Santa Ana, CA Trash & Recycling: Dumpster Rules (2026)

Section 41-623(a) of the Santa Ana Municipal Code requires an enclosure for discarded-material containers serviced by the city's solid waste collection contractor at every commercial or industrial establishment and at every residential development with three or more dwelling units. Establishments that share vehicular access and parking in an integrated development can share one enclosure among a group of four or fewer businesses, as long as the shared enclosure stays freely accessible to everyone assigned to use it. Whatever the configuration, enclosures have to be sized, numbered and distributed adequately to serve everything generated on site.

Subsection (c) sets the physical placement standard: trash and utility areas must be screened from public streets and alleys and from adjacent properties, physically integrated into the project rather than tacked on, and built with an off-street loading area of at least 300 square feet, with no single dimension smaller than 10 feet. New commercial construction, or additions that grow the floor area by 30 percent or more, also has to provide separate space for the city's three-container recycling program under subsection (b)(1), consistent with California Green Building Standards Code section 5.410.1, while new multifamily construction with more than three units follows the parallel standard in subsection (b)(2) tied to CALGreen section 4.410.2.

The director of planning and building issues the detailed construction standards for these enclosures under subsection (d), and once built, subsection (e) requires the enclosure to be used only for solid waste, recycling, organic waste and used cooking oil or grease, with hazardous waste storage strictly prohibited.