIC PROPERTY AND DETERMINING THE ORDINANCE IS CATEGORICALLY EXEMPT UNDER THE CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT (“CEQA”) Recommendation: Introduce SUMMARY At its regular meeting on February 2, 2021, the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 2374 amending Chapter 9 of Article VII of the City of Arcadia Municipal Code relating to camping and storage of personal property on public property in response to the Martin v. Boise decision. Ordinance No. 2374 includes criteria further defining lawful and unlawful camping, along with restrictions on time, manner, and place to better protect those that are experiencing homelessness as well as the community at large, including additional enforcement tools. At the August 17, 2021, City Council meeting, the City Council voted to amend Ordinance No. 2374 to update the camping prohibition hours from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., and to add clarifying language prohibiting camping on all real property or lots associated with prohibited camping areas on public property. Therefore, it is recommended that the City Council introduce Ordinance No. 2381 (Attachment “A”) amending Section 7915 of Chapter 9 of Article VII of the City of Arcadia Municipal Code relating to camping and storage of personal property on public property and find that this action is categorically exempt under the California Environmental Quality Act. Ordinance No. 2381 – Camping and Storage of Personal Property on Public Property September 21, 2021 Page 2 of 3 BACKGROUND Camping on public property can create an unsanitary and unhealthy environment for the persons camping, as well as persons coming into contact with the campers. Both campers and the general public can be affected by the unsafe and potentially disorderly environment. This is further exacerbated due to public health and safety concerns related to COVID-19. In addition, some camping may interfere with the rights of others to use the areas for their intended purposes and important federal regulations such as providing a clear path of travel on sidewalks under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Furthermore, camping can contribute to blight and cause damage to public property, as well as interfering with commercial activities. At its regular meeting on February 16, 2021, the City Council, by a vote of 4-1-0 with Council Member Beck abstaining, adopted Ordinance No. 2374 amending Chapter 9 of Article VII of the City of Arcadia Municipal Code relating to camping and storage of personal property on public property. At the August 3, 2021, City Council meeting, Council Member Beck requested that the Ordinance be brought back for further discussion and amendment. At the August 17, 2021, the City Council direct staff to return with a draft Ordinance that would update the camping prohibition hours from starting at 10:00 p.m. to instead start at 8:00 p.m., and to add further clarifying language prohibiting camping on all real property or lots associated with prohibited camping areas, not just the buildings noted in the original Ordinance. DISCUSSION Based on the City Council’s direction, Ordinance No. 2381 provides two amendments to the City’s Anti-Camping regulations. A red-lined version of Ordinance No. 2374 is included as Attachment “B”. The amendments are listed as follows:  Section 7915 (a): No person shall erect, configure, or construct any camp facilities in any public area from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. (except during rainfall), replacing a 10:00 p.m. restriction.  Section 7915 (a): A person must take down, fold, and completely remove or put away any camp facilities erected, configured, or constructed on any public property between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. (except during rainfall), replacing a 10:00 p.m. restriction.  Section 7915 (c): This section lists the public property which camping is expressly prohibited. The amended language clarifies that camping is prohibited on related areas including without limitation, the entirety of the real property or lot on which each of the following is located. The proposed modifications would allow slightly more flexibility for those that would be camping by necessity in that they would be allowed to begin camping two hours earlier Ordinance No. 2381 – Camping and Storage of Personal Property on Public Property September 21, 2021 Page 3 of 3 each day. The clarifying language will allow for easier implementation of the Ordinance in that everyone will more clearly understand that the prohibitions apply to the entire property on which certain public buildings sit and not just the area immediately around the building. For instance, a prohibition of camping at “Arcadia City Hall” has always been intended to include the building, the lawn, the walkways, and the parking lots; however, in the original language, this could have been unclear. The new language makes it expressly clear. For these reasons, it is recommended that the proposed Ordinance be introduced. FISCAL IMPACT The introduction of Ordinance No. 2381 has no direct fiscal impact to the General Fund, but the additional clarifying language should reduce some staff time in answering potential questions or challenges about what was intended with the original language. ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS The proposed actions do not constitute a project under the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”), based on Section 15061(b)(3) of the CEQA Guidelines, as it can be seen with certainty that they will have no impact on the environment. Thus, these matters are exempt under CEQA. RECOMMENDATION It is recommended that the City Council determine that this does not constitute a project under CEQA; and introduce Ordinance No. 2381 amending Section 7915 of Chapter 9 of Article VII of the City of Arcadia Municipal Code relating to camping and storage of personal property on public property. Attachments: “A” - Ordinance No. 2381 “B” - Ordinance No. 2374 Red-Lined