Collier County, FL Homelessness & Encampment Rules: Sit-Lie Rules (2026)

Sec. 94-26(a)(3), part of the county's 1988 loitering and prowling ordinance (Ord. No. 88-46), targets sidewalk and street obstruction specifically. It is triggered two ways: after a law enforcement officer has already warned the person, or wherever a 'no loitering' sign has been posted, at which point loitering, standing, sitting or lying on a public or semipublic sidewalk, street, curb, crosswalk, walkway, mall or parking lot becomes unlawful if it unreasonably hinders the free passage of pedestrians or vehicles. The same subsection separately bans blocking or obstructing the entrance to any building or parking facility open to the public, without requiring a prior warning for that part.

Because the trigger is a warning or posted sign rather than an automatic ban on all sitting or lying, a person resting against a wall on an empty sidewalk is not violating this subsection; the offense requires unreasonable obstruction of passage after notice. 'Public or semipublic area' is defined in Sec. 94-26(b)(3) to include streets, sidewalks, bridges, alleys, plazas, parks, driveways, parking lots, and the doorways and entrances to buildings open to the general public, including restaurants and entertainment venues. 021, loitering or prowling.