(A) Reservations for activities in parks and park facilities. The City Manager or designee shall be responsible for scheduling and controlling the use of parks and park facilities, or portions thereof, for the benefit and participation by interested public and private persons and groups. Any person 18 years or older desiring to reserve any football field, soccer field, ball field, tennis court, swimming pool, picnic facility, open space area or other park facility, shall apply for a permit. Such application shall be in writing, giving the name of the facility, the proposed use, the date of its proposed use, and the person to whom the permit is to be granted. The person of group to whom the permit is to be granted shall abide by the policies and procedures of that facility. Any person not having a facility reservation permit for the use of a recreational facility shall surrender or turn over possession of said recreational facility to an individual or group in possession of a facility reservation permit for the use issued by the City Manager of said facility. It shall be unlawful for any person not having a permit issued by the City Manager to refuse or fail to surrender the use of any recreational facility, regardless of whether the facility is reserved for use.
(B) Activity requiring facility reservation application. The following activities on park property shall require a facility reservation application.
(1) An event, which is held on a regular/re-occurring basis (i.e. weekly, bi-weekly or monthly) involving more than 25 individuals per day;
(2) The commercial sale of any good or service merchandise or article or thing;
(3) The sale or service of alcohol;
(4) Advertising or commercial activities;
(5) Activities involving use of more than one park;
(6) Creation or emission of any amplified sound, except from a radio, recorder or other device possessed and used by an individual for his/her own enjoyment and operated in such a manner so as not to interfere with the use and enjoyment of another person;
(7) Stationing or erecting any building, bandstand, stage, tower, tent, canopy, scaffold, sound stage, platform, rostrum or other structure;
(8) Use of any electrical or electronic device or equipment requiring outdoor auxiliary power;
(9) Bringing, landing or causing to ascend or descend or alight within a public park, any airplane, helicopter, flying machine, balloon, parachute or other apparatus for aviation;
(10) Use of mechanical rides (which may be permitted only on hard surfaces);
(11) Conducting any exhibit, music or dramatic performance, fair, circus, concert, play, radio or television broadcast, other than a news transmission;
(12) Exhibiting or displaying any motion picture, television program, light or laser light display, or similar event;
(13) Operating a vehicle, except upon a surface maintained and open to the public for purposes of vehicular travel or designated as temporary parking areas publicly;
(14) Displaying, posting or distributing any placard, handbill, pamphlet, circular, book or other writing containing commercial advertising on park property; or
(15) Bring onto park property a tame, non-domestic supervised and controlled or restrained animal for limited non-commercial or promotional purposes except for the specific animals under the specific conditions provided for in this chapter.
(C) Exemptions from facility reservation permit. A facility reservation permit shall not be required under this chapter for the below-listed activities:
(1) Activities conducted by a government agency within the scope of its authority;
(2) Funeral processions by a licensed mortuary;
(3) An exempted activity is required to comply with the general regulations governing public health and safety.
(D) Reservation procedure.
(1) Groups desiring to use city parks, park facilities, or portions thereof, may request the City Manager or his designee to reserve the same for such use. Persons or groups from within the city shall be given priority over persons or groups from outside the city if a conflict in scheduling arises. Requests for such use shall be submitted in writing to the city on the facility reservation application approved by the City Manager not less than ten working days in advance and not more than 18 months of the intended use. The City Manager may permit a shorter or longer advance request time for good cause shown. The facility reservation application is available at the Department of City Manager/Community Services and on the city web page. Upon the written approval by the City Manager or his designee, the applicant must pay such fees as approved by ordinance or resolution of the city, not less than ten working days in advance of the intended use. If the City Manager is not satisfied as to the reasonableness of the proposed activity in relation to the use of the park by other persons, or as the effect such use might have upon the peace of the neighborhood, or if the City Manager is unable to agree with the applicant as to the conditions to be imposed, the request for a reservation shall be processed as a special event permit.
(2) The scheduling of events on the following holidays will be considered on a case-by-case basis and at the discretion of the City Manager: Independence Day, Thanksgiving, day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve, New Year's Day, Easter and other holidays.
(E) Permit conditions. The City Manager may condition the issuance of a park event permit by imposing reasonable requirements which are necessary to protect the safety of persons and property, and to provide for adequate control of traffic. These may include conditions concerning:
(1) Alteration of the date, time, route or location of the event proposed on the application;
(2) Requirements for the area of assembly and disbanding of events;
(3) Provision of first aid, sanitary or emergency facilities;
(4) Requirements for event monitors or other method for providing notice of permit conditions to event participants;
(5) Restrictions on the number or type of vehicles or animals at the event;
(6) Restrictions on the number and type of structures at the event and inspection and approval of the structures by fire safety by the Riverside Fire Department;
(7) Compliance with animal protection ordinances and laws;
(8) Requirements for use of garbage containers, cleanup and restoration of park property;
(9) Restrictions on use of amplified sound;
(10) Compliance with any relevant ordinance or law in obtaining any other legally required permit or license in addition to a park event permit;
(11) Security guards and/or plan; and
(12) Compliance with County Health requirements and regulations.
(F) Insurance. The City Manager may also require the applicant to provide such additional liability insurance, water, sanitary facilities and refuse receptacles as the City Manager determines to be necessary for the protection of public health, safety, and welfare in connection with the intended use.
(G) Fees and deposits. Fees and deposits required in respect to reservation permits may include, without limitation, such amounts as may be determined by ordinance or resolution of the city, to be necessary to compensate the city, for the administrative costs associated with the permit, as security for repair of damage to the park or to park facilities, for costs of cleanup, and for extra personnel to regulate conduct and traffic.
(H) Clean-up and repair expenses. The facility reservation application form shall provide that the applicant shall reimburse the city for all unusual or extraordinary cleanup and repair expenses and for services provided by the city arising out of the activity authorized by the permit.
(I) Written denials.
(1) With the exception of facility reservations for field allocation (i.e.,baseball, softball, soccer), if no written denial or conditional approval is issued within 30 working days of the date on which a permit application is fully completed, executed and filed with the city, the application shall be deemed to have been granted a conditional approval pursuant to division (B) above. Provided, however, the City Manager may extend the period of review for an additional ten working days by issuance of a written notice of extension. If, prior to the expiration of the extended review period, no written denial is issued, the application for permit shall be deemed to have been granted a conditional approval pursuant to division (B) above.
(2) For facility reservations for field allocation, the City Manager or his/her designee shall have information regarding the field allocation application and process through the City Manager/ Community Services Department.
(a) Notice of extended review or denial or issuance of permit. Written notice of denial or notice of extension shall be served on the applicant by personal delivery, or by deposit in United States mail, with proper postage prepaid, to the name and address set forth on the application for permit.
(b) Contents of notice; grounds for denial. Notice of denial of an application for a park event permit shall clearly set forth the grounds upon which the permit was denied and, where feasible, shall contain a proposal by the City Manager, or his/her designee, for measures by which the applicant may cure and defects in the application for a park event permit or otherwise procure a park event permit. Where an application or permit has been denied because a fully executed prior application for the same time and place has been received, and a permit has been or will be granted to the prior applicant authorizing uses or activities which do not reasonable permit multiple occupancy of the particular area, the City Manager shall propose an alternative place, if available for the same time, or an alternative time, if available for the same place. The City Manager may deny an application for a park event permit if the applicant or the person on whose behalf the application for permit was made has on prior occasions made material misrepresentations regarding the nature or scope of an event or activity previously permitted or has violated the terms of prior permits issued to or on behalf of the applicant. The City Manager may also deny an application for permit on any of the following grounds:
1. The application for permit (including any required attachments and submissions) is not fully completed and executed;
2. The applicant has not tendered the required application fee with the application or has not tendered any required user fee, indemnification agreement, insurance certificate, or cleanup deposit within the times required under this chapter;
3. The application for permit contains a material falsehood or misrepresentation;
4. The applicant is legally incompetent to contract or to sue and be sued;
5. The applicant or the person on whose behalf the application for permit was made has on prior occasions damaged park property and has not paid in full for such damage, or has other outstanding and unpaid debts to the City Manager/Community Services Department;
6. A fully executed prior application for permit for the same time and place has been received, and a permit has been or will be granted to a prior applicant authorizing uses or activities which do not reasonably permit multiple occupancy of the particular park or part hereof;
7. The use or activity intended by the applicant would conflict with previously planned programs organized and conducted by the city and previously scheduled for the same time and place;
8. The use or activity intended by the applicant would present an unreasonable danger to the health or safety of the applicant, or other users of the park, or city employees or the public;
9. The applicant has not complied or cannot comply with applicable licensure requirements, ordinances or regulations of the city concerning the sale or offering for sale of any goods or services; or
10. The use or activity intended by the applicant is prohibited by law, including but not limited to the Menifee Municipal Code and the rules and regulations of the City Manager/Community Services Department.
(J) Amendment or revision of applications. Any amendment or revision of an application for permit shall for purposes of determining the priority of the application for permit, relate back to the original filing thereof. However, the time in which the City Manager shall grant or deny the application for permit and serve notice of such granting or denial shall be computed from the date of the amendment or revision.
(K) Right to appeal. An applicant for a facility reservation permit has the right to appeal the following:
(1) The denial of a permit;
(2) A permit condition;
(3) The denial of a waiver of a certificate of insurance;
(4) A determination that an applicant's insurance policy does not comply with the requirements specified in this chapter;
(5) The requirement or amount of a cleanup deposit specified in this chapter; or
(6) The retention of an applicant's cleanup deposit (in full or in part) because of assessed damages or a fine pursuant to this chapter.
(L) Filing of appeal. Within five working days of the service of notice of determination on any of the items set forth in division (D) above, an applicant may file a written appeal from such determination with the City Manager. The City Manager shall have five working days from the date on which the appeal was received in which to serve upon the applicant a notice that they have affirmed, modified or reversed the decision. Such notice shall be deeded served upon the applicant when it is personally delivered or when is it sent by United States mail, with proper postage prepaid, to the name and address set forth on the application for permit. If such notice is not served upon the applicant within five working days of the date upon which the appeal was filed, then the decision of the City Manager shall be deemed reversed.
(M) Form of appeal. Any appeal filed pursuant to this chapter shall state succinctly the grounds upon which it is asserted that the determination should be modified or reversed and shall be accompanied by copies of the application for permit, the written notice of the determination of the City Manager/Community Services Department and any other papers that are material to the determination.
(N) Other provisions of law. The procedures or requirements of this chapter shall not affect or supersede the provisions of law or the issuance of fireworks, structural, electrical or other permits by city departments prescribed elsewhere in this Code, when such permits are otherwise required because of a particular condition or requirement of the event on park property.
(Ord. 2014-146, passed 5-21-2014)