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Brown Deer adopts Ordinance 26-08 updating parks code, clarifies pet and grilling rules
Summary
The Village Board adopted Ordinance 26-08 to repeal and replace Chapter 42 of the municipal code, updating park rules (including use of alcohol, grilling language and where pets are allowed) and adding 10 Mile Park; trustees agreed to a clarifying amendment to remove ambiguous references to 'village park.'
The Village Board of Brown Deer on June 1 adopted Ordinance 26-08, repealing and replacing Chapter 42 of the village municipal code to update parks and recreation rules, add 10 Mile Park to the code, and clarify permitted activities across park divisions.
Staff presented a revised draft of the parks ordinance, noting the prior code changes from 2022 and advising that attorneys had adjusted language to clarify grilling rules and other operational details. "We had some weird language in there," a staff presenter said, explaining the change was meant to make clear that built-in grills are for cooking food and not for other fire uses.
Trustees focused discussion on restrictions in Section 6C that referenced "village park" and whether pets would be allowed in certain parks and areas. Trustee Woods and others asked whether the phrasing applied to all parks or only specific divisions; staff explained that the restriction in question applies to specific divisions (for example, Division 5—Badger Meter River Park) and that they intended to remove the solitary word "village" where it created confusion. Board members agreed to adopt an amendment during final approval to delete the confusing reference and to apply the pets restriction consistently to buildings, shelters and playgrounds while permitting dogs in general grassy park areas where specified.
Trustee Thompson moved to approve the consented version with the discussed amendments; Trustee Gre seconded. The board conducted a roll-call vote with trustees voting in favor, and President Montgomery announced the ordinance had been adopted.
The ordinance also includes an update to hours for village trick-or-treating (noting the village will observe trick-or-treat hours on Saturday this year because Halloween falls on Saturday) and references a storm sewer easement at 4110 West Wooddale Avenue that was listed on the consent agenda for review. The board directed staff to incorporate the editorial corrections flagged during the meeting before finalizing the ordinance language.
Next steps: the ordinance was adopted by the board at the meeting and staff will publish the corrected language as discussed; any operational guidance about enforcement (for example, signage or maps indicating which parks allow pets) was not specified in the record and will be handled by village staff.
