City moves forward prohibiting camping at Kindley Park News Staff Tue, 04/16/2024 - 1:58 pm
- (THOMAS WALLNER | THE GRAHAM LEADER) The entrance sign at Kindley Park which provides the limit for camping and fees associated with staying per day. The Graham City Council approved the first reading Thursday, April 11 of an ordinance amendment that will restrict all camping at the city park. Two more readings will be required for the amendment to be passed.
- (THOMAS WALLNER | THE GRAHAM LEADER) An electrical hookup at Kindley Park which Graham Police Chief Brent Bullock mentioned in a Graham City Council meeting last week as being exposed. The chief said those who have RVs will try to directly hook into the electrical if they do not have the proper plug.
Thomas Wallner editor@grahamleader.com
A first reading of an ordinance amendment to prohibit camping was passed by the Graham City Council last week. City staff requested the change by the council as a public health and safety measure.
Following reported concerns by the city code enforcement officer, a draft ordinance amendment was established to prohibit camping of any type at Kindley Park.
“City staff proposal is to prohibit camping at Kindley Park as a public health and safety measure. City staff are not recommending full closure of the park,” City Manager Eric Garretty said. “The council was previously briefed on the current issues at Kindley Park. ...The proposed ordinance amendment would formally prohibit camping at Kindley Park and amend regulations regarding disposal of trash.”
According to the city’s code of ordinances, no camp may be established for more than 15 consecutive days and campers must collect garbage and trash around their sites and place it in receptacles provided by the city or bury it at least 500 feet away from the lake.
Under the new ordinance, no camping will be permitted at the park and campers must collect garbage and trash around their camps daily and place it in receptacles provided by the city.
During the council meeting Thursday, March 28, Garretty said the Code Enforcement Officer BJ Cook has dealt with repeated concerns at the park. The city manager said during the meeting Thursday, April 11 that an amended ordinance would still be requested.
Cook wanted to amend the ordinance to prohibit overnight camping or any type of extended stay and instead make the space a day-use only recreational park limited to picnics, small gatherings and fishing. Council Member Jeff Dickinson said that using the park that way could be a benefit for the community.
“We can actually purpose that for families to go out and enjoy that park on a daily basis more so than the camping and worrying about who is there, whereas Eddleman is still for RVs and overnight camping,” Dickinson said. “…It would encourage some of the families to actually use that park that’s not being utilized now without the necessity of utilities or patrol.”
Graham Police Department Chief Brent Bullock said there have been several police-related issues at the park in the past. The chief said in the past sex offenders have camped in the park and were removed and, in general, contacting the individuals at the park can be a concern for law enforcement.
“These trailers, or tents, ...are considered their house so we can’t open the door and see who’s in there or anything like that,” he said. “So if we knock on the door and try to make contact they don’t have to answer the door. So it takes us a good while to identify people who are out there camping.”
Due to the limited amount of electrical hookups for campers, Cook said many who stay at the park are tent campers or have camper trailers in disrepair.
“Within the past three years, code enforcement has worked multiple cases of illegal dumping where raw sewage is being released onto the ground in the park,” he said in his initial request. “The majority of people identified in the park after overstaying the allotted number of days are homeless or have recently been kicked out of a household within the city.”
Along with sewage being dumped at the location, there are other concerns that the chief had for the location.
“I think there’s one electrical outlet out there and actually the last time and the time before that we went out to remove somebody from the premises, it seems as if that one electrical outlet is always being messed with. If you’re somebody with a trailer that doesn’t have a cord they just wire directly into it or they don’t have the right cord. Of course it’s still a park and with kids and other people in there (and) every time that box is never closed and wires are exposed,” he said.
The chief said patrolling the park can be a challenge because unless the department receives a complaint at the park it is not on the department’s daily tasks to check the area.
“Most of the time when BJ goes out there it’s kind of a rule for safety that he has somebody else go with him and probably, within the last year, 99% of the time I’ve gone with him personally I have witnessed pretty much a majority of this stuff,” Bullock said.
Mayor Alex Heartfield asked the city manager if he had a cost estimate if camping would be allowed and it had adequate facilities. Garretty said the funding was available, but it would not eliminate the problems currently at the park.
“The council has monies available that would be eligible to be spent on a project like this in the Lakes Fund, the fund balance that we’re building from the lake lot sales,” Garretty said. “I think it would be reasonable to say it would probably take a minimum of about $50,000 to make some RV campsites back, put up the electrical connection sites, and put up the water connection sites. If we’re going to do that, in addition, we would need to put in the sewer system for the RVs and then probably put a restroom up there.”
Garretty said if the council made the decision to keep camping they would have to have proper sewage disposal to adhere to Texas Commission on Environmental Quality regulation regarding raw sewage.
The city manager said that if the ordinance is passed after another two readings by the council at future meetings, it will give law enforcement the ability to more effectively get rid of those staying longer than allowed.
“When BJ, the PD or the sheriff’s office goes out there they can say ‘Hey, you need to pack up right now. It’s prohibited…’ and they would basically stand there until they go,” he said. “With the limited presence that we have, with this amendment to the ordinance, you empower them to say ‘Hey you’ve got to pack up and leave now.’”
Breaking News Off
Most Popular
Comments / 0