Sandy parks board reviews proposed park-rules update; asks staff for clarifications on littering, art and wildlife

At its January meeting held via Zoom, the City of Sandy Parks and Trails Advisory Board reviewed a draft update to the city’s park rules and directed staff to incorporate board edits, seek attorney review and return a revised draft at the next board meeting before the city council considers adoption.

The draft would replace and expand rules currently in Sandy Municipal Code Chapter 12.12, last updated in 2016 to address tobacco and vaping. The board and staff said the overhaul aims to reflect how people now use parks, improve enforceability and add rules on items such as class 1 e-bikes, amplified sound and use of fireworks and firearms.

Rochelle Anderholm Parche, Sandy’s park and recreation director, told the board the draft had already been reviewed by the Sandy Police Department and the city attorney and that staff would record board comments for a revised version. “I can definitely incorporate these changes, have them attorney reviewed, and then talk about it next meeting to see if I’ve captured what this group would like to see,” Anderholm Parche said.

Board members flagged several detailed issues they want clarified before the draft goes to council. On littering, members said the proposed language that bars bringing garbage “originated outside the park” reads awkwardly and could be misinterpreted to forbid ordinary picnic waste; members asked staff to reorder and clarify the paragraphs so that normal “carry in/carry out” picnic waste is clearly permitted while large-scale…