Police say signs need to be posted in park
LUZERNE TWP. – Until the Brownsville-Luzerne Park Board posts signs listing park hours and prohibited activities, police can do little to combat some of the problems there. That’s what Luzerne Township police Cpl. Mike Nicholson told the park board Tuesday.
“We need signs. I can’t enforce anything in this park, because there aren’t any signs at either end of the park saying anything you aren’t allowed to do,” Nicholson said.
He said it is particularly important for the park to post the hours it is open, so he has probable cause to approach a vehicle in the park at night. Nicholson said underage drinking cases and even drug cases have been thrown out of court because he initially had no reason to approach the vehicles in the park.
“You have to make sure you have enough signs that if they tear them up, rip them down or burn them, you can put another one up,” Nicholson said.
He said he will patrol the park whenever possible and sit in various locations to try to catch people who are illegally dumping items in the park, but he also needs more support from the park board.
“When (violators) request a hearing, it would be nice to have a park board member come and testify about the problems you’ve had,” Nicholson said.
The board authorized the township police to tow abandoned vehicles from the park. The board is also looking into having signs made, listing the park hours and rules.
In other matters, board member Andrew French said the board needs to complete work to be done with a state grant, including installing a water line and improving the roads, within the next six weeks so the park is in a better position to secure another state grant with an October application deadline. The park board has been trying to get grant money for a $225,000 restroom facility and connection to a public sewer system.
The board also is seeking a grant to help with the removal of a number of industrial-sized tires in the old mud bog area.
Luzerne Township officials have received complaints about the potential health risks from West Nile encephalitis associated with mosquitoes that could breed in water the tires.
Director Gary Crable reported that a crew from Stump Creek Lumber, the company hired to timber the park, will clean up the logged area and put gravel around the pavilions. The contract with Stump Creek runs through October, but concerns had been raised about the condition of some areas of the park after the logging operation.