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Municipal Policy Committee reviews parks-code overhaul and advances cemetery ordinance drafting
Summary
The Municipal Policy Committee reviewed an update to Arlington’s Parks code and continued consideration of a draft city cemetery ordinance on April 22, asking staff for clarified penalties, nuisance provisions and a fee schedule for grave sales and interments.
Council Member Odom Westley reported that the Municipal Policy Committee discussed proposed updates to the Parks chapter of the city code and continued a review of a draft city-owned cemetery ordinance during its April 22 meeting.
The parks-code revisions are largely administrative updates and clarifications but also contain substantive changes to permit and nuisance rules. Committee members heard a presentation from Parks Director James Olofsky summarizing suggested edits: update references (for example, Ditto Golf Course is now Texas Ranger Golf Club), reorganize provisions for clarity, modify permit processes for amplified sound and alcohol with an appeal process handled by a hearing officer, and align penalty provisions with other city ordinances.
The committee considered new nuisance and behavior provisions intended to give staff more enforcement tools in parks. Proposed restrictions discussed included prohibiting shopping carts and large personal property items inconsistent with park use (tents, sleeping bags, mattresses), limiting unattended personal property to one cubic yard when not incidental to lawful park use, capping drop-in pavilion use at four hours in a 24-hour period, banning storage of personal property in parks, and prohibiting bathing, sleeping or laundry in restrooms or fountains. The draft would also require permits for drones and unmanned aircraft during special events.
The committee also continued discussion of a draft ordinance related to the city-owned cemetery (reportedly located on or near Mary Street). Topics under review include interment procedures, conveyance of burial rights, marker requirements, a fee schedule and responsibilities of a third-party cemetery operator. Odom Westley said MPC will reconvene on May 13 to address abandonment and appeals, a draft fee schedule, and terms for a cemetery-operator partnership agreement. Staff will prepare the ordinance for first and final reading after council and committee input.
No final ordinance was adopted at this meeting; the committee asked staff to return with requested edits and a proposed fee schedule.
