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Visits to Belfast’s municipal parks and walking paths have been up in recent years, but with more people, the city has also reported more rule-breaking and nuisance behavior.
Among the issues are that some visitors have repeatedly dumped large bags of household trash in the parks’ cans, while others have let their dogs run freely in the parks despite a requirement that they be leashed, according to information recently presented to the city council. In other cases, people are spending the night in recreational vehicles parked there.
Now, the city has updated a number of its parks regulations to respond to the problems that have creeped up in recent years. The council approved the changes at its meeting last week.
The need for Belfast to make those changes reflects how the coronavirus pandemic has reshaped behavior across much of Maine, bringing an influx of new residents and visitors to many communities and a growing preference for spending time in outdoor spaces.
“The uptick in park usage is a trend stemming from the 2020 pandemic, and that trend continues in many of our open spaces,” said Pam Salokangas, director of the city’s parks and recreation department. “Our current and new residents and visitors alike continue to visit our parks, park areas and rail trail on a consistent basis throughout the year.”
One of the challenges in recent years has been “countless violations” of the requirement that dogs be leashed in the parks, Salokangas said in a recent memo to the city manager. Moreover, the city has not been issuing violations to those breaking the leash law.
The updated rules specify that dogs must be leashed in all city parks, with the exception of the fenced-in section of the Belfast Dog Park and at Sportsman Park. Organizers of special events featuring animals may also receive exemptions.
The new rules also attempt to address the issue of some people repeatedly dumping their household garbage in city parks, which quickly fills up the space in the existing trash cans. Going forward, any violations of that kind may be reported to local police for investigation, according to the updated rules.
The council approved language that specifically prohibits parking recreational vehicles in city parks after they have closed for the night — with an exception for permitted event vehicles. It also expanded the rule banning smoking in city parks, specifying that it applies to less traditional forms of smoking such as vaping and cannabis consumption.
Other changes relate to the hours the parks are open, the use of fires and grills, the consumption of alcohol and the use of the rentable Belfast Boathouse, among other things.
In addition, the city has raised the general fine that residents could have to pay if they violate any provisions in its parks ordinance, such as by illegally dumping litter or using the parks outside of their hours of operation. The fine used to be $50 for each violation of the ordinance, and it’s now $50 for the first violation, $100 for the second and $250 for additional ones.
But it’s possible not all residents will think the rules go far enough in controlling some types of nuisance behavior.
Before city councilors approved the new rules last week, resident Ken Morris asked them to do something about a loud group of young adults that frequently spends time in a parking lot next to the Belfast Common, sometimes disturbing neighbors at 1 a.m. or later. Morris also noted that he has felt the need to clean up after the late-night guests.
“We have been working with the Belfast Police Department to solve this problem. They’ve been very helpful, and they’re doing their best, but ultimately, it’s still going on. The police can’t be there all the time, and so the problem persists,” Morris said.