Yorba Linda, CA Public Conduct: Loitering Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Restaurant loitering
- 2+ people lingering outside vehicle/enclosed area
- Town Center structure
- Lingering without parking-related purpose barred
- City facilities/lots
- Lingering without use-consistent purpose barred
- Refusal to leave
- Separate misdemeanor under Sec. 9.04.030
- Amending ordinance
- Ordinance 2020-1075 (2020)
Summary
In the City of Yorba Linda, it's a misdemeanor for two or more people to congregate and linger at a drive-in or take-out restaurant outside a vehicle or enclosed dining area, and for anyone to linger at the Yorba Linda Town Center parking structure or any City-owned facility or lot without a purpose tied to using it.
§ 9.04.020. Violation—Congregating and loitering. A. It is unlawful and constitutes a misdemeanor for a group of two or more persons to congregate and linger on any premises of a drive-in restaurant or take-out restaurant, other than within a structure enclosed on all sides, and provided for delivery or consumption of food, or other than in a legally parked motor vehicle, except where such persons are in the process of waiting for, receiving or consuming a product vended on such premises. B. It is unlawful and constitutes a misdemeanor for any person to congregate and linger on the premises, or anywhere within the premises, of the Yorba Linda Town Center parking structure, except where such person is in the process of parking a vehicle or exiting the parking structure after parking a vehicle, or walking to or from such vehicle after parking such vehicle or returning to such vehicle to leave the parking structure. C. It is unlawful and constitutes a misdemeanor for any person to congregate and linger on the premises, or anywhere within the premises, of a City owned facility or parking lot, unless undertaking actions consistent with the use of the facility.
Full Breakdown
Yorba Linda Municipal Code Section 9.04.020, amended by Ordinance 2020-1075, sets out three separate loitering offenses. Subsection A makes it a misdemeanor for a group of two or more to congregate and linger on the premises of a drive-in or take-out restaurant, other than inside an enclosed structure provided for eating, or in a legally parked vehicle, unless they are waiting for, receiving or consuming food or drink bought there. Subsection B, added in 2020, separately bars anyone from congregating and lingering anywhere on the premises of the Yorba Linda Town Center parking structure except while actually parking, exiting after parking, or walking to or from a parked vehicle.
Subsection C extends the same lingering ban to any City-owned facility or parking lot generally, unless the person is undertaking activity consistent with the facility's use. A companion provision, Section 9.04.030, makes it a separate misdemeanor to remain on restaurant premises, the Town Center structure, or a City-owned facility or lot after a proprietor, City employee or police officer asks the person to leave and the person refuses. Both sections trace back to the City's 1970s-era prior code (Prior Code Section 21-7 and 21-6) governing offenses against public decency and safety, with the Town Center-specific and City-facility-specific language added by Ordinance 2020-1075 in response to loitering at City-owned properties.
Because the ordinance itself labels these misdemeanors, the fine and jail exposure track the general penalty scheme in Section 1.12.010, though the City Attorney retains discretion to charge any of these as infractions instead.
Violations & Fines
Congregating and lingering in violation of Section 9.04.020, or refusing to leave after being told to under Section 9.04.030, is a misdemeanor, exposing a violator to a fine up to $1,000 and up to six months in jail under the Section 1.12.010 general penalty, or the City Attorney may instead prosecute the offense as an infraction with a smaller fine.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I hang out in my car at a Yorba Linda drive-in restaurant?
Is it illegal to just sit in the Town Center parking structure?
What happens if I refuse to leave a City parking lot when asked?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Yorba Linda
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