(a) Definitions.
(1) "Municipal park" means any land designated as a public park within the municipal corporation limits of the City of Ashtabula which is owned and maintained by the City of Ashtabula for recreational use and enjoyment by members of the public.
(2) "Designated area" means a portion of a municipal park specifically identified by a sign, fence, barrier, or other indication it has been set aside for a specific use or uses.
(3) "Posted rules" includes any description of permitted or prohibited conduct or use printed on a sign or placard erected in a municipal park by order of the City Manager or by ordinance of City Council.
(b) The following provisions apply to all of the municipal parks located in the City of Ashtabula, Ohio, and may be enforced by any employee, officer or official of the City, including but not necessarily limited to the Police Division:
(1) Municipal parks are open from sunrise until sunset. Persons desiring permission to exceed the foregoing hours can apply to the City Manager for written permission, which permission shall be effective only for the dates and times specifically stated therein.
(2) No alcoholic beverages, illegal drugs, drug abuse instruments, drug paraphernalia, weapons or glass containers are permitted in any municipal park. Alcoholic beverages may be consumed in designated areas with prior specific written permission of the City Manager during special events only.
(3) No camping, overnight loitering or RV parking is permitted in any municipal park, unless prior specific written permission is obtained from the City Manager. In no event shall any such permission exceed 48 hours in duration.
(4) No open fires are permitted in any municipal park. Grilling and cooking are permitted in designated areas only.
(5) No person shall litter or dispose of trash or waste in a municipal park.
(6) All-terrain vehicles, four-wheelers, dirt bikes and snowmobiles are prohibited in all municipal parks. This provision shall not apply to motorized wheelchairs. Golf carts may be operated only in designated areas.
(7) Dogs or other pets must be kept leashed except in designated areas. Dogs are not permitted on the Walnut Beach Park bathing beach during lifeguard duty hours. The owner or keeper of any animal brought to any municipal park shall cause any and all feces or other waste attributable to the animal to be disposed of properly.
(8) Portable music, voice or sound amplification or reproduction equipment shall not be operated in any park in such a manner as to be plainly audible at a distance of 100 feet in any direction from the operator. This provision shall not apply to City-sponsored or supported concerts, festivals and similar events.
(9) No person, while in a municipal park, shall engage in fighting, in threatening harm to persons or property, or in violent or turbulent behavior; nor shall any person in a municipal park make unreasonable noise or offensively coarse utterance, gesture or display, or communicate unwarranted and grossly abusive language to any person, which by its very utterance or usage inflicts injury or tends to incite an immediate breach of the peace.
(10) All posted rules are to be observed and followed.
(c) Any person found in a municipal park between sunset and sunrise without written permission from the City Manager shall be subject to arrest and prosecution for criminal trespassing in accordance with R.C. Section 2911.21 or C.O. Section 541.05. Persons found in possession of illegal drugs, drug abuse instruments or drug paraphernalia in a municipal park shall be subject to arrest and/or prosecution in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 2925 of the Revised Code or Chapter 513 of the Codified Ordinances of the City of Ashtabula.
(d) A violation of any of the other provisions of subsection (b) hereof, is a minor misdemeanor on a first offense and a fourth-degree misdemeanor on a second or subsequent offense.
(Ord. 2017-97. Passed 7-17-17.)