The Zionsville Board of Parks and Recreation approved a resolution in June to update the rules and regulations for visitors at town parks. The update is an addition to the rules that were updated in January as part of a periodic review of existing policies completed by the board.
Park Superintendent Jarod Logsdon said the update adds language that states “no person shall possess or consume any alcoholic beverages or controlled substances, as defined by state criminal statutes, on park property, except for the lawful possession and consumption of alcoholic beverages sold and dispensed… under the Town Special Event application process.”
Logsdon said the change is specifically regarding efforts of the parks department to attract park patrons 21 and older.
“The reason for this update is, we have partnered with Maplelawn Farmstead for our Barns and Brews program,” Logsdon said. “One of our priorities in recent years is to expand our programming to all ages. So, while we are exceptionally good at programming to our younger audiences and our families, we do tend to lose teenagers because they naturally are harder to grasp, and that just expands to adults.”
Logsdon said the partnership for Barns and Brews has helped the parks understand how to responsibly manage park programs that also allow alcohol.
The board approved the resolution updating those rules unanimously. The rule does not go into place immediately. The parks department will now work with the legal department on the creation of an ordinance for consideration by the town council.
The Town of Zionsville has more than a dozen parks and trails/trail connections, including the American Legion Trail Crossing; the Big-4 Rail Trail; Carpenter Nature Preserve; Carter Station; Creekside Nature Park; Elm Street Green; Heritage Trail Park; Lincoln Park Mulberry Fields; Overley-Worman Park; Starkey Nature Park; Turkey Foot Park; Village Corner; Wetland Reserve; and Zion Nature Sanctuary.
The Lions Park is owned and maintained by the Zionsville Lions Club. The Zionsville Golf Course is owned by the town and maintained and operated by Zionsville National, LLC. Jennings Field is operated by Zionsville Community Schools.
Read more about Zionsville’s parks at zionsville-in.gov under the Parks & Trails tab.
