ENCINITAS — The Encinitas City Council has approved amendments to the municipal code intended to strengthen regulations on camping on public and private property and sleeping in vehicles overnight, without increasing penalties.
The amendments, drafted by city staff at the council’s direction in August, would:
• Clarify that camping is prohibited on public property and on private property without the owner’s express permission at all hours, not just at night;
• Shift the ban on sleeping in vehicles on public streets or property from 10 p.m.-6 a.m. to 8 p.m.-6 a.m.;
• Redefine what constitutes “camping” and what does not; and
• Create a new section prohibiting the use of vehicles as living quarters during certain hours, treating the violation as a parking offense rather than a criminal charge.
One of the key changes removes the phrase “at night” from the private-property camping ban, extending the prohibition to all hours.
The updated definition of “camping” would move from “establishment of sleeping accommodations, use of a bedroll or sleeping bag, the erection or maintenance of a shelter” to the “presence and/or use of camping paraphernalia, which includes but not limited to temporary shelters, tarpaulins, umbrellas, cots, beds, bedding, sleeping bags, hammocks, cooking facilities, kitchen utensils, camping stoves, portable barbecues, extra clothing, personal hygiene items, storage of personal items, and/or shopping carts, strollers, wheeled suitcases, or similar mobile containers used to transport and store other items.”
The definition was revised to add “storage of personal items” at the suggestion of Mayor Bruce Ehlers on Nov. 19. Ehlers also recommended adopting language from Carlsbad’s code clarifying that camping does not include “picnicking, lying or sleeping in an outdoor area or in a camp facility that is not being used for living accommodation purposes.”
Ehlers said distinguishing ordinary recreation from encampments is essential because many common beach and park activities involve similar items.
The amendments also introduce a “totality of circumstances” standard — also used in Carlsbad — requiring deputies to consider all factors when determining whether an illegal encampment has been established.
The council unanimously approved the changes, which are expected to return in December for final adoption.
Deputy Mayor Joy Lyndes initially opposed the amendments because the new definition seemed to blur the line between camping and typical daytime use of public spaces.
“I think what this does is create a lot more confusion, and opens it up to potential criticism and maybe risk as far as legal action,” she said.
Lyndes worried the earlier language could allow deputies to profile people based on appearance. She ultimately supported Ehlers’ revisions.
“I think it really does help clarify, so I appreciate it,” she said.
Lyndes also questioned whether additional language was needed regarding camping on private property without the owner’s permission, noting that people can already be trespassed.
Councilmember Jim O’Hara responded that trespassing requires more legal steps and that not all private parcels have a nearby owner able to initiate those actions.
Councilmember Luke Shaffer noted that deputies were recently limited in how they could address an encampment on private property near the Vons on Santa Fe Avenue west of Interstate 5 because of gaps in the city’s current code.
Ehlers said the strengthened language is also intended to encourage homeless individuals to accept shelter beds or other assistance — such as those offered at the Buena Creek Navigation Center — when city resources attempt to connect them with services.
“We’re trying to get them there, but we have no way of getting them to go, and it’s been a problem, and we have no way of compelling them at all,” Ehlers said. “This puts some pressure on them so that they can avail themselves and fulfill that obligation to follow our laws.”
