Lynnwood, WA Homelessness & Encampment Rules: Sit-Lie Rules (2026)

140, Lynnwood's pedestrian-interference law grew out of council findings that public places in the urban core, especially along Highway 99 and the transit corridors feeding the Link light rail terminus, were becoming congested and that individuals were increasingly blocking pedestrians. The ordinance defines a 'public place' broadly to include alleys, bridges, publicly owned buildings, driveways, parking lots, parks, plazas, sidewalks and streets open to the general public, plus doorways and the grounds around them. Within any of those spaces, a person is guilty of interference with pedestrian traffic if they intentionally obstruct pedestrian traffic, meaning they walk, stand, sit, lie or place an object in a way that a person of ordinary sensibilities would conclude blocks or impedes free passage, or that forces a pedestrian to take evasive action to avoid contact.

If a group's size causes the blockage, everyone in the group is equally liable. The law expressly carves out constitutionally protected activity that only incidentally slows foot traffic, and conduct authorized by a special event permit or an obstruction permit issued elsewhere in the code. 080(B) by up to a $1,000 fine, 90 days in jail, or both, unless state law fixes a different penalty. Lynnwood police officers, not a specialized homelessness unit, enforce the section, and cases are charged in Lynnwood Municipal Court. The same section also separately criminalizes 'aggressive solicitation,' a distinct standard covered on its own city page.