Catawba County, NC Homelessness & Encampment Rules: Encampment Sanitation (2026)

Section 34-27(d)(1) states plainly that it is unlawful for anyone to camp on any public property owned by the county, including public rights-of-way and sidewalks, and that camping is deemed a public nuisance, with the county authorized to summarily remove a temporary shelter, bedding, or personal belongings. The article's definitions section defines 'camp or camping' broadly to mean using county property for living accommodation purposes such as sleeping or preparing to sleep, including laying down bedding, storing personal belongings, or placing tents or a temporary shelter for living accommodation purposes.

A related prohibition in the same subsection, (d)(2), separately bars lighting or using a campfire or bonfire on public property unless otherwise permitted, closing off open flames as an alternative to camping gear at an encampment site. These rules sit within Article II's broader assembly and public-grounds framework, which also bars obstruction devices, unauthorized attachment of ropes or cords to public property, and possession of weapons at gatherings on county land, showing the camping ban was written as part of a comprehensive 2012 rewrite (Ordinance No. 2012-12, August 20, 2012, amended by Ordinance No. 2022-03, February 7, 2022) aimed at regulating conduct and cleanliness on county-owned grounds.