Things seem to be getting worse and worse at Dolores Park. You’ve heard about the trash. You’ve heard about the increased Park Enforcement presence that will ticket you for every possible infraction. I’ve even seen it in person when a paletero (read: ice cream man) was ticketed while making a living. And surely you’ve seen the video of park attendees and a ranger arguing over the use of a table in the park. Well, rumor has it that the same officer involved in that dispute is also behind the park's latest uproar.
According to Mission Local, Michael Libertin attached his hammock to a couple of trees in the park in hopes of taking a nap, which ranger J. Chan thought violated parks code 4.05, which prohibits "malicious defacement, damage or destruction of real or personal property."
I don’t know about you, but I have never seen anyone nap maliciously, especially in a hammock. Plus, people who have hammocks, or even slacklines, usually set them up in such a way that there isn’t damage to the trees or surrounding area. Case in point, Libertin — who plans to contest the $192 citation — says the straps he used are considered "tree-friendly." He even took a photograph to prove that no tree was harmed during his nap.
“I could see why, as a politician or someone who lives near the park, you wouldn’t want to see people smoking pot and smoking cigarettes and drinking,” Libertin told Mission Local, “but I don’t think citing people in hammocks is really gonna cut down on people drinking beer.”
Mission Local was unable to confirm if hammocks are indeed prohibited in Dolores Park, but as we all learned from the aforementioned table video, household items or structural alterations are most definitely not allowed. Also, balloons, signs, piñatas, and similar items cannot be attached to trees, so don’t even think about partying semi-permanently on a warm day.
The fun police are out in full force, folks, so try to follow the rules to avoid unnecessary ticketing. And, as always, Dolores Park is a pack-in-pack-out type of place, so take your trash with you or leave it bagged in the designated areas. And nap safely out there.
[via Mission Local; photo courtesy of smi23le/Flickr]
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