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Commissioners revise county park rules
New rules state that citations can be issued and that children under 12 must be supervised by an adult.
By CHANDRA BROADWATER
Published January 25, 2006
BROOKSVILLE - An old Hernando County parks and recreation ordinance now has some bite.
According to county parks director Pat Fagan, the revisions will give deputies the ability to enforce park rules.
County commissioners unanimously approved the updated ordinance Tuesday. The document hadn't been revised since 1981.
Fagan explained that residents will still assume risk for being on park grounds, along with following regulations for swimming, boating, skating, or doing just about anything in a county park.
If they don't, they can now be slapped with a citation.
"We've been lucky for the past 30 years," Fagan said. "So many more issues could have arisen. This ordinance will make all our jobs a lot easier."
Parks staffers worked with the Assistant County Attorney Kent Wessinger and agencies such as the Hernando County Sheriff's Office to come up with the new rules.
As a result, park facilities and equipment will be better protected, he said.
Adding Stewy's Skate Park in Spring Hill to the county parks system instigated the policy change, Fagan said. An insurance company required the county to come up with regulations and ways to enforce them, he said.
Recurring incidents at the popular skate park kept popping up, and also begged for more regulation.
Parents often used the skate park, as well as some other parks, as a babysitting service Fagan said. Young children were left unsupervised at the park for hours.
"We had 7- and 8-year-olds there all day alone," Fagan said. "Now a child under the age of 12 has to be with an adult. We just wanted parents to take more responsibility."
Commission Chairwoman Diane Rowden said ordinance enforcement would keep people safer.
"The change was overdue," she said.
Chandra Broadwater can be reached at cbroadwater@sptimes.com or 352 848-1432.
[Last modified January 25, 2006, 00:55:16]
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