In accordance with and under the authority of New Hampshire
Revised Statutes Annotated 41:11, 41:11-a and 47:17, the City Council
of the City of Rochester hereby adopts the following ordinance for
the regulation of overnight parking or camping on all City-owned property.
This purpose of this article is to protect the public peace,
preserve public law and order, promote safety and welfare and ensure
proper and decent conduct for the residents of the City of Rochester
and the general public in the use of City-owned properties.
From and after the effective date of this article it shall be
unlawful for any person to camp, or to park, with occupancy by one
or more persons, any vehicle or recreational vehicle, either overnight
or for any two-hour period between dusk and dawn, on any City-owned
lands within the City of Rochester.
As used in this article, the following terms have the meanings
indicated:
CAMP
Includes pitching a tent, placing or erecting any other camping
device, or sleeping in or on the City-owned property.
Restrictions in this article shall not apply:
A. When permission
has been granted by the Chief of Police or designee for official or
emergency purposes.
B. When permission
has been granted by the City Manager or Chief of Police in conjunction
with a performance at the Rochester Opera House or with a written
special event permit.
All violations of parking restrictions and charges accompanied
therewith shall be deemed the responsibility of the registered owner
of said vehicle. Such registrations may be proven as set forth in
RSA 261:60. Said registered owner shall be conclusively presumed to
be in control of the vehicle at the time of the parking violation,
and no evidence of actual control or culpability needs to be proven
as an element of the offense in accordance with RSA 231:132-a.
Any vehicle parked in violation of this article may be ordered
towed by the Rochester Police Department at the expense of the owner
or custodian of said vehicle.
The provisions of this article are declared to be severable,
and if any section, subsection, sentence, clause or part thereof is,
for any reason, held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a court
of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity
of any remaining sections, subsections, sentences, clauses or parts
of this article.