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City of Atlantic Beach
City Commission Meeting
Staff Report
Agenda Item: Proposed Ordinance for Public Park Closures
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Submitted by: David E. Thompson, Director of Public Safety
Date: October 25, 1999
Background: Some of the public parks in Atlantic Beach have been problematic in the
evenings and early morning hours, largely as a result of people involved in
improper and/or illegal behavior. For example, there have been problems
with illegal drugs in Donner Park and Jordan Park, after the community
programs have shut down for the evening.
With the opening of Tide Views Preserve, and the anticipated opening of
Pine Island in the Winter, we expect park locations to create additional
"attractive nuisances." Although these parks are beautiful, and we hope to
see them utilized by many of our citizens, we also recognize that
unsupervised people in the parks could create some major problems.
Similar complaints in the past led to an ordinance setting closing times for
Howell Park. This has prevented people from engaging in some of the
improper behaviors in the park, and it has empowered the Police to actively
seek and remove people from the park as necessary.
The Police Department and the Parks and Recreation Department agree that
it would be helpful to establish closing times by ordinance. This would
allow the Police to enforce the closing times, and it would eliminate some
of the risks to facilities and people in the areas around the parks. This
suggestion has also been endorsed by Citizen groups living near Donner
Park and Jordan Pazk.
RECOMMENDATION: We recommend that the City Attorney be directed to write an
ordinance prohibiting people from being in the parks after sunset
and before sunrise, or any time the parks are officially closed to the
public. The ordinance should also establish exceptions for
organized events as approved by the Parks and Recreation
Department.
ATTACHMENTS: City Ordinance Section 5-31
Approved by City Manager:
da Items Number:
The city manager shall erect and maintain at all times during the hours and period specified
in section 5-16 suitable obstructions or barricades along the northerly and southerly lines of the
area described in section 5-16 to prevent the entry therein of vehicles and other traffic prohibited
by this article.
(Code 1970, § 5-7; Ord. No. 57-86-11, § 1, 4-14-86)
Secs. 5-19--5-30. Reserved.
ARTICLE III. PUBLIC PARKS
Sec. 5-31. Howell Park use prohibited after dark.
It shall be unlawful for any person or groups of persons to congregate in or about or
traverse through the area known as Howell Park between the hours of sunset and sunrise or 8:00
p.m, and 6:00 a.m. whichever is later.
(Ord. No. 95-88-35, § 1, 9-26-88)
Editor's note--Ord. No. 95-88-35 § 1 adopted September 26 1988 amended the Code
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by adding a new § 5-19. The aforesaid has been redesignated as § 5-31 at the discretion of the
editor.