Fontana, CA Public Conduct: Public Alcohol Use (2026)

Fontana Municipal Code Sec. 16-17(b) makes it unlawful to drink an alcoholic beverage while on any street, alley, way, sidewalk, parkway, playground, or park within the city, or in any building the city owns or leases, whether or not the person is in a vehicle. Sec. 16-17(c) separately bans possessing an opened, seal-broken, or partially consumed can, bottle, or other container of alcohol in a city park, other city-owned property, or public place, including parking lots, streets, alleys, and sidewalks. Subsection (d) requires every retail off-sale liquor licensee to post permanent signs, visible to customers, adjacent parking-lot users, and passersby on the sidewalk, stating that possessing an open container in or outside the store is prohibited by law.

"Alcoholic beverage" is defined at (a) to include any liquid containing one-half of one percent or more alcohol by volume that's fit for drinking. Exceptions exist for city council- or city manager-approved temporary permits of up to seven days, buildings rented out through the parks, community and human services commission, recycling activity, and permitted events under Sec. 17-5 or Sec. 19-3 where beer and wine sales are incidental. The section was most recently amended by Ord. No. 1967 in April 2025.