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Planned ordinance

August 18
Targeting vandalism at parks in Dallas

Council expects to revise a regulation Wednesday to deal with problems at two parks.

CAMILLE FIOTI Times Leader Correspondent

DALLAS -- In an effort to crack down on vandalism at the borough’s two parks, council revised an existing ordinance that it plans to adopt at Wednesday’s meeting.

Borough Manager Tracey Carr said vandals have struck the Kenneth A. Young Memorial Park, also known as “Burndale Park,” and Bicentennial Park, also known as “Tot’s Lot.”

Boards have been ripped off the building and someone sprayed the bathroom with a paint ball gun at the Kenneth A. Young Memorial Park, where the summer recreation program is held, Carr said.

“It’s a terrible shame. We want to have the program, but there are a few there that are really ruining it for others.”

Some of the vandalism has occurred in broad daylight, when participants of the recreation program leave the park for field trips, but most seem to occur in the evening hours, Carr said. The parks are lit, but vandals have also smashed out some of the lights, she added.

The hours of operation in the original ordinance are from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. The hours of operation in the proposed amended ordinance are from 9 a.m. to dusk.

“Anyone in the park after dark, we’re finding is up to no good,” she said.

Another addition to the amended ordinance is the prohibition of cigarettes and all other tobacco products, and skateboards. The borough already has a separate ordinance prohibiting skateboard use, but it wasn’t stated in the original park ordinance.

Carr said that picnic benches have been broken, flipped over and used as ramps for skateboarding.

After it is adopted, the new ordinance will be prominently posted at the two parks, Carr said.

The police department will patrol the parks, and anyone violating the rules will face fines up to $300 as well as court costs. Failure to pay the fines can result in imprisonment, the ordinance states.