Village of Pleasantville, NY Chapter 131 Parks and Recreation

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Village Board of Trustees of the Village of Pleasantville 11-22-1993 by L.L. No. 24-1993. Amendments noted where applicable.]

GENERAL REFERENCES

Public places — See Ch. 142.

§ 131-1 Title.

This chapter shall be known as the "Parks Law of the Village of Pleasantville."

§ 131-2 Purpose.

The purpose of this chapter shall be to preserve the public peace and good order on lands operated as public parks by the Village of Pleasantville and to contribute to the safety and enjoyment of the users of such parkland by regulating the hours of use and the use of motorized vehicles and by prohibiting certain activities antagonistic to customary park recreating use.

§ 131-3 Definitions.

For the purpose of this chapter, the terms used herein are defined as follows:

MEMBER

A person who is a member of the Advisory Board.

NONPROFIT SERVICE ORGANIZATION

An organization exempt from the payment of income tax under the applicable provisions of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 and any amendments thereto.

PARK

A park, reservation, playground, waters therein or any other recreation area in the Village owned by the Village and devoted to recreation purposes. Park shall also be deemed to include any building or recreation facility located on Village property used for recreation purposes.

PARK OFFICIAL

A person who is appointed and/or employed by the Village Board of Trustees and in charge of any park area and/or the activities conducted thereon. A park official is also any employee or duly appointed official of the Village of Pleasantville who is conducting any activity or is working or employed in any area in the park for park or recreation purposes.

PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY BOARD

The Pleasantville Parks and Recreation Advisory Board appointed by the Village of Pleasantville Board of Trustees.

SUPERINTENDENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION

The person appointed by the Village Board of Trustees of the Village of Pleasantville who has direct responsibility for the overall recreation programs in the Village, as well as the parks and playgrounds owned by the Village.

VILLAGE ADMINISTRATOR

The person appointed by the Village Board of Trustees of the Village of Pleasantville who is responsible for the day-to-day operations of all Village services.

VILLAGE BOARD

The Village Board of Trustees of the Village of Pleasantville.

§ 131-4 Hours of operation.

A. All parks in the Village of Pleasantville shall be open to the public every day of the year between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and dusk and shall otherwise be closed except as hereinafter set forth. No field in the Village of Pleasantville may be used for organized sporting events prior to 11:00 a.m. on Sundays. Parkway Field II may remain open until 10:00 p.m. for usage scheduled by the Parks and Recreation Department, and the lights shall be extinguished by that time. No person or persons shall enter upon or remain in the park or any buildings or grounds thereof between dusk and 8:00 a.m., except as set forth for Parkway Field II, and except as otherwise authorized by the Village Board of Trustees by duly adopted resolution. The opening and closing hours of a park shall be posted at each entrance of the park so that such opening and closing will be easily noticeable by the public.

[Amended 4-26-1999 by L.L. No. 4-1999; 5-29-2002 by L.L. No. 7-2002]

B. The Parks and Recreation Advisory Board is hereby authorized to recommend any additional rules and regulations with respect to park and recreation facilities of the Village and with respect to the conduct of the public in said parks, provided that such rules and regulations are not inconsistent or in conflict with the provisions herein set forth, and provided that any changes herein shall be approved by the Village Board of Trustees.

C. In case of an emergency or when, in the judgment of the Village Administrator after consultation with the Superintendent of Parks and Recreation, the public interest demands it, any park or portion of a park may be closed to the public until permission is given to reopen it.

§ 131-5 Permit required for certain activities; issuance; revocation.

A. No permit shall be required for the use of the park and the facilities therein except as follows:

(1) Whenever any organization or group desires to use a certain area of the park for its exclusive use for a period of one day or any part thereof, such organization or group shall make application to the Superintendent of Parks and Recreation and shall set forth the name and address of the organization or group; the name and address of the person, persons, corporation or association sponsoring the activity, if any; the day and hours for which the permit is desired; an estimate of the anticipated attendance; the charges or fees, if otherwise permitted as aforesaid, being charged to members or persons attending; and any other information which the Superintendent of Parks and Recreation should be issued hereunder.

(2) If the Superintendent of Parks and Recreation determines that the applicant is to be permitted to use the area of the park requested, such approval of such permit may be conditioned upon the issuance of a certificate of liability insurance to the organization or group, listing thereon the Village of Pleasantville as an additional insured on said policy, with coverage in the amount of $1,000,000 for bodily injury and in the amount of $500,000 damage per accident. Such approval shall be further conditioned upon an agreement by the applicant to indemnify and hold harmless the Village in the event that any damage or destruction is caused by the members of such organization or as a result of such applicant's use. No such permit shall be issued until the aforesaid has been complied with.

(3) Notwithstanding the aforesaid, no permit shall be issued to any organization other than an organization which has its principal office or meeting place in the Village of Pleasantville of which more than 1/2 of its members shall be residents of the Village of Pleasantville. The Superintendent of Parks and Recreation is further empowered to waive any provision of this section.

(4) Notwithstanding the aforesaid, no permit shall be issued to any person or group for the use of Parkway Field II, unless such person or group is composed of Village residents or is a member of the Pleasantville Union Free School District or their guests, except as otherwise authorized by the Village Board of Trustees by duly adopted resolution. This section may not be waived by the Superintendent of Parks and Recreation.

[Added 4-26-1999 by L.L. No. 4-1999]

B. The Superintendent of Parks and Recreation shall only issue a permit hereunder when it determines that:

(1) The proposed activity or the use of the park or recreation facilities will not unreasonably interfere with or detract from the proper enjoyment of the park by others.

(2) The proposed activity or use will not unreasonably interfere with or detract from the promotion of the public health, welfare, safety and recreation.

(3) The proposed activity or use is not unreasonably anticipated to incite the participants therein or others to be disorderly.

(4) The proposed activity will not entail any additional expense to the Village of Pleasantville.

(5) The requested area or facilities desired have not been reserved for any other use or group on the day and hour requested in the application.

(6) The proposed activity or use will be supervised by or be under the immediate direction and control of responsible residents of the Village.

C. All applications shall be submitted at least 10 days prior to the date requested, and the Superintendent of Parks and Recreation or his or her designee shall apprise the applicant within five days thereafter as to whether or not the permit has been granted and, if so granted, of any reasonable conditions that may be imposed by the Superintendent of Parks and Recreation, such Superintendent of Parks and Recreation being hereby authorized to impose any reasonable conditions to such permit. Any applicant, group or person denied a permit shall have the right to appeal to the Village Board of Trustees, which shall consider the application under the aforesaid standards set forth in Subsection B and which may thereafter sustain or overrule the decision of the Superintendent of Parks and Recreation. The decision of the Village Board of Trustees shall be final.

D. All permits shall be subject to the rules and regulations established by the Superintendent of Parks and Recreation, the applicable provisions herein contained and any conditions set forth in the permit.

E. The Superintendent of Parks and Recreation shall have the authority to revoke any permit upon a finding or determination by the Superintendent, in the Superintendent's discretion, that there has been a violation of any conditions set forth in the permit, any rule or regulation of the Superintendent of Parks and Recreation or any provision herein contained.

F. Any person who violates the conditions of any permit issued pursuant to this chapter shall be subject to the enforcement provision of this chapter.

§ 131-6 Prohibited activities.

A. No person in a park shall willfully mark, deface, disfigure, injure, tamper with, displace or remove any building or portion thereof, any bridge, table, bench, fireplace, railings, paving, waterline or other public utilities or parts thereof, sign, notice or placard, monument, stake, post or other boundary marker or other structure or equipment, facilities or park property.

B. Games. No person shall engage in potentially dangerous games involving thrown or propelled objects, such as footballs, baseballs, horseshoes, roller skates, golf balls or similar objects, except in areas designated for such usage and then only subject to such rules as may be prescribed by the Village Board of Trustees.

C. No person in a park shall dump, deposit or leave or cause to be dumped, deposited or left any bottle, broken glass, ashes (other than ashes from and in a designated and permanently constructed fireplace or temporary fireplace designated by permit), paper, boxes, cans, dirt, rubbish, waste, garbage or refuse or other trash upon the grounds or waters of a park or left anywhere in the park, except for those items that are placed in the receptacles so provided for the deposit of such items. Where no receptacles are so provided for the deposit of such items, waste shall be carried away from the park by the person or persons responsible for its presence and properly disposed of elsewhere.

D. No person in a park shall dig or remove any sand, earth, rock, stone, tree, shrub, plant, flowers, grass, timber or log, whether standing or cut, or any other material or make any excavation by tool, equipment, blasting or other means or agency or attach or cause to be attached any rope, wire or other device to any tree, plant or building.

E. No person in a park shall swim, enter into or wade in any waters or waterways located thereon, except in compliance with such rules and regulations pertaining thereto as are established from time to time by the Village Board of Trustees.

F. No person in a park shall bring in or operate any boat, raft or other watercraft, whether motor-powered or not, upon any waters in a park, except at such time, in such places and under such conditions as are designated by the Village Board of Trustees.

G. No person in a park shall enter upon ice except such ice designated by the Village Board of Trustees for skating purposes, provided that the safety signal of the Village Board of Trustees is so displayed on said ice or displayed on an adjacent area.

H. No person in a park shall engage in any disorderly conduct or any behavior tending to cause a breach of the public peace. No person shall disturb or otherwise interfere with any other person or group of persons occupying any area or engaging in any organized activity.

I. No person or group shall use Parkway Field II unless such person or group is composed of Village residents, is a member of the Pleasantville Union Free School District or their guests or as authorized by the Village Board of Trustees by duly adopted resolution.

[Added 4-26-1999 by L.L. No. 4-1999]

J. No person or group shall cause the lighting at Parkway Field II to remain on after 10:00 p.m. under any circumstances, except as otherwise authorized by the Village Board of Trustees by duly adopted resolution. This section may not be waived by the Superintendent of Parks and Recreation.

[Added 4-26-1999 by L.L. No. 4-1999]

K. Any person or group authorized to use Parkway Field II will be responsible to pay all electricity charges as set forth in the Village's Master Fee Schedule or as determined by the Superintendent of Parks and Recreation.

[Added 4-26-1999 by L.L. No. 4-1999]

§ 131-7 Traffic regulations.

A. No person in a park shall fail to obey all police officers, Village Board of Trustees members or park officials whenever such persons are directing traffic or parking in the park, such police officers, traffic officers, members and park officials being hereby authorized and instructed to direct traffic and parking whenever and wherever necessary in the park.

B. No person in a park shall fail to observe and obey all traffic and parking signs indicating speed, directions, caution, stopping, parking or no parking and all other signs posted for proper control and to safeguard life and property.

C. No person in a park shall park and leave any vehicle, motor or otherwise, or other property overnight at any public park.

D. No person in a park shall park a vehicle, motor or otherwise, or other property on a park property unless the owner thereof shall use or be making use of the recreation facilities of such park during the time that said motor vehicle is parked in said park.

E. No person in a park shall ride a bicycle on other than the paved road or parking area or park said vehicle in any other place other than a bicycle rack when so provided or other than a parking area designated for the parking of bicycles.

F. No person in a park shall operate a motorized vehicle, including motorcycles, motorbikes, snowmobiles and minibikes, in areas of the park other than designated roads or parking areas.

G. No person in a park shall enter, operate, stop, stand or park any motorized vehicle with commercial registration on any area, roadway or parking lot in any public park at any time, with the exception of vehicles delivering goods or providing services which have been authorized by the Recreation and Parks Department.

§ 131-8 General conduct.

A. No person in a park shall bring in or upon, have brought in or upon or cause to be brought in or upon a park or the grounds thereof any alcoholic beverage, nor sell, purchase, consume or drink any alcoholic beverage at any time in the park. Any person entering the park or found within the park to be under the influence of alcoholic liquor shall be immediately removed by a police officer.

B. No person in a park shall bring in or cause to be brought in or have in his or her possession or set off or otherwise cause to be exploded, discharged or burned any firecracker, torpedo, rocket or other fireworks or explosive or flammable material or discharge them or throw them into any area of the park or from any area of the park upon the land adjacent thereto. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the park grounds or facilities thereon may be used for a scheduled fireworks program under a permit granted by the Village Board of Trustees.

C. No person in a park shall build or attempt to build a fire except in a fireplace designated and constructed for such purposes and under such regulations as may be adopted from time to time by the Village Board of Trustees. No person shall drop, throw or otherwise scatter lighted matches, burning cigars or cigarettes, tobacco or any other flammable material within the park.

§ 131-9 Enforcement; penalties for offenses.

[Amended 4-28-1997 by L.L. No. 4-1997]

A. It shall be the duty of the Village Board of Trustees, its members, the Superintendent of Recreation and Parks, police officers, enforcement officers, parking enforcement officers and park officials to enforce the provisions of these rules and regulations adopted by the Village Board of Trustees, except that any arrest for the violation hereof or the violation of any other state or local law or ordinance shall be made by a police officer of the Village of Pleasantville.

B. Notwithstanding the aforesaid, the Village Board of Trustees, any member thereof, the Superintendent of Recreation and Parks, police officer, enforcement officer, parking enforcement officer or park official shall have the authority to eject or cause to be removed from the park any person acting in violation of these rules or any other state or local law or ordinance where the action of such person is jeopardizing or will likely jeopardize the safety of the property of the park or of other persons in said park.

C. A violation of the provisions of this chapter or the conditions of any permit shall be subject to a fine of up to $500 or imprisonment for up to 15 days, or both, per violation.

D. Rules or regulations issued by the Superintendent of Recreation and Parks may be temporarily suspended upon a determination by the Superintendent of Recreation and Parks that circumstances warrant such action.

§ 131-10 Appeals.

Any person has the right to appear before the local Village Justice to respond, explain or defend any charge of a violation of this chapter of the Municipal Code.