The Rapid City Public Works Committee on Oct. 14 approved the introduction and first reading of an ordinance that would prohibit pedestrians from occupying medians the city posts as unsafe, saying the measure is intended to reduce interactions between pedestrians and vehicles.

The ordinance would add section 12.12.0.14 to the Rapid City Municipal Code and allow the city engineer (through traffic engineering staff) to determine which medians meet safety requirements and post signs that prohibit occupying those medians. Councilman Pettigrew opened the discussion by asking whether the fire department still staged its annual “Fill the Boot” collections in medians; Fire Chief Culberson said the department has not used medians for that collection for the last two years and that “they’re all on private property and are there, at the express consent of the property owner.”

Councilwoman Meyer asked whether the city has local data showing medians were causing crashes or near misses. City staff said police have anecdotal reports of “near misses” but could not point to a documented number of accidents tied directly to people in medians. Staff explained the proposal is intended to be targeted: wider, grassy medians on low-speed streets (for example, West Boulevard) likely would not be restricted, while narrow medians on higher-speed, heavy-traffic corridors (for example, parts of Omaha Street) could be posted as off-limits.

City staff described the ordinance as aligning with a broader Safe System approach to pedestrian and traffic safety and characterized it as “low-hanging fruit” among forthcoming measures. When asked about enforcement, staff said signage would be used to identify restricted medians and that occupying a posted median would be prohibited under the ordinance; as staff put it, “The ordinance prohibits occupying the median that's been signed.”

Council members also raised concerns about the welfare of people who occupy medians. One council member said the presence of individuals in medians had created safety and sanitation concerns and described specific worries about people who appear unwell and could fall into traffic. Chief Culberson and police staff responded that the city’s Quality of Life unit and mobile medics make regular wellness checks on individuals in public ways and that first responders frequently encounter dangerous interactions between pedestrians and vehicles.

A motion and second were made and the committee approved the introduction and first reading by voice vote. No roll-call tally was recorded in the transcript beyond a voice vote of “Aye” and the chair’s statement that the motion passed.

The ordinance will proceed as an introduced item; the text discussed would give the city engineer authority to post signs restricting specific medians and would make occupying a signed median a prohibited act under the Rapid City Municipal Code. The committee did not specify implementation dates or penalties in the recorded discussion.