Borough of East Rutherford, NJ Policy for the Use of Open Spaces

The Borough hereby determines and declares all Borough-owned open space to be designated as either a park or a recreational facility. Those areas forming a part of a designated recreational facility but not used, designed or maintained for the conduct of athletic activities, such as adjoining spectator areas, grandstands and picnic areas, are determined and declared to be parks. The inventory of the Borough's open space, with its appropriate designation, is as follows:

Name of Open Space	Location	Park	Recreational Facility
St. Joseph's Park	Hackensack Street/Hoboken Avenue	X	X
Ann Street Park	Cornelia Street	X
Park Avenue and Railroad Avenue Park	Park Avenue and Railroad Avenue	X
Borough Hall and Park	Patterson Avenue	X
Uhland Street Park	Uhland Street	X	X
Grove Street Park	Grove Street	X	X
Randolph Avenue Park	Randolph Avenue	X
Cottage Place Park	Carlton Avenue and Cottage Place	X
McKensie Field and Park	Wall Street and Grant Street	X	X
Sesselman Park	Carlton Avenue	X
Riggins Field	Hackensack Street and Railroad Avenue		X

§ 210-3 Use of parks.

Parks may be used by all persons without regard to the residence of the users, subject to the rules and regulations of § 210-5.

§ 210-4 Use of recreational facilities.

[Amended 4-17-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-05]

The use of recreational facilities shall be restricted to use by Borough residents unless prior permission is obtained from the Recreation Director of the Borough of East Rutherford. The Borough may prescribe forms of application and determine reasonable conditions, e.g., insurance, for use. The use of recreational facilities by Borough-sponsored or -organized residential activities shall be paramount, and the Recreation Director of the Borough of East Rutherford is authorized to restrict the use of recreational facilities by Borough residents in order to permit officially sponsored or organized activities.

Rules and regulations governing use and fees.

(1)

All applications for use of park facilities must be submitted to the Director of Recreation at least 60 days in advance of the requested date and shall be subject to the rules and regulations stipulated herein. Such application must be accompanied by a certificate of insurance. Insurance coverage must be provided by either of the following methods:

(a)

A separate policy with the following limits: $1,000,000 comprehensive general liability, $1,000,000 property damage and $1,000,000 spectator liability.

(b)

Obtain an endorsement to an existing policy with limits, by category, equal to or better than the insured on the policy endorsement.

(2)

Application for facility use is to be submitted to the Director's office, where approval will be granted or denied. The application must be signed by a responsible person who will be held accountable for any damage or loss of property arising from such use and must state in detail the purpose for which the facility is to be used.

(3)

Permission will not be granted for any time or use which will interfere with either recreational programs or school activities. An approval permit may be canceled subsequently, if it is determined that the approval date interferes with a recreation or school program. Use of the facility shall be subject to Becton Regional High School scheduling responsibility for the Riggin Field site from September through June for school-related activities.

(4)

The permission granted, and priority on the facility, is for only the date and hour specified, the purpose stated in the application, and the designated area

(5)

A permit can be canceled if its provisions or intent are violated in any way. The Director shall determine such violations.

(6)

Inappropriate behavior on the part of any party issued a permit for such items and instances as rowdiness, lewdness or disrespect towards other individuals at the facilities, or violations of § 210-5 of this Code, will mean immediate cancellation of the permit.

(7)

No equipment belonging to the Borough of East Rutherford or the educational facility with rights to the facility being utilized shall be moved without permission. There shall be no alteration of any property.

(8)

Any entity granted a permit is expected to abide by the designated facility's restrictions, such as parking and use of walkways.

(9)

A permit is not transferable.

(10)

Use of field house and concession buildings will not be permitted, other than access to bathroom facilities. It will be the responsibility of the person granted the permit to inspect the bathroom facilities for damage prior to the use. If damage is found, it is to be reported immediately to the Director. Any damage to Borough facilities found after the use by the permittee will be the responsibility of the organization which obtained the permit.

(11)

In the event a field is requested by another municipality for a town-sponsored athletic program, whether it be for practice or games, such use shall be permitted and the fee waived. The municipality requesting such use shall provide evidence of sufficient insurance coverage. That municipality shall also be responsible for the costs associated with special police/crossing marshals, or standby ambulance coverage, if required. Cleanup costs associated with the use of fields will be the responsibility of the municipality which has obtained the permit. Costs associated with personnel to operate field lighting will be the responsibility of the municipality obtaining the permit.[1]

[1]

Editor's Note: Former Subsection B(11) and (12) was repealed 5-16-2023 by Ord. No. 2023-16. This ordinance also redesignated former Subsection B(13) and (14) as B(11) and (12), respectively.

(12)

A security deposit of $500 may be required for any permits issued hereunder. A usage fee shall be at a cost of up to $250 per day.

[Amended 5-16-2023 by Ord. No. 2023-16]

§ 210-5 Rules and regulations.

It is intended by the Mayor and Council that use of public parks and recreational facilities of the Borough of East Rutherford be enjoyed by all persons to their fullest and that the use of the facilities therein be made available to the public subject to the terms of this article and to the following rules and regulations:

No animals shall be led or let loose in parks or recreational facilities.

No persons shall sell or offer for sale any goods without permission from the Mayor and Council and without acquiring a permit from the Borough Clerk.

No alcoholic beverages shall be permitted in any park or recreational facility unless permission is received from the Mayor and Council or except during activities sponsored by the Mayor and Council.

Betting or gambling of any type is prohibited.

Baseball will be permitted only on diamonds set aside for this activity.

Hitting of any golf balls or use of golf clubs is prohibited.

Smoking is prohibited.

No person shall cut, deface, injure, remove or disturb any tree, shrub, building, fence, bench or any other structure, apparatus or property or pick, cut or remove any shrub, bush or flower or mark or write upon any building, fence, bench, sign or other structure.

No person shall make or kindle a fire in any park or recreational facility without written permission from the Director of Recreation,

No entertainment or exhibition of any kind shall be given without the direction and approval of the Director of Recreation.

[Amended 4-17-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-05]

No one shall be permitted in any park or recreational facility from one hour after sunset until sunrise, excepting when the express permission is granted by the Director of Recreation for organized and authorized teams to play under the lights.

[Amended 4-17-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-05]

No person shall distribute circulars or other written material or affix any placards or signs in the parks without permission from the Mayor and Council.

Bicycles may not be ridden in parks or recreational facilities. They must be walked through the parks and recreational facilities, except in specially designated areas.

Tennis court regulations as adopted by the Mayor and Council from time to time shall be adhered to by all residents and nonresidents.

The Recreational Commission compiles a list of days, times and areas to be set aside for all responsible organizations. These organizations shall use the fields during these times. The fields are open to all other residents and nonresidents at any other times.

No person shall throw stones or any foreign objects.

No profane or abusive language shall be used in any areas or facilities of the park.

No person shall engage in any lewd or indecent exposure in any park or recreational facility.

No skateboards or motorized boards are allowed in any park or recreational facility, except where designated.

All jungle gym facilities will be age restricted according to signage.

Fireworks shall be prohibited in all parks and recreational facilities.

[Added 10-17-2017 by Ord. No. 2017-17]

§ 210-6 Application to other regulations.

These rules and regulations are supplemental to all Borough ordinances and statutes of the State of New Jersey and are not intended to nor shall they relieve any person of the duties to observe other provisions as set forth in any New Jersey statute or ordinance of the Borough of East Rutherford.

§ 210-7 Closing of parks or recreational facilities; lightning risk warnings.

[Amended 12-18-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-10]

The Borough may act to temporarily close or limit the use of parks or recreational facilities whenever, in the judgment of the appropriate enforcing authority, as defined in § 210-8, such action is deemed necessary or desirable for the protection of the health or safety of persons entitled to use of such facilities.

As used in this section, the term "lightning risk warning" shall mean the activation of the lightning warning system siren or strobe light or the happening of any event which a reasonable person would perceive to be a risk to health and safety due to lightning.

If a lightning risk warning occurs, all parks or recreational facilities will be closed.

If a park or recreational facility is closed, as provided in Subsection C:

(1)

All activities within such park or recreational facility shall immediately cease until the lightning warning system provides the all-clear sound; and

(2)

All persons within the park or recreational facility when the lightning risk warning occurs shall immediately exit the park or recreational facility and not return until the lightning warning system provides the all-clear sound.

§ 210-8 Enforcing authorities.

Members of the Police Department of the Borough of East Rutherford, designated agents of the Parks and Recreation Department or the Mayor and Council shall be authorized to prohibit any actions or conduct which they may consider to be dangerous, improper or immoral or any acts or actions in violation of the rules and regulations hereinbefore provided and shall have the power of expulsion.

§ 210-9 Use by groups restricted.

[Amended 4-17-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-05]

Any and all groups of six or more persons must obtain permission in advance from the Director of Recreation in order to use the Borough-owned park or recreational facility.

§ 210-10 Violations and penalties.

If this article of the Code of the Borough of East Rutherford provides for the licensing or permitting of the violator, the Mayor and Council of the Borough of East Rutherford reserve the right to revoke such permit or license.

Any person found guilty of violating this article of the Code of the Borough of East Rutherford shall be subject to a penalty consisting of a fine or imprisonment, or both, subject to the discretion of the Judge, the maximum of which shall be the maximum fine not to exceed $1,000 or term of imprisonment permitted to be imposed by the court having jurisdiction over the violation of this article of the Code of the Borough of East Rutherford.

In the event of a continuing violation, each day shall constitute a separate offense.