(A) General provisions.
(1) Camping on public property for more than 12 consecutive hours, or between sundown and sunrise, without a written permit issued by a Metro Government department is unlawful.
(2) Camping may be permitted on public property larger than three acres in size by making application for a camping permit to the Director of the Department of Public Works and Assets (the Director). Application for a camping permit shall be made on a form provided by the Director. Each application for a camping permit shall be signed by the individual or authorized representative of the organization that seeks to camp on public property, shall identify each person by name and address who will be subject to the camping permit, the address or location of the public property proposed to be used, the requested date(s) for camping which may not exceed five consecutive days, and such other information as required by the application form. Each application shall be accompanied by an application fee in the amount of $25 for five campers or less, $50 for six to ten campers, and for more than ten campers, $5 for each camper named in the application. If the application is denied, all application fees will be refunded. In no event shall any person, individual whether as an individual application or as a member of a group of individuals application, or group of individuals identified in an application tendered by an organization, be permitted to camp for more than five consecutive days in a single calendar month at the same location or a total of 21 days on public property in a calendar year.
(3) The Director shall have the discretion to implement such regulations for the issuance of camping permits the Director deems necessary to prevent the misuse or abuse of public properties and insure the public health, welfare, and safety of Metro citizens. All such regulations and any amendments thereto shall be approved by the Mayor before they become effective. The County attorney shall approve all such regulations as to form and legality prior to submission to the Mayor.
(B) Exceptions. This section shall not apply to camping within Metro Parks, which is governed by § 42.31.
(C) Enforcement and penalties. Any violation of this section shall be classified as a civil offense and shall be enforced through the Code Enforcement Board as provided in §§ 32.275 et seq. or as it may be amended. The civil penalty for any violation of this section shall be as follows: any person that violates ay provision of this section shall be liable for a civil fine in an amount of not less than $50 nor more than $200 for each violation. Each day a violation continues shall be a separate violation of this section.
(Lou. Metro Ord. No. 199-2022, approved 12-15-2022)