Council introduces camping and RV ordinance expanding time, place and manner rules; first reading approved 5-0

The Solvang City Council on May 27 introduced Ordinance No. 25-0381 to create citywide camping regulations that prohibit overnight camping and vehicle habitation on certain public properties, add an exclusion‑order and appeal process, and shorten notice and retention periods for removed personal property. The council approved the introduction by title only, 5-0.

City legal staff told the council the updated ordinance is intended to respond to the U.S. Supreme Court guidance in Martin v. City of Boise and related cases while giving the city clearer authority to regulate camping behavior on public property, public utility sites and in places that obstruct ingress, egress or access. The ordinance would: prohibit camping on public property overnight (exceptions limited to events when the city manager grants temporary permission); prohibit camping on city-owned utility property and on streets, sidewalks, vehicle lanes, bicycle lanes, and within 100 feet of Mission Drive during specified overnight hours; prohibit daytime conduct that appears to be camping (such as erecting tents or digging fire pits) while allowing normal daytime park use; shorten notice to individuals before staff removes personal property from 72 hours to 24 hours and reduce property-retention from 90 days to 60 days; and add an exclusion-order process that allows appeal to the council with a required hearing timeline.

Council members asked how enforcement would be handled; staff said enforcement would primarily involve the sheriff’s office for resistant or noncompliant situations and that the ordinance language had been adjusted after review and suggestions from County Counsel to include due-process components around exclusion orders and appeals. City legal staff also said the city reviewed a governor’s model ordinance released the same day and found the city’s draft would better reflect local conditions once the suggested changes were incorporated.

Action: Council introduced Ordinance No. 25-0381 and read the title by roll call. Second reading will be scheduled at the next meeting and the ordinance, if adopted at second reading, would become effective 30 days after that meeting.

Why it matters: The ordinance clarifies the city’s rules on vehicle habitation and camping on public property, updates removal-notice and retention timelines for personal property, and establishes a formal exclusion-order and appeal mechanism that incorporates due-process timelines.