Westminster, CA Homelessness & Encampment Rules: Encampment Sanitation (2026)
Key Facts
- Prohibited
- camping, camp facilities/paraphernalia in public areas
- Covers
- public parks, rights-of-way, public facilities
- Companion rule
- no unattended personal property storage
- Adopted by
- Ordinance 2619, April 9, 2025
- Legal status
- declared a public nuisance
Summary
Westminster makes it unlawful to camp, use camp facilities or camp paraphernalia in any public park, right-of-way or public facility under Municipal Code Section 12.28.020. Section 12.28.040(A) separately bars leaving unattended personal property in those same areas, backed by nuisance, civil and criminal remedies.
It is unlawful for any person to camp, occupy camp facilities or use camp paraphernalia in the following public areas, except as otherwise provided: A. Any public park; B. Any public right-of-way; C. Any public facility. ... No person shall fix in place, store, maintain or leave personal property that is unattended in or on a public park, public right-of-way, or public facility.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4982734; v10 updated 2026-06-10).
Full Breakdown
28, added by Ordinance 2619 on April 9, 2025 and replacing an earlier camping chapter the council repealed the same day, defines "camp" broadly to include sleeping, preparing to sleep such as laying out bedding, storing personal belongings, building fires, using tents or other sleeping structures, digging, or cooking, whenever it reasonably appears the person is using the area as a living accommodation. 020 makes that activity unlawful in three categories of public area: any public park, any public right-of-way, and any public facility, defined as city-owned buildings and real property such as parking lots, structures and bathrooms, but not rights-of-way or parks, which are defined separately.
040(A) adds a companion storage ban: no person may fix in place, store, maintain or leave unattended personal property, defined to include furniture, appliances, tents, sleeping bags and shopping carts, in any of those same three areas. 04 encroachment permit. 14, with all remedies cumulative so pursuing one does not bar the city from pursuing another.
Violations & Fines
Camping or storing property unlawfully in a Westminster park, right-of-way or public facility is declared a public nuisance under Section 12.28.060 and can be pursued as a criminal citation, a civil injunction action by the city attorney, or an administrative citation under Chapters 1.12 and 1.14, with the city free to pursue more than one remedy at once.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it illegal to sleep outside in a Westminster park?
Can I store my belongings in a Westminster park overnight?
Are there any exceptions to Westminster's camping ban?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Westminster
California rules heatmap·Compare Westminster to another location·View the California homelessness & encampment rules overview
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Encampment Sanitation in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Orange County handle encampment sanitation.