[Amended 3-26-2018 by Ord. No. 010-2018]
A. Except for unusual and unforeseen emergencies, parks shall be open to the public every day of the year during designated hours. The opening and closing hours for each individual park shall be posted therein for public information and shall be determined from time to time by the Board of Park Commissioners.
B. Any section or part of any park may be declared closed to the public by the Board of Park Commissioners at any time and for any interval of time, either temporarily or at regular and stated intervals (daily or otherwise) and either entirely or merely to certain uses, as the Board of Park Commissioners shall find reasonably necessary.
C. Hours. The following hours of use have been established:
(1) 11th Street Park: sunrise to sunset.
(2) Front Street Park: sunrise to sunset.
(3) Veterans Park: sunrise to sunset.
(4) Hammonton Lake Park: sunrise to sunset; except for the ball fields until 11:00 p.m.
(5) Hammonton Recreation Complex: sunrise to sunset; except for lighted fields until 11:00 p.m.
(6) Key Club Park: sunrise to sunset.
(7) Centennial Drive Playgrounds: sunrise to sunset.
D. Exceptions. The provisions of this chapter shall not be applicable when:
(1) A function is being held or is being sponsored by the Town for a religious, school, civic or properly supervised event or program.
(2) A supervised social meeting, gathering or assemblage for which a property permit has been issued.
E. Rules and regulations. The following rules and regulations are hereby established, and it shall be unlawful to violate any of the said rules and regulations:
(1) No person shall act in a loud, indecent, obscene or offensive manner.
(2) No person shall revel, disport or behave in a noisy and boisterous manner, emitting loud cries and other noises, so as to inconvenience others, or otherwise disrupt and disturb the public peace and dignity within the park(s) and recreation area(s) defined or such adjacent areas. Use of profane, loud, threatening, insulting, indecent and abusive language is prohibited.
(3) No person shall drive and/or operate mini-bikes, motor scooters, motorbikes, go-carts, swamp buggies and snowmobiles and any other similar type of motor-driven vehicle within the park(s) and recreation area(s). Golf carts (gas and electric) are permitted for use by Category I, II, and III organizations with the approval of the Hammonton Park Commission.
(4) The starting or maintenance of an open fire or fires in the park(s) and recreation area(s) at any time during the entire year is prohibited.
(5) Pets brought into the park(s) and recreation area(s) shall be confined or under direct control and on a leash. All pet owners must abide by Town regulations and are responsible for cleaning up after their pet(s). Animals trained to assist the disabled are permitted in all areas.
(6) No person shall carry or possess firearms of any description, or air rifles, spring guns, bow and arrows, slings or any other forms of weapons potentially inimical to wildlife and dangerous to human safety, or any instrument that can be loaded with and fire blank cartridges, or any kind of trapping device. Shooting into park(s) and recreation area(s) from beyond park boundaries is forbidden.
(7) The Recreation Commission shall be authorized to establish any other rules and regulation governing parks which it deems appropriate.
(8) No person shall engage in smoking of any kind or use tobacco products while in any park(s) and recreation area(s) listed in Ordinance No. 036-2014. Smoking is defined as the act of lighting by fire by any means, and/or the act of inhaling, exhaling, burning, or the carrying of any lit smoke product, including, but not limited to, a cigarette, cigar, pipe, electronic smoking device, tobacco, weed, plant or other vegetation or similar material. "Tobacco products" encompasses all smokeless tobacco, including, but not limited to, chewing tobacco, loose-leaf tobacco, tobacco pellets, plug tobacco, twist or rope tobacco, dipping tobacco and dissolvable tobacco.
(9) The Director of Parks and Recreation, in conjunction with the Board of Park Commissioners, reviews and approves all park(s) and recreation area(s) use requests for the Town. The Department of Parks and Recreation then works with its sponsored youth organizations and permitted groups to schedule the use of all fields and facilities located in Hammonton Town park(s) and recreation area(s).
(10) Field closure for maintenance to preserve the quality of Hammonton Town park(s) and recreation area(s) to allow for appropriate rest and repair of turf areas will be identified by the Director of Parks and Recreation and their designated staff members. Mandatory field closure periods will be identified by park(s) and/or recreation area(s). The closed park(s) and/or recreation area(s) will be identified by posted signs and/or fencing and the organization's contact person will be notified. Consequences for not adhering to the field closure periods will result in the following:
(a) First offense: written warning to the organization representative. Security deposit will be forfeited and retained by the Town of Hammonton.
(b) Second offense: a monetary penalty of $500 will be imposed and must be paid to the Town of Hammonton. Use of facilities will be suspended until such time as the penalty is paid in full and any or all future permitted use will be canceled.
(c) Third offense: hearing before the Hammonton Town Parks and Recreation Commission with a potential loss of the field use permit for the organization.
(11) Athletic fields may be closed due to inclement weather or saturated conditions. If a field is to be determined closed or deemed unplayable by Hammonton Town authorized staff on weekdays, notice will be sent to the appropriate league/organization contact person via email by 2:00 p.m. that day. At later weekday times and weekends, each organization is required to cancel its permitted activity if injury may result to participants or if damage to the playing surface or facility may occur. Users must notify the Director of Parks and Recreation, or designated staff member, if the organization closed the field so other users questioning whether to close their fields can be so advised. If there is any doubt, the field should be closed and all activities canceled. Consequences for not adhering to the above closure requirements will result in the consequences for offenses stated above in Subsection 11. Field use is prohibited in the following circumstances:
(a) It is closed for renovation or repair;
(b) Water is standing on the field;
(c) Soil is frozen;
(d) The soil is wet and "spongy";
(e) Grass can be dislodged from the field easily;
(f) Steady rain is falling;
(g) A lightning/electrical storm is occurring; and
(h) The field is deemed unplayable by staff from the Department of Parks and Recreation and/or Public Works due to other unforeseen condition or vandalism.
(12) All managers, coaches, or persons in charge of a group using the park(s) and recreation area(s) will be responsible for the conduct of all participants, spectators and others connected with the activity, including visiting teams and opponents. Group users must inform their participants of the conduct rules. Users must clean up after themselves (i.e., trash, recycling, etc.) and managers, coaches, or persons in charge of a group must inspect the park(s) and recreation area(s) before leaving. All trash must be placed in proper receptacles. Users are expected to leave the park(s) and recreation area(s) in the same or better condition in which it was found.
(13) Warm-ups for the next scheduled event must be performed so as not to interfere with existing event and so as not to endanger the welfare of all participants, spectators and facilities.
(14) Use or possession of alcoholic beverages or controlled substances of any kind are prohibited.
(15) No field user may put down lines, significantly or permanently alter, or make any changes to a park and/or recreation area.
(16) The Town may remove any article or property found in a park(s) and recreation area(s) after hours of operation at the owner's expense.
(17) No person or organization shall post by any means or erect or cause to be erected any sign, placard, advertisement, or inscription, in any Town park(s) and recreation area(s), without authorization from the Department of Parks and Recreation.