O1668
CARS:SEM:se:ordp
city Council Meeting: 2-9-93
Santa Monica, California
ORDINANCE NUMBER l668(CCS)
(City Council Series)
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
ESTABLISHING REGULATIONS GOVERNING USE OF
CITY PARKS BY ORGANIZED GROUPS AND AMENDING
THE SANTA MONICA MUNICIPAL CODE
THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA DOES ORDAIN AS
FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Article IV of the Santa Monica Municipal Code
is amended by adding thereto a new Chapter 4.53 to read:
Chapter 4.53 - Group Use of City Parks
section 4.53.010. Purpose and Findings.
The unregulated use of City parks by large organized
groups deprives the general public of the free and untrammeled
use of park space, thereby depriving the community of an
important recreational resource. Further, recurrent use of parks
by organized groups has an impact on the parks different in
quality and magnitude from use by the general public, creating
concerns regarding noise, traffic and parking, trash removal and
clean-up, damage to turf and vegetation, public safety and
liability. The purpose of this Chapter is to regulate the use of
City parks by organized groups in order to ameliorate the
foregoing problems and assure reasonable and equitable access to
City parks both by groups desiring to use the parks and by the
general public.
section 4.53.020. Definitions.
The fOllowing words and phrases as used in this
Chapter shall have the following meanings:
(a) "Department" shall mean the Department of
Cultural and Recreation Services.
(b) "Director" shall mean the Director of the
Depa~tment of Cultural and Recreation Services.
(c) "Park", "Parks", or "City park" shall mean and
include the following parks in the city: Douglas Park, Virginia
Avenue park, Stewart Street Playground, Clover Park,
Sunset/Ashland Park, Marine Park, Ozone Park, Joslyn Park, Los
Amigos Park, Mary Hotchkiss Park, Palisade Park, Lincoln Park,
Ocean View Park, Memorial Park and any City-owned open space
area.
section 4.53.030. Permit required.
A permit is required for the use of any City park by &
group of thirty-five (35) or more persons. It shall be unlawful
for any person or persons to assemble or cause the assembly or to
gather so as to result in the assemblr of thirty-five (35) or
more persons in a park or in any port~on or separate portions of
a park for any combined or coordinated purpose or activity
without first having received a permit from the Department. A
permit may be obtained, but is not required, tor reservation of
apace in a park for a group consisting of fewer than thirty-five
(35) persons.
section 4.53.040. Permit application and fees.
Applications for a permit for group use of a park are
available in the Department durinq City Hall business hours.
Applications by residents of the City or businesses located in
the City may be filed not more than one hundred eighty (180) but
not less than three (3) days before the proposed activity.
Applications by non-residents may be filed not more than thirty
(30) but not less than three (3) days before the proposed
activity. Applications shall not be accepted for prooessing
unless all requested information is provided and any required
application fee paid. Tbe city council is authorized to
establish application fees by resolution. The Director is
authorized to refer any application to any applicable city
department for review and investiqation as necessary to evaluate
the application properly and thoroughly. Complete applications
for the use of the same park space at the same time will be
processed in the order received.
section 4.53.050. Grounds for Denial.
Applications shall be denied if anyone of the
following findinqs is made:
(a) The activity is proposed to be conducted in a
space or area not physically suitable to accommodate the
activity.
(b) The activity is proposed to be conducted in a
space or area already reserved for another activity on the day
and hourCs) requested.,
(c) The person or persons organ~z~nq the activity do
not possess the necessary licenses, permits or certificates
otherwise required to conduct the activity, or are otherwise not
in .compliance with any applicable laws or regulations.
Cd) The activity constitutes a public nuisance or is
detrimental to public health or safety.
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(e) The issuance of the permit would violate the
general requirements set forth in seotion 4.53.060 hereot.
(f) A permit previously held by the permittee was
revoked and the Director finds that the grounds for the
revooation are likely to recur if the permit is issued.
SectIon 4.53.060. General requirements.
The following general requirements shall govern
issuance of permits:
(a) No person, persons or group shall be issued more
than two permits a month and no activity sponsored or organized
by the same person, persons or group shall occur more frequently
than twice a month in the same park.
duration.
Cb) No activity shall exceed six (6) hours in
(c) The number of permits which may be issued at the
same time and/or on the same day at each park in the city shall
be as determined by the Director, based on the City's goal of
avoiding conflicts among group users, assuring access to the
general public, and avoiding overly intense use of park
facilities. The Director may further restrict the number of
permits issued on holidays due to the larger than usual numbers
of people who use the parks on those days.
(d) The use of mechanical equipment, such as amusement
rides and moon bounces, and the erection of tents is prohibited.
(e) Fires are prohibited except in barbecues provided
by the city.
(f) The use of rope, cones or other materials or
devices to barricade or seqreqate an area of a park for the
exclusive use of a person or persons is prohibited, unless
expressly authorized in a permit issued pursuant to this Chapter.
Any of the above general requirements may be waived by the
Director upon a showing to the Director's satisfaction of special
or unique circumstances, or that compliance with one or more of
the requirements would create a unique hardship or would
contravene the human services objectives of the city.
SectIon 4.53.070. Conditions.
Permits may be issued subject to conditions as are
necessary to assure that the activity will be compatible with the
proposed location and with use of the park by others, the park
will not be damaged or left in an unclean condition, and the
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aotivity will occur safely. Conditions may include, without
limitation:
(a) Restrictions on parking and access.
(b) Restrictions on sound amplification.
(c) -Requirement for a cash or surety bond to quarantee
clean-up of the site.
(d) Requirement that the permittee obtain insurance to
protect aqainst liability resulting from the activity.
(e) Restrictions on equipment or facilities.
cr) Restrictions on the precise activities which will
be parmi tted.
(q) A requirement that the permittee indemnity the city
and assume responsibility for repair of damage and for clean-up
of the area used for the activity.
(h) A requirement that the permittee use a city park
other than the park being requested for the activity.
(1) A restriction on the maximum number of people who
may attend the event.
ej) Special conditions may be imposed on holidays.
Section 4.53.080. Revocation of Permits.
Permits issued pursuant to this Chapter maybe revoked
by the Director if anyone of the following findings may be made:
(a) The permittee or the activity or any person or
persons engaged in the permitted activity have violated any
regulation, ordinance, statute, law or any condition of the
permit in the course of engaginC) in the activity.
(b) The permitted activity 1s causinq a public
nuisance or is detrimental to public health and safety.
(0) The permit was issued on the basis of
misrepresentations or false information supplied by the
applicant.
(d) The permit was issued in error.
section 4.53.090. Exemptions.
The provisions of this Chapter shall not apply to:
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(a) Activities or events sponsored by the city.
(b) Use of athletic fields and park buildings.
section 4.53.100. First Amendment Activities
A permit shall be issued for any assemblage or
gathering of thirty-five (35) persons or more, such as a
demonstration, rally or protest, organized for the purpose of
conveying a political, religious or other similar type of message
protected by the California Constitution or the First Amendment
of the United states Constitution. The permit shall be issued
within twenty-four (24) hours of submittal of a complete
application to the Director. The Director may waive any or all
of the requirements of this Chapter but may establish reasonable
time, place and manner regulations for the event to assure the
protection of the public health and safety and to protect the
park grounds and facilities.
section 4.53.110. Refunds.
Refunds of any required permit application fees are
available only if the permittee notifies the Director of
cancellation of the event not later than three (3) days prior to
the reserved dates. Any adopted service charge will be deducted
from any refund due.
section 4.53.l20. Enforcement and Appeals.
The provisions of this Chapter shall be implemented
and enforced by the Director. Any decision of the Director under
this Chapter may be appealed to the City Manager, who shall hear
the appeal within thirty (30) days of its filing, or, in the case
of First Amendment activities, within twenty-four (24) hours of
its filing. The decision of the City Manager shall be final.
section 4.53.l30. Penalty.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Code,
violation of this Chapter shall constitute an infraction,
punishable in accordance with the provisions of the California
Government Code.
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Adopted and approved this 9th day of February, 1993.
4Ma;!rA
I hereby certify that the foregoing Ordinance No. 1668(CCS)
was duly and regularly introduced at a meeting of the city
council on the 26th day of January 1993; that the said Ordinance
was thereafter duly adopted at a meeting of the City council on
the 9th day of February 1993 by the following Council vote:
Ayes: Councilmembers: Abdo, Genser, Greenberg, Olsen,
Rosenstein, Vazquez
Noes: Councilmembers: None
Abstain: Councilmembers: None
Absent: Councilmembers: Holbrook
ATTEST:
.,
L~~
~ city Clerk