Not friendly to metal detectors....

[finderfarthing]

OK so I ran into this road block in my town. I e-mailed the city and asked permission for my kids and I to treasure hunt with a medal detector down by the river. (We are new to metal detecting by the way) This is what i got:

965.03 PRESERVATION OF PROPERTY AND NATURAL FEATURES.
No person shall injure, deface, disturb or befoul any part of the park or playground or any building, sign, equipment or other property therein; nor shall any person remove, injure or destroy any tree, flower, shrub, rock or mineral.

Any thoughts/suggestions?
Thanks

 

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[GrizLeeBear]

Yes, never ask. It is easier to leave if and when asked.

 

[TreasureWriter]

[965.03 PRESERVATION OF PROPERTY AND NATURAL FEATURES.
No person shall injure, deface, disturb or befoul any part of the park or playground or any building, sign, equipment or other property therein; nor shall any person remove, injure or destroy any tree, flower, shrub, rock or mineral.]

It doesn't say, "No metal detecting". I think if they said anything an attorney would have a field day with this ordinance..."disturb"....pretty much can be construed to mean that we have this park and playground but you cannot use it or set foot on it or pick a dandelion. This ordinance is very ambiguous. Do they even own the river front? This is a classic example of how inane politicians and lawyers are. Maybe someone needs to have the city council cited when they walk in the park for "disturbing" the park! lol

Really it all depends upon how much aggravation you would possibly want. There are better places to search nearby I am sure.

 

[dustytrails123]

you only bring attention to yourself and the hobby asking if you can do something

 

[Jim in Idaho]

OK so I ran into this road block in my town. I e-mailed the city and asked permission for my kids and I to treasure hunt with a medal detector down by the river. (We are new to metal detecting by the way) This is what i got:

965.03 PRESERVATION OF PROPERTY AND NATURAL FEATURES.
No person shall injure, deface, disturb or befoul any part of the park or playground or any building, sign, equipment or other property therein; nor shall any person remove, injure or destroy any tree, flower, shrub, rock or mineral.

Any thoughts/suggestions?
Thanks

First major mistake...."asked permission for my kids and I to treasure hunt". If you ask, the majority of the time you will be told "no". That's just how the world works. People in charge express their power only by saying "no". The best policy by far is to simply go do what you want to do, and deal with the consequences when, and if, they show up. Not only does asking rob you of the opportunity, but sets a precedent for the next poor guy that asks. And, once that precedent gets established, it will take an arm & leg to get it reversed.
Jim

 

[Tom_in_CA]

finder-farthing, let me save you some time in the future: All such verbage that they gave you (forbidding alterations, vandalizm, defacement, taking, harvesting, etc...) exist at ALL public land, EVERYWHERE. And they pre-date detecting, of course. They were, to (doh), forbid someone from cutting down the trees, vandalizing the swingsets, harvesting all the roses from the park to sell at the flea market, taking all the tan-bark for use in your own garden, etc...

Technically though, all such text inherently refers to the end result. Thus if you leave no trace of your presence (cover your spots, leave no marks, etc...), then technically you have not alterED, defacED, or vandalizED anything, now have you?? But go figure, what's the knee-jerk image a lot of desk-bound bureaucrats have, if someone comes in asking about metal detecting? "Holes" right? There is an admitted mental image of guys-who-will dig (geeks with shovels). So what do you THINK will be their "safe" answer?

You are simply the latest member of the N.O.C.U.Y.A. club ("No One Cared Until You Asked" club). The mere fact that anyone emails or walks in asking to do any certain odd-ball thing, merely presumes that something is inherently wrong, or damaging, or evil with their activity, that they had to ask, to begin with. I mean, if it were innocuous and harmless (like frying frisbees), then why would you be asking? This is not subconsciuosly lost on the person you are asking. So they will choose the safe answer, and find something to morph to fit your "pressing question". When odds are, they might never have paid a moments notice to you or anyone detecting (unless you were being a nuisance in some other way, or raiding an obvious historic monument, etc...).

Thus in the future, do not go asking "can I metal detect" questions like that. Look up the city muni. codes yourself. If you see nothing there specifically saying "no metal detectors", then presto, it must not prohibited.