[L.L. No. 5-2011, 4-4-2011; Ord. of 7-11-1996, § 5; Ord. of 3-28-2002, § 1; Ord. No. O-07-8, § 1; L.L. No. 5-2011, 4-4-2011]
(a)
Definitions. Unless otherwise expressly defined, whenever used in these rules and regulations, the following words or phrases shall have the following meanings:
(1)
COMMISSIONER — The Commissioner of Recreation of the City of Poughkeepsie.
(2)
DESIGNEE — An employee or representative of the City of Poughkeepsie Recreation Department possessing authority delegated by the Commissioner.
(3)
PARK — All land, water, vegetation, and structures administered or operated by the City of Poughkeepsie Recreation Department.
(4)
PERMIT — Any written authority issued by the Chamberlain, Commissioner, or their designees, in accordance with these rules and regulations.
(5)
PERSON — Any individual, family, group, corporation, unincorporated association, firm, partnership or other entity or business organization of any kind.
(6)
STATE — State of New York.
(b)
Purpose/applicability. The purpose of this article is to provide rules and regulations for the use of and conduct in the parks of the City. These rules and regulations shall apply to all parks in the City, including:
Bartlett Park | |
College Hill Park | |
Dongan Square | |
Earline Patrice Park at Mansion Square | |
Eastman Park | |
Hulme Park | |
Kaal Rock Park | |
King Street Park | |
Lincoln Park | |
Morgan Lake | |
Pershing Avenue Park | |
Pulaski Park | |
Reservoir Square | |
Soldier's Memorial Fountain | |
Spratt Park | |
Stitzel Field | |
Waryas Park | |
Wheaton Park |
(c)
Application and enforcement. Notwithstanding anything set forth in these rules and regulations, all applicable laws, statutes or regulations of the state, or local laws and the ordinances of the city, including these rules and regulations, shall apply to the conduct of all persons or activities within the parks and may be enforced by any duly authorized law enforcement officer.
(d)
General rules/regulations. The following rules and regulations shall apply to all parks in the city, unless specifically made applicable to only one or more parks:
(1)
No person shall be in possession of firearms, knives of any description, or other dangerous instruments in a park.
(2)
No person shall bring into or have in a park any explosive or explosive substance.
(3)
No person shall kindle, build, maintain or use a fire other than in a grill in a designated area. Any fire shall be continuously under the care and direction of a competent person over 16 years of age from the time it is kindled until it is extinguished. No person shall throw away or discard any lighted match, cigar, cigarette or other burning object in a park except after extinguishing same and then only in a receptacle provided therefor by the city.
(4)
No person shall solicit contributions for any purpose unless authorized by special permit by the city.
(5)
No person shall consume any alcoholic beverages in a park or have in his/her possession an open container of an alcoholic beverage unless such consumption or possession occurs under authority of a private event permit issued by the city.
(6)
No motor vehicle of any type or description, including but not limited to minibikes, trail bikes and snowmobiles, shall be permitted in a park except on designated roads and then only for the purpose of parking in designated parking areas or departing from same.
(7)
No person shall use lewd or abusive language or engage in public lewdness or behave in a disorderly manner in a park. No person shall urinate or defecate in a park except in facilities designated by the city.
(8)
No person shall remove any equipment or park apparatus from within the boundaries of any park or from its original location within the park.
(9)
No person shall engage in any activity in any park except in an area designated for same by the Recreation Commissioner. Wholly prohibited activities include, but are not limited to, golfing, hunting, trapping, horseback riding or any obnoxious or offensive activity.
(10)
No person shall throw or discard in a park any litter or any object or matter not naturally found in the boundaries of the park. Refuse must be deposited in receptacles provided.
(11)
No person, for the duration of any athletic event sponsored by the Recreation Department, shall remain in the vicinity of the event except in designated areas.
(12)
No person shall injure, deface or disturb any part of the park or any building, sign, equipment or other property found therein; nor shall any tree, flower, fern, shrub, rock or other plant or mineral be removed, injured or destroyed; nor shall any person harass, annoy or injure nor shall any person view, approach or enter into or upon any waterfall, gorge, cliff or other natural or scene feature by any means other than established trails, overlooks and entries provided for such public use, visit or entry.
(13)
No person shall cause or permit any animal owned by him/her or in his/her custody or under his/her control to enter or remain in a park, except a dog restrained by a leash not exceeding six feet in length. Removal of canine waste shall be governed by Section 4-9 of the Code of Ordinances.
(15)
No person shall sell, rent or hawk any articles or property, including the vending of food, in a park unless such activity is first approved in writing by the City Administrator and the Commissioner, and a license is obtained from the City Chamberlain. Upon approval and payment of the required fee, as set forth in Section 10-3 of the City Code of Ordinances, a vendor license shall be issued by the City Chamberlain and must be displayed at all times. Revocation of a license may occur pursuant to Section 10-12 of the City Code of Ordinances.
(16)
The speed limit on the roadways in all parks shall be 15 miles per hour.
(17)
The College Hill Access Road shall be designated a one-way roadway with the ingress through the south entrance to the park and egress through the north exit from the park, exiting onto North Clinton Street.
(18)
Rollerblading, scooter riding and skateboarding shall be prohibited on all tennis courts and basketball courts.
(19)
No person shall feed birds or other wildlife in any park.
(20)
In order to conserve the natural beauty of the city parks, protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public, and to preserve the city parks for public uses, public recreation, pleasure, air, light and enjoyment, the posting or distribution of signs, advertisements or literature is prohibited.
(21)
No person shall loiter in or near toilets and no one, except City employees on duty, may enter toilet rooms designated for the opposite sex.
(22)
No person shall place or allow to be placed in any river, pond, brook, stream, ditch or drain within the park any solid, liquid or aqueous waste which shall fail to comply with the minimum requirements set by the State Department of Health or the State Department of Environmental Conservation for Quality Standards of Class B Waters.
(23)
No person shall be allowed to congregate in groups or crowds for unlawful purposes, riotous assemblage, or to annoy, harass, or to inflict property damage or bodily injury to others.
(24)
The Commissioner may deny permits if the Commissioner shall make a finding that, after a review of all pertinent factors such as the anticipated attendance at the park on the date in question, the number of permits issued for the day in question, or the number of different groups or individuals requesting permits for the day in question, there would be posed a threat to the health, safety, and welfare of the public enjoying the park.
(25)
The rights of park users to enjoy the parks shall at all times be recognized and respected by all persons. If an individual, family, or group causes discomfort or disruption to other park users or to park employees, they may, at the discretion of the Commissioner or his designee, be reassigned to another area of the park or be removed from the park. Furthermore, the Commissioner may ban the individual, family or group violating this section from the park for such time as he deems appropriate.
(26)
No person shall use or have in his or her possession any controlled substance unless prescribed by a physician for the possessor.
(27)
No person shall operate games of chance.
(28)
No person shall fail or refuse to comply with any reasonable order relating to the regulation, direction or control of traffic or to any other order lawfully given by the Commissioner or his designee.
(29)
All registered motor vehicles shall be parked in designated areas only. No vehicle shall be left in an area where posted signs prohibit parking. Parking during hours parks are closed is prohibited.
(30)
Persons holding permits for private event use of City parks are required to confine the activities approved under the permit to the area of the park defined in the permit. In Waryas Park, permit holders are required to maintain a distance of a minimum 25 feet from the exterior boundaries of the Ice House Concession Stand and to refrain from selling any food item being sold by the Ice House Concessionaire. Failure to observe these requirements may result in the cancellation of the permitted event, the denial of requests for future permits and/or imposition of the penalties set forth in Section 15-24.2 of this article.
(31)
Private event permit holders are required to arrange City assistance for assembly of equipment, bleachers, chairs, electricity and other items at least 15 days in advance of the scheduled event. Failure to do so will result in denial of any such request.
(32)
The City Administrator may promulgate such other and further rules and regulations not inconsistent with this article he deems necessary and proper to promote the health, safety and general welfare of persons using the parks and the orderly administration and preservation of the parks.
(33)
No person shall bring into or have in a park any glass beverage container.
(34)
Smoking shall be prohibited within public parks. No person shall smoke a cigarette or other tobacco-related product in any public park within the City of Poughkeepsie. No person shall carry or possess any lit tobacco product within a public park in the City. This subsection shall not apply to any golf course located within the City of Poughkeepsie.
(e)
Permits required for private use of City parks; specific conditions.
(1)
Use of the City parks by private organizations for events other than those conducted by or sponsored in whole or in part by the City is prohibited unless a permit in a form approved by the City Administrator is first obtained from the City Chamberlain and all fees and costs described below are paid.
(2)
An application for private use of City parks shall be obtained from the City Chamberlain. The application shall be submitted at least 15 days prior to the private use event to the City Chamberlain. The application shall be reviewed and approved by the City Administrator and Commissioner, prior to the issuance of any permit by the City Chamberlain.
(3)
The portions of parks available for private event use shall be designated from time to time by the City Administrator. Any permit issued hereunder shall describe with specificity the park area within which the private event may take place. Any use of areas of the park not so designated in the permit shall be a violation of this Article II that may result in the revocation of the permit and forfeiture of any posted security and shall subject the permittee or its agents, employees or representatives to the penalties set forth in Section 15-24.2.
(4)
Alcoholic beverages shall be prohibited unless the private use permit authorizes such sale or use. Requests for such authorization shall be specifically set forth in the application. The permittee shall provide evidence of authority from the State Alcoholic Beverage Control Board as a condition precedent to such permit. Alcoholic beverages shall be used and consumed only in the area designated in the permit for such purpose. Any use of areas of the park not so designated in the permit for the use or consumption of alcoholic beverages shall be a violation of this Article II that may result in the revocation of the permit and forfeiture of any posted security and shall subject the permittee or its agents, employees, representatives, invitees or customers to the penalties set forth in Section 15-24.2.
(5)
Fees. The following fees shall be charged:
Type of Permit | Fee | |
|---|---|---|
General private event permit | $25 (per event) | |
Assembly permit | $25 (per event) | |
Exhibitor permit | $35 (per day) | |
Flea market permit | $35 (per day) |
(6)
Cleaning obligation; security deposit. A permittee must, as a condition of the right to use the park, agree to clean the area of the park and to restore the area of the park to the condition it was in prior to the event for which the permit was granted. To ensure that the permittee complies with this Article II and cleans and restores the park as described above, a security deposit in the form of a certified check payable to the City, or cash, in the amount of $250 shall be delivered to the City Chamberlain with the application for the private event permit. The permittee will be given up to 12 hours after the event to clean and restore the area used for the event. At that time the Commissioner or his designee will inspect the area, and a determination will be made of any damages or cleanup cost. If the City must incur expense to clean the park or restore it to its condition prior to the event, or if any other part of the rules and regulations established under Article II have been violated, any cost incurred by the City will be deducted first from the security deposit, and, if necessary, the City will have the right to collect the balance of the cost plus court costs and reasonable attorney's fees from the permitee by any lawful means.
(7)
Liability insurance. Any applicant for a private event permit must provide evidence of at least $500,000 of public liability insurance coverage, with products liability coverage if deemed necessary by the Corporation Counsel, for the period of the event. This insurance coverage can take the form of a rider to a homeowner's policy or a certificate of insurance naming the City as an additional insured party on the insurance policy. Notwithstanding the above, any applicant for a private event permit involving the sale or consumption of alcoholic beverages must provide evidence of $1,000,000 public liability coverage for the period of the event, naming the City as an additional insured party on the insurance policy.
(8)
No entrance or access fees may be charged at any private event by any permittee or other person.
(9)
No person may be charged a fee by a permittee or other person for the right to sell, hawk, rent or peddle at a private event.