(A) Purpose. The City Council has determined that it is necessary, for the health, safety, welfare, peace and tranquility of the citizens of the city to provide for times of operation of city parks, and the City council has determined that it is necessary to establish times of operation for its parks and to make it unlawful to be or remain in parks located within the city before or after hours of operation.
(B) Hours. Except for unusual and unforeseen emergencies, or for city-authorized or city-sanctioned activities that extend beyond the designated closing time, public parks located within the city limits shall be open to the public every day of the year during the designated hours of 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. for parks that have lighting at night and 7:00 a.m. to sunset for parks that do not have lighting at night. The opening and closing hours for each park shall be posted in conspicuous places around park areas as hereinafter provided.
(C) Penalties. It shall be unlawful for any person to be in any public park located within the city limits unless it is either during its posted hours of operation or during an exception as provided herein. Persons apprehended in a park located within the city limits before or after the opening and closing hours set forth in division (B) above shall be guilty of a second degree misdemeanor punishable as provided in Fla. Stat. §§ 775.082 and 775.083. The removal or absence of the sign posting the hours of operation of parks will not be a defense for entering onto or remaining in a public park during the hours the park is closed.
(D) Exceptions.
(1) Excepted from the penalty provision of this section are those persons who are in public parks during hours other than the opening and closing hours set forth herein, but only when city-authorized or city-sanctioned athletic events or activities are on-going and extend beyond the posted closing hours.
(2) When city-authorized or city-sanctioned events or activities extend beyond the posted closing hours, the activities or events may continue until completion. Thereafter, upon completion, all persons must leave the park no later than one-half (½) hour before being subject to the penalty provisions in division (C) above.
(E) Signs. The signs that indicate the opening and closing hours of the park shall be at least eighteen (18) inches by twenty (20) inches in size and the opening and closing hours shall be stated thereon in letters and numbers no less than one (1) inch in size. The sign shall also include a statement that generally informs the reader both that violating the park hours constitutes a criminal offense and the maximum penalty that can be imposed. The removal of posted signs shall not constitute a defense to the penalty provision set forth herein. Entering or remaining in a park before or after 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. shall be punishable as a second degree misdemeanor as provided in Fla. Stat. §§ 775.082 and 775.083.
('74 Code, § 17-45(a)) (Ord. 75-16, passed 7-3-75; Am. Ord. 95-09, passed 3-16-95; Am. Ord. 2009-33, passed 8-20-09)