A new bylaw will provide some regulations on parks usage in Estevan.
Estevan City Council gave three readings for the bylaw at their meeting on Monday night. It includes several new guidelines for the parks, including hours of operation, a permitting process for individuals and organizations who want to book the park for a private event, a $25 rental fee, and a damage deposit for $500 in case a park amenity is wrecked.
“It indicates that anybody doing commercial activities within the park will have to require the proper business license and permits required for organized sports. Then there's a list of prohibited activities,” said city manager Amber Smale.
Smale said they studied the content of park bylaws in other Saskatchewan communities, and then they selected the ideas that would work best for Estevan.
Parks will be closed from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., except for users who have a permit to be in the parks after hours. Smale is confident the hours of operation will curb loitering at night and vandalism.
Parks manager Rod March said he was surprised when he arrived in Estevan last year and found out the city didn't have a parks bylaw. A preliminary draft had been completed before he arrived last August. He resumed work on the document in March.
The bylaw was finalized earlier this summer.
March believes this bylaw will regulate the use of Estevan's parks.
“I get a lot of requests throughout the year where there could be conflicting interests happening within the parks, so all this does is help us say 'We know there's an organized group there at this time. Just be aware there might be another organized group coming.'”
It also helps them control what's going on and when, because there are a lot of people asking to use the parks.
“There's nothing to stop anyone from using the parks,” said March. “That's what they're there for. But this is for the organized events that go on.”
It also allows the city to know what is happening in each of the parks on a daily basis.
The bylaw will also regulate soccer pitches and baseball diamonds in the city.
March said he's not concerned people will be upset with the usage fee or the damage deposit. The fee is a nominal amount, while the damage deposit is there in case a picnic table or something else is damaged or ruined during an event.
