Bullhead City council enacts ban on jumping and diving from Rotary Park jetty

Bullhead City Council on Oct. 7 adopted Ordinance No. 2025-10 amending Chapter 12.12 of the Bullhead City Municipal Code to prohibit jumping and diving from the jetty at Rotary Park. The ordinance and an associated resolution were adopted by a unanimous 7–0 vote.

Recreation Superintendent Dave Heath told the council the jetty was installed more than 30 years ago to aid boat launches and provide a fishing platform, but recent fluctuations in water level and repeated unsafe conduct by people — often children — have increased the risk of serious injury. "The problem we have there is the desire for people, for mostly kids, to want to jump off of the jetty," Heath said. "It's just plain unsafe and it always has been and it's become more unsafe in recent years because the water fluctuates so much." He said depth at the jetty can vary from about a foot to as much as eight feet depending on releases and flows.

Heath said the jetty has signage advising against jumping and diving and that park rangers regularly warn visitors, but that signage and verbal warnings are not enforceable as law. The new amendment makes jumping or diving from the jetty a violation of the city parks code to give staff an enforceable tool to deter dangerous conduct.

The ordinance was presented, discussed briefly with no public opposition during the item, and approved. Staff did not propose a schedule of civil fines in the discussion; enforcement was described as part of routine park-management operations.