Arcadia, CA Public Conduct: Public Marijuana Use (2026)

Marijuana use in public is addressed in Part 9, Smoking Prohibited in Designated Areas, of Chapter 2 of Article IV of the Arcadia Municipal Code, enacted by Ord. No. 2384 on February 7, 2022. This row covers consumption only, not licensing or land use.

Section 4290.1(a) makes it unlawful for any person to use any form of tobacco, marijuana, or vaping products, at any time, in or upon any City Park property or recreation area. The list of prohibited products includes cigarettes, cigars, miniature cigars, smokeless tobacco, snuff, chew, clove cigarettes, betel, and nicotine delivery devices such as electronic cigarettes, as well as marijuana. The exception printed in subsection (a) is for the use or possession of prescription nicotine products.

Section 4290.1(b) carries the ban into events. Tobacco, marijuana, and vaping products are prohibited during the performance or conduct of any City conducted or sponsored events at the parks and recreation areas, including concerts, sports, entertainment, plays, ceremonies, carnivals, fairs, or training. The Director of Recreation and Community Services is authorized to designate restricted areas for the tobacco or nicotine products described in subsection (a) at such an event. Subsection (c) exempts the Arcadia Par 3 Golf Course, while the City owns it, from the prohibition on products containing tobacco or nicotine; the exemption is worded around tobacco and nicotine.

Section 4290 lists marijuana among the substances that cannot be lit, smoked, carried, thrown or deposited within portions of a building open to the public for exhibiting a motion picture, stage production, musical recital or similar performance (other than a lobby), a room or place of public assembly where public business is conducted, and any elevator designed principally for passengers.

Enforcement runs through Section 4294: the City Attorney, any peace officer, and any City Code Enforcement Officer can enforce, and violations are infractions fined $100, $200, and $500 in escalating steps. Section 4291 requires posted No Smoking signs in the areas the chapter covers.