Prior History: Former Chapter 12.28, Camping and Storage of Personal Property, added by Ord. 2181, was repealed by Ord. 2619, 4/9/2025.
"Camp"
means the use of an area for living accommodation purposes such as sleeping activities, preparations to sleep (including laying down bedding for the purpose of sleeping), storing personal belongings, making any fire, using any tents or other structure for sleeping, doing any digging or earth-breaking or carrying on cooking activities. Such activities constitute camping when it reasonably appears that the participant, in conducting these activities, is using the area as a living accommodation regardless of the intent of the participants or the nature of any other activities in which he or she may engage.
"Camp facilities"
include, but are not limited to, tents, huts or temporary shelter.
"Camp paraphernalia"
includes, but is not limited to, bedrolls, tarpaulins, cots, beds, sleeping bags, hammocks, or cooking facilities and similar equipment.
"Landscaped area"
means all improved landscaped areas, except for open grass area.
"Median"
means a traffic fixture consisting of a strip of ground dividing or separating a street, roadway or highway into lanes according to the direction of travel.
"Parkway"
means the strips of land along streets between the curb and the sidewalk.
"Personal property"
means tangible personal belongings or possessions, which shall include any movable or tangible things that are subject to ownership; property or chattels that can be seen, weighed, measured, felt, or touched, including furniture, appliances, camp paraphernalia, tents, and shopping carts.
"Public area"
means publicly owned or controlled property, including public parks, public rights-of-way and public facilities.
"Public facility" or "public facilities"
means all city-owned buildings and real property including public parking lots, public parking structures, and public bathrooms, but excluding public rights-of-way and public parks.
"Public park"
means all dedicated parks, triangles and traffic circles maintained by the city of Westminster. "Public park" does not include parkways.
"Public rights-of-way" or "public right-of-way"
means any place of any nature which is dedicated for use by the general public for pedestrian and vehicular travel, and includes a street, alley, sidewalk, curb, crossing, intersection, parkway, tunnel, bridge, thoroughfare or any other area designated as public right-of-way by the city.
"Store," "stored," "storing" or "storage"
means to put aside personal property in a public area or accumulate it for use when needed; to place personal property in a public area for safekeeping; and/or to leave personal property unattended in a public area.
"Street"
means a way or place of whatever nature, publicly maintained and open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular travel. The term "street" includes highways.
"Unattended"
means no person who asserts or claims ownership over personal property is present with or accompanying the personal property.
(Ord. 2619, 4/9/2025)
It is unlawful for any person to camp, occupy camp facilities or use camp paraphernalia in the following public areas, except as otherwise provided:
A. 
Any public park;
B. 
Any public right-of-way;
C. 
Any public facility.
(Ord. 2619, 4/9/2025)
No person shall stand, lie, sleep, sit, or in any manner obstruct, by means of person or personal property, public or private access by ingress or egress from or to a public right-of-way, or in or at the entrance or exit of any public facility or private building, so as in any manner to obstruct such ingress or egress access.
(Ord. 2619, 4/9/2025)
A. 
Storing Property. No person shall fix in place, store, maintain or leave personal property that is unattended in or on a public park, public right-of-way, or public facility.
B. 
Right-of-Way. No person shall sleep, lie down, or sit on the ground in a public right-of-way. No person shall sit on any movable chair, bucket, crate, cooler, or similar personal property in a public right-of-way.
C. 
Public Facility. No person shall sleep or lie down in or on a public facility.
D. 
Medians, Parkways and Landscaped Areas. No person shall sit, lie, or sleep, or store, maintain or place, personal property on a median, public parkway, or landscaped area, with the exception of sitting or lying in a landscaped area specifically designed for the purpose of sitting or lying.
E. 
Bus Shelters and Benches. No person shall sleep or lie down on or under a public transit shelter or a public transit bench.
F. 
Park Structures. No person shall sleep or lie down on a bench, table, playground equipment, or other fixed structure in a public park.
G. 
Private Access. No person shall obstruct public or private access by sitting, lying, or sleeping in a public right-of-way or public facility, or by storing, using, maintaining, or placing personal property in a public right-of-way or public facility:
1. 
In a manner that obstructs or impedes passage in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act;
2. 
On or within ten feet of an operational or utilizable driveway, ramp, or loading dock;
3. 
Within ten feet of an operational or utilizable entrance or exit to any building, establishment, retail store, restaurant, office building, or other place into which the public is invited;
4. 
Within ten feet of a fire hydrant, fire plug, or other connection used by the fire department;
5. 
Within ten feet of an automatic teller machine or any door that provides access to an automatic teller machine;
6. 
Within ten feet of an electric vehicle charging station, parking pay station, or parking meter;
7. 
Within ten feet of the entrance to or exit from a public facility;
8. 
Within ten feet of a sidewalk ramp or a crosswalk;
9. 
Within ten feet of a corner where a street, roadway, highway, or alley intersect;
10. 
Within one hundred feet from the entrance or exit from any school (K-12) or day care center and one hundred feet from the driveway to or from any school or day care center;
11. 
In a manner that unreasonably interferes with maintenance of public equipment or facilities; or
12. 
In a manner that unreasonably interferes with the use of the public right-of-way by motor vehicles, pedestrians or bicycles.
(Ord. 2619, 4/9/2025)
The following, by themselves, shall not constitute a violation of this chapter:
A. 
Legally parked vehicles;
B. 
Trash and refuse placed for collection by the city refuse collection service;
C. 
Objects placed for a period not exceeding one hour for purposes of loading or unloading, provided such activity is not part of a regular course of conduct;
D. 
Temporary drainage of water, provided that public passage and access to abutting property remains open and no hazard to health or safety is created;
E. 
Activity, equipment, or materials authorized by law or by lawful government permit, or actions taken via governmental authority or action, including, but not limited to:
1. 
Activities authorized or contemplated by a permit issued pursuant to Chapter 9.61 (Special Event Permits), such as sitting on a lawn chair while watching a legally conducted parade, ceremony, sports event, or other lawful or permitted event,
2. 
Activities authorized by an encroachment permit,
3. 
Activities authorized via Chapter 12.04 (Excavation),
4. 
Activities conducted by or under the auspices of the city or another governmental entity.
(Ord. 2619, 4/9/2025)
In addition to any other remedy allowed by law, any person who violates a provision of this chapter is subject to criminal sanction, civil action, and administrative citation pursuant to Chapters 1.12 and 1.14.
A. 
Violations of this chapter are hereby declared to be a public nuisance.
B. 
The city attorney may institute an action in any court of competent jurisdiction to restrain, enjoin or abate any condition(s) found to be in violation of the provisions of this chapter, as provided by law.
C. 
All remedies prescribed under this chapter are cumulative and the election of one or more remedies does not bar the city from the pursuit of any other remedy to enforce this chapter.
(Ord. 2619, 4/9/2025)